Llego Las Fotos !!

So .. I´ve finally gotten my pics transferred to a CD which means I can post them. The school nor the corner internet webshop has provisions for Flash Memory cards from my cam so I had to go to the mall (Mega-Centro) and get the disc made up.

For those of you not used to travelling 3rd class in the 3rd world .. that means catching a concho (route-taxi in Jamaica) which is like a Jitney only its a beat up old car instead of a beat up old bus .. the buses here are known as Guaguas and the motorbike taxis are moto-conchos ..

I only get to borrow a car on weekends (if yo tengo suerte) so during the week its public trans and/or .. a pie (on foot)

Speaking of cars .. many of the cars here have been modified to use LPG (cooking gas) since its a lot cheaper but the gas stations are a LOT more dangerous. I remeber watching a safety video back in my Shell days about a similar gas station in Mexico City that blew up .. couldnt help remembering it when I was at the station in the pic above.

This next pic is a scene from carnival a few weeks back .. what a crazy time. These Dominicans estan LOCO !!

The streets were packed with what must have easily been more than the entire population of the Bahamas and everyone was dancing to merengue, bachata, salsa and of course reggaeton. The carnival here is closely tied with religious symbolism as the departure of carnality before lent. Which means there were lots of demonic looking costumes symbolizing el Diablo himself.

Theres also a tradition dating back centuries that allows people to slap each other with pig stomachs filled with blood. Thankfully in the ´06 theyve revamped that tradition and replaced them with Nerf type football shaped faux pig stomachs and basically guys just spank girls butts and vice versa. Nice modernization I thought. All the fun with less of the mess !

Anyway since I just got my pics sorted out theres just waaaay to much to post all in one sitting besides I aint at the school now so I´m paying by the minute and this friggin Ladrone has minimal RAM on his PC so pics take 4ever to upload.

I´ll keep shooting and keep posting.

Oh yeah .. the Dominicans are through to the semifinals against Cuba in the Baseball Classic Word Series. The play mañana at 3pm. You should watch if you can .. should be on ESPN International. The place will be jumpin here on the streets of Old Santo Domingo. And I´ll be here going loco with the rest of my paisanos.

PAZ !!!

I'm actually learning something

From my last 2 posts it may seem like it's one big fiesta down here for me .. but I'm actually studying really hard.

Although, I'm having a blast hanging with mis amigos and haven't left the city yet (it's really big) so no adventure sports (unless trying to dance bachata like a dominican qualifies) The city is great though - mucha vida ! full of life. Unlike last time I live in a very basic apartment typically Dominican in a typical barrio .. i.e. this aint no tourist trip. I don't get hassled on the street much cause until I talk most people assume I'm Dominican which is cool ... they have a category for just about every complexion or ethnic mixture here and I've been classed as a Jabao because of my racial mix (and rubio as a sub-cat because of my blondish beard)

Every afternoon following class I spend a few hrs in the park (lots here) studying solo .. I read the newspaper daily underlining words I don't know and looking them up for my flashcards later .. to boost my vocab

Some of the other students are impressed with my speaking ability. I had dinner last night with som of the other students and I was able to communicate easier with the Dominicans than they were. I guess cause I'm picking up not only what they say but how they say it

Dimelo Motra que lo que

Horita me voy

PAZ

Ahhh .. una nueva semana

Back from el fin de semana .. and buddy what a time.

First off .. I mash up my exam on Friday gone .. and then proceeded to get mash up the following day. We hit a few colmados as per normal and then I drove *that's right* to nearby playa del Boca Chica where we checked out the discoteca. Something told me while in the disco *my spidey sense* to go out and check on the car and sure enough it had a FLAT !! there was a spare but the car belonged to mi amigo's cousin and it had rims and NO KEY !! So, we had to get one of the local hustlers "Tigerrones" to *find* a key and get the tire off and changed .. u guessed it dinero .. anyway la vida es asi

So I drove back to mi barrio later that night on the spare and i was more than a little borracho (i'm sure you can guess that one) .. the driving here makes Nassau look like the merry-go-round at Disneyworld. But I made it and no one got hurt .. I bought the paper today to make sure :-)

I woke up a little groggy on Sunday morning but there's this beautiful little solution they have here called "Rapidita" that gets you right in no time. I mussy need to sign a distribution deal for the stuff ...

One of my friends here, David, (pronounced Dahveed) had a death in the family recently and as is customary here (and in many Spanish/Catholic countries) they have a special service and get-together 9 days after the burial .. this service is known as La Novena. Yesterday was his grandmothers Novena so I got to see that aspect of life here firsthand .. was a little sad and they sang all the familiar hymns like old rugged cross etc in spanish.(duh!)

Life here is simple and basic. Kids still play hopscotch and can whip up a kite from a funda (plastic store bag) in 2 minutes flat (and they solid little kites with tail an erryting)

The kids here also LOVE "Pelota" otherwise known as Baseball .. and play with balls made from everything from the tops of 5gal water jugs to mashed up looseleaf paper .. they use sticks, whatever as bats and this country has the most foreign players in the American Major Leagues *91 players*

The World Baseball Classic is going on these days and the sports bars are packed .. the Dominicanos beat Venezuela, and Italy last week but lost to Puerto Rico last night in a tragic comedy of errors.

They play Cuba today at 2pm .. and guess where I'll be ??

No but really I aint drinking myself silly .. I'll prolly just have a light beer (UNO) and chill ..

I just like the atmosphere down here. Still working on the pics .. but gimme time.

Finalmente !!

Okay Okay Okay

Being the constant procrastinator, I've finally gotten around to my first post ..

It's largely because it's going to be dificil to get my pics online for you guys and I thought that the blog would be greatly disadvantaged by that .. but I'll keep on trying.

Entonces ... I've been here for about a week and a half so far and I AM LOVING IT !!

This place really is like La Isla Bonita in Madonna's song. I've been to Carnival and a large street festival and several fiestas in these bodegas called Colmados. Been drinking more than my fair share of Presidente and Brugal and eating tons of Mangu -mashed plantains, somethin like mashed potatoes .. in principal alone though- and Habichuelas and of course Cerdo *oink*

Oh yeah, the classes .. son excelente ! I have my first examen this week Friday so remember me. Say a little prayer .. cualquiera

Speaking of prayer, Santo Domingo is the site of the oldest Catedral in the Western Hemisphere. I took lots of great pics and want to get them posted asap.

Okay - Nos Vemos ...

Will post more .. horita !!