Day 2

     Unfortunately this blog post doesn’t do justice to the things we saw and learned today, however I will do my best to not leave anything out…so bear with me!

     Today was the second day of our journey, and felt as if it was the longest day ever.  We all awoke at sunrise to get our daily workout in; some went to the gym and others on a beautiful run next to the beach.  We then traveled to the town of Veron with Ben, where we met up with Kayla, a member of Peace Corps who showed us around the smaller section of Veron known as Domingo Maiz.  We noticed the majority of life takes place outside of the homes, as opposed to the United States, where the family is structured inside.  This really reflects the nature of DR society, which consists of a lot of laws however not much enforcement of the laws.  Therefore, the trust between people and the relationships are incredibly important.

A primary school in nearby Veron

     We then visited a primary school that taught students up until the sixth grade, and then a high school, which Kayla described as providing a good education.  However, most Dominicans are not fortunate enough to attend this school due to various reasons.  We also visited the clinic, which was created entirely by the Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM), and without their leadership in this area, the healthcare system in Veron would be virtually nonexistent.  It truly felt great to be a Hokie seeing the VCOM symbol thousands of miles away, helping a group of people that would otherwise have no access to healthcare.  After our emotional visit to Veron, we stopped at a supermarket to obtain some fruit and other snacks for the week; the difference in lunch and dinner times is messing with us!

    We then had about an hour of class, going over what we saw and how we would integrate what we learned in the classroom with reality.  We then began planning for our sports camps with the kids starting next Monday.  A short break took us to the lagoons where we jumped in and swam the exotic bodies of water.  Ronny conquered his fear and swam across the lagoon! Reggie is next! We ended the day by watching an emotionally tolling video about the sugar cane industry and the batey which we will visit tomorrow.  Even though it was a long and tiring day, it will be one of the most memorable of our lives, and we look forward to the next eight!

Michael Cole