Last Day of Service

We woke up to howling winds again this morning, but thankfully we were able to make it out to our last day of service. Despite a very wet boat ride over there we were all thrilled to finally be able to go back to the school. Eddie and Ash’s group spent the morning rehearsing an authentic Fijian dance taught to us by Tema to perform to the high school in the afternoon. With the help of some of the Yasawa students singing along we managed to pull together a really special performance. After we performed our Fijian dance, we showed off some “American” moves with the ChaCha slide- much to the students delight. Of course they blew us away with their phenomenal singing skills once again when they performed for us one last time. Some of the male students gave a thrilling dance performance and Henry took advantage of the opportunity to join in in which he described as “unexpected and exhilarating”. The girls put on another dance for us before all of us were called upon to join in and dance together as a group. The program ended with a final goodbye song from all the students and a delicious lovo with fish and chicken cooked by kids at the school. Heathers group spent the afternoon painting a water tank at the school and saying their final goodbyes to the kids before returning to the island.

Going with the Flow

Due to the windy weather, GLA students unfortunately were not able to go to service in the neighboring villages today. Despite this challenge, we still accomplished many service tasks on Barefoot Island. One group of students participated in marine service, working with the Dive Shop, to plant coral in the nearby waters. Elisabetta Pittarelli spotted Crown of Thorns Seastars (COTS), which are extremely harmful to the coral reefs, so that they can safely be removed.

Other students painted signs for the chicken coop, which was created by the first GLA session in Fiji. After our morning tasks, when the winds weren’t as bad, we took a short boat ride to Backyard Beach for some trash collection. As a team, we managed to fill ten garbage bags full with plastic bottles and other items that are harmful to the environment.

Before dinner, Joelle Gordon and Nathan Huang played a game of beach volleyball with local staff members including our boat driver Lemeki. We look forward to our daily mentor sessions in which we gather together to talk about our days and important life lessons.

-Sarah Lashovitz and Jennie Shaw

Marine Life

Today, students started their day learning all about the marine life surrounding the Fiji islands. After an educational presentation from Dan, a member of the Dive Shop, everyone went out for yet another fascinating snorkel adventure.

Then, we continued with the activities from yesterday. Kayaking, abseiling, and making jewelry out of coconuts, we were able to experience it all. Madison Henry fearlessly lowered herself over the edge of a 70 foot tall cliff while Zahkiniah Maynard paddled diligently through the crystal clear waters.

Unlike our strictly busy weekdays, our weekends give us a bit more free time. Using this time to their advantage, Samantha Faden and Rachel Esham washed their dirty clothes in the sink, knowing full well that they will likely become dirty once again when we return to service for the upcoming week.

Last night, some of the students enjoyed a late night screening of the movie Zombieland. Perhaps after a sandy game of beach volleyball, we will be able to unwind before sleeping. We are all very excited to get back to service tomorrow.

-Sarah Lashovitz and Jennie Shaw

Lots of Adventures!

After a long but rewarding week of service the weekend kicked off with a bang this morning. We started the day with an authentic Fijian dancing lesson taught by Tema where Dylan, Zac, Henry, and Nathan took advantage of the Fijian costume wear available consisting of grass skirts and expressive face paint. We split up into three groups to do different activities on the island including coconut jewelry making, kayaking, and abseiling. Conquering their fears of heights, Alex Cline, Melanie and Nathan did an exceptional job of abseiling down a rocky cliff by the ocean- and Alyssa loved the experience so much she even went down a second time. During kayaking Emma caught a gnarly wave which rocked their boat. Two of the three groups spent time making bracelets and rings out of coconut shells and some students even used their free time later in the day to finish up on their work. The rest of the group spent time catching up on much needed showers and laying out on the beach. Tonight we’ll be enjoying another traditional Fijian lovo which was prepared earlier today.
Moce!

-Sarah S. and Lexi

Kese Village

Today, Heather and Eddie’s Group had an opportunity to shadow Fijian families in Kese Village. After being greeted by a warm welcome, the families taught us how to cook, clean, and live the day in the life of a Fijian. We learned how to weave bracelets, cook cassava, and herd chickens. The experience was eye opening and life changing. Ash’s group continued their service by having the chance to shadow the Yasawa High School students. We learned how classes and course content differ from our home countries. It was interesting to compare and contrast the education system of the two cultures. It was a sour ending to the day as we found out that our amazing friend Maddie Alexander is heading home because she has been sick for the past week and never got to experience service in the village. We will all miss her so much and hope she gets better soon.

Exhausting, but Rewarding!

If there’s one thing that GLA students have learned this week, it’s that service work is exhausting. But more importantly, we’ve learned that it’s immensely rewarding. And even so, after a long day of hard work, we were able to come back to Barefoot Island yesterday for an unbelievable night of stargazing with Ash, one of our mentors.

Today, the focus shifted gears as each group of students was able to participate in a new and exciting activity. Tifannie Lamb, for example, bonded with kids in Year Two at the primary school while working as a teacher’s assistant. Singing, coloring pictures, and playing with blocks was a great way to get to know these kids. Other students, like Nathan Huang, worked in the farm by not only hauling wheelbarrows full of sand to and from the worksite but also impressing his fellow peers with his machete skills. Alexandra Cline volunteered with some older students by joining in on their English and Arts & Crafts classes. All of us have been very tired from these past few days, but the satisfying feeling we gain each day pushes us to continue the hard work.

-Sarah Lashovitz and Jennie Shaw

Successful Day of Service

Today was another successful day of service for all three mentor groups. Eddie’s group worked on finishing up construction of the greenhouse for Yasawa High School with the help of some of the students. Rachel Esham, Tiffany Lamb, Suwei Liew, Adrianna Sanchez, and Mia Sutherland spent time picking coriander to sell back to the island, which helps bring in profit for the high school. With the help of some music from Justin Timberlake and Taylor Swift we managed to finish construction just in time to watch and cheer on some of the primary school rugby games.

Ash’s group spent the day educating themselves on threats to the reef, such as Crown of Thornes, then went on a snorkeling expedition to spot and remove these creatures which cause damage to coral in the reef when overpopulated. Isabel Shepard and Emma Peltzer showed tons of enthusiasm for the sea cucumber count during their snorkel. Heathers group spent the day building a foundation for a water tank which will be used to collect rain water for the students to use. Alyssa Huang showed a really positive attitude about her work and encouraged the group to get the job done. The afternoon was spent chilling out on the beach and relaxing before mentor sessions and evening activities. Shoutout to the mentors for being resourceful by sharing clothes to expand their wardrobes.

Moce – Sarah Shutt and Lexi Stravato

Another great day!

Lots of very positive feelings after a top day at service. We came away from today feeling like we’d all been very productive. Ash’s group working with Koroi on the greenhouse did an unbelievable job working so well as a team. With some inspirational tunes they were able to get toward the end of their project. The frame is done and looking solid. Just the netting to go. Grace rocked her hat whilst Adzra led the group like a pro!

Eddie’s group continued to build their new found friendships with the high school students. Lots of new perspectives gained and lessons learned from their experiences and captured in their journals. These friendships will continue as we visit Yasawa High School throughout our service days with opportunities to join in games and social activities. Sewei and Sarah in particular were barely seen through the day spending all their time with their year group and choosing to spend break times with them too. Truly positive cultural exchanges.

Heather’s group arrived with great spirits and high energy levels to take on the tremendously excitable and ever ready Yasawa Primary School students. Lizzie, Joelle and Alissa did a top job with the one on one reading program whilst the rest of the group took on the daunting task of working with whole classes! A very busy and productive day for the students at both ends. Congratulations team!

We all walked to Kese Village in the afternoon for a local market run by the women of Kese Village. Koroi told us stories of his growing up and walking the route and showed us where the old palm tree line once stood before raising sea levels which have caused them to retreat. The market was held in a community hall with mothers and their young children selling hand made and other found objects. Nothing like some retail therapy, and the enormous tree at the centre or the village, standing wide and tall outside, added something extra to the occasion.

A new day tomorrow and new service projects for us all. Exciting prospects! Over and out.

More Service

Today was the day we started doing service on the neighboring island. We broke up into our three mentor groups and each group took on a different task. It was a great challenge to wake up at 6:30am in order to leave the island by 7:45am. Ash’s group did not leave until 9:30 because their service started later. Heather and Eddie’s groups worked with students, while Ash’s group was working on constructing a green house. It was a hot and sunny day when we arrived, Ash’s team was struggling to keep up because of the heat, but it all got better when it started raining. Melanie and the rest of her group were hard at work, they had to dig 9 holes and plant posts in order to build the foundation for the greenhouse. It was intense manual labor, but they all had a great time because they accomplished a lot after very few hours. Heather’s group worked as teachers’ assistants and as reading helpers in the primary school. Sarah L. worked with the students of year 2 (6-7yrs) as a teacher’s assistant and helped the kids draw pictures. Joelle worked with students who needed reading help and chatted with those students. Lastly, Eddie’s group shadowed high school students through their classes. We all got back at around 3:30pm and we had a fee hours of downtime before Mentor groups started. It was overall a tiring but very productive day.

One Week Down

Bula! After yesterday’s fun filled and educational activities, GLA students enjoyed a relaxing movie night. We gathered together on the sand, nestled between Palm trees for a viewing of the popular comedy “I Love You, Man”. Many were not able to stay awake through the entire showing, but needless to say, we all slept very well.

Waking up to loud drums and shouts of “MANTA RAY!”, we ran to the northeast beach with flippers and snorkels in hand. Following employees from Barefoot Island’s Dive Shop, we swam with manta rays measuring up to four and a half meters long. It was a spectacular experience and we were so lucky to be able to participate in an activity as beautiful as this.

After some free time, where students such as Lindsay Chevlin were tanning on Sunrise Beach, everyone joined around for a Fijian language lesson from Tema, one of our local staff. Henry Liu, among others, nailed the accent almost immediately. Though not everyone caught on as quickly, we all learned the phrases “Na yacaqu ko…” and “Au domini iko” which translate to “My name is…” and “I love you,” respectively.

We spent the afternoon participating in Beach Olympics, with an intense competition between the “Young Wild and Free” and the “Oldies”. With games including tug of war and hermit crab races, Dylan Macy carried the team of older students to victory.

While we’ve been here in Fiji for six days already, we finally get to start our service projects tomorrow. We look forward to another two weeks in paradise!

-Sarah Lashovitz and Jennie Shaw

Arrival to Barefoot Island!

Yesterday, after a three hour boat ride, we finally arrived at our new home for the next 2 weeks, Barefoot Island. With a view of crystal clear waters all around us, we were greeted by the GLA island staff standing on the shores of Manta Ray beach. We spent the afternoon settling in and snorkeling above vibrant coral reefs and schools of tropical fish. However, today the real festivities began with a scavenger hunt to help us get acquainted with the island. Caroline Franz helped lead her team to find clues around the island, and during an epic rap battle Alyssa Huang wowed the crowd with a backflip. Then we moved on to a Fijian cooking lesson where we shelled coconuts and prepared spinach leaves for an authentic Fijian Lovo. We used the coconuts to make coconut shavings and cream- where Mia Sutherland took the opportunity to give herself a facial with the leftover shavings. We even had to weave our own plates out of palm leaves. The day finished with down time by the beach with the option to go snorkeling again followed by a much needed movie night. Moce! 

Bula!

Hello from Paradise! We are so happy to have session 2 with us here at our mainland home base! All students have arrived safe and sound. Yesterday we played some fun games on the beach followed by an afternoon outing to the sleeping giant botanical garden, and to the famous Fijian mud bath. This was a great bonding experience for everyone. We are so excited for this group of students. Please stay tuned and follow our adventures in Fiji!

– Ashley Link

International Program Director

We’ve Arrived!

All students have arrived safely in country and are ready for an amazing program! Stay tuned for blog updates and photos!

Bula friends and family! 

Nim Bula!

Our Leaders of the Day, Jack Gillott and Kyle Vanesko, both reflected that Lemeki and Karoy, local, Fijian staff members, motivated us to work our hardest and embrace the culture at Yasawa. This motivation allowed our group to further immerse ourselves in Fijian life.

Finally, we returned to Barefoot Island for a peaceful and relaxing evening.

Moce,

Michaela O’Connor and Lizzie Wilson

Hi Family and Friends!

We have had a relaxing weekend here on the island. On Saturday, we spent the afternoon at Mermaid Beach swimming, playing some rugby, snorkeling, and tanning. For dinner, we collaborated with the local staff members to cook traditional Fijian food called lovo. Lovo is made by cooking vegetables, starch, and meats in an underground oven. We also learned how to weave our own dinner plates and baskets out of leaves as well as how to break open coconuts and harvest the meat out from the insides.

After dinner, we watched Blackfish, a documentary about the sad realities involving the mistreatment of orca whales spending their entire lives in captivity. It was an excellent film for kick-starting a group discussion on difficult topics that are so important to talk about.

On Sunday, we jumped right into the fun with a scavenger hunt around the island. We split up into two teams to write songs, raps, and participate in the most hilarious relay race ever, ending in multiple people falling into the water from dizziness, and with Johnny getting chased by a dog.

In the afternoon, we got a Fijian language lesson from Tema, one of our local leaders, in which we learned some common phrases and vocabulary. The teams from the scavenger hunt played some friendly games of volleyball and then hit the beach to cool off in the beautiful water. After dinner, we watched educational videos on trash and pollution, bottled water, and the South Pacific, which were again intriguing entry points for future discussions. Then, we all headed to bed early to get a good night’s rest in preparation to start our second week of community service in the morning!

Peace and Chow,

Anna and Casey

Fiji in Photos

Strong Winds & Snorkeling

Bula!

Due to some rough waves and strong winds, our group was unable to attend our community service today. Even so, we still managed to help out our local Fijian community. Together, we planted coconut trees, vegetable seeds, flowers, and mangroves in order to help provide more sustainable food sources. In addition, we aided Barefoot Island’s Marine Biology Center by cleaning four of its beaches. All of this was topped of by a wonderful and exploratory group snorkel session.

Although there were many sudden schedule changes, our team was able to adapt easily with positive attitudes. We took the storm as a way to connect with the locals and further explore our new island home. The locals expressed their gratitude for the entire GLA program’s hard work and efforts throughout the day, and especially, our Leaders of the Day: Lauren Goldfarb and Jake Linfesty.

Though we had success today and made the most of our experience, our group is looking forward to returning to community service at Yasawa High School on Monday.

Moce (goodnight in Fijian),

– Michaela O’Connor and Elizabeth Wilson

Bula!

Today the group went to Yasawa High School and began their first day of service. We divided into two groups, one working directly in the classroom with the kids, and the other group building a house in the village.

The GLA students who worked in the classroom were assigned different types of tasks. Some worked one-on-one with sixth grade students and their English language skills. Others taught entire third grade classes. “Mr. Jack (CA)” drew an incredibly accurate and educatioaln rendition of the White House and American Flag for the students. The GLA students who worked on construction spent the day sandpapering and priming the house, replacing the home of a teacher whose house was destroyed in a 2011 cyclone.

After reflecting on our service day, we all headed back to our home, Barefoot Island for a little relaxing by the beach. As a group we discussed differences between the Fijian and American cultures, specifically talking about the “culture of fear.” We enjoyed a lovely meal and then created our ground rules by signing a full-body contract, created by the students, that outlines rules on positive and negative behaviors that we want to enforce on our new island home. We closed the night with an unsuccessful game of human knot, ending in a domino effect of crashing students! We all look forward to going back to service tomorrow and getting to know the villagers and Fijian students better.

Forever Fiji,

Casey A. and Anna K.

First Sunlight

Greetings for the first country to receive sunlight each morning, Fiji!

Today is our last day in Nadi.  As a group we visited the local beach to help clean up trash, which turned into a friendly competition. A special thanks to Johnny Colbert from Chicago for keeping up the competitive spirit during the beach clean up and for raising morale.  We ended up collecting four big bags in total!

At lunch we learned how to cook traditional Indian meal together consisting of roti and curry. Our leaders of the day were Claire Coughlin from Denver, and Lada Marsavin from Los Angeles. They reflected on the woman who helped teach us about Indian cuisine, noticing they were extremely nice and deserved great thanks! Our leaders also said they were proud of our group’s ability to welcome the women and make them feel comfortable regardless of language barriers.

Then during some down time, our staff offered a fulfilling work out session as well as a helpful snorkeling training. Both thoroughly enjoyed!  After a short break we were on the road again to visit the city for an afternoon of shopping. Traveling in small groups we manage to keep ourselves together and responsibly take care of each other.

Even though we have had little time together, our group still manages to support one another no matter the activity at hand is.  With this in mind we look forward to the new adventures at Barefoot Island that will start tomorrow!

– Micheala O’Connor and Lizzy Wilson

Update 6/19:  Today was our first day on Barefoot Island.  The day consisted of snorkeling, learning about Manta Rays, cultural orientation. and (of course) settling in.  Our group begins community service tomorrow!

The Fiji Lifestyle

Having some fun and getting to know one another on Day 2 in Fiji!

Welcome to Paradise

All students have arrived safe and sound in Fiji and are already having an amazing time! We’ll update you with detailed blog posts soon, but for now, check out these photos of this fun-loving group!

Snorkeling/Sosua – Last Day

Today we had to wake up at 8am, but most of us decided to wake up at 6 to go to the beach and watch the sunrise, something alot of us wanted to do before leaving, so the last day was the perfect time. After taking multiple pictures and walking along the beach, we went back to home base and waited for breakfast to be served at 8:30. We enjoyed the usual eggs, sausage, and toast. After breakfast we loaded onto the bus and headed to Sosua.

We pulled into the parking lot of the beach and walked onto the perfectly soft sands and crystal clear waters. We all hoped onto a boat and head out to the snorkeling site. Once we arrived, we all put on our flippers and goggles and jumped into the water to see all the colorful fishes and beautiful coral reefs. After spending about 2 hours swimming,snorkeling, and doing, flips off the boat, we went back to shore and spent about an hour and half looking at all the cool shops around the beach, at 12:30 we got back on the bus and headed to Cabarete for lunch.

We had lunch at Gordito’s, a mexican restaurant which specialized in burritos. Once we all finished our excellent burritos we went to the Lazy Dog, the usual place we go to hang out, enjoy virgin pina coladas, and use wifi, conveniently located right on the beach. We spent the time buying gifts for our families and just hanging out.

We went back to the homebase at 4, and relaxed until dinner at 6. Once we finished dinner, one of our mentors, Scott, talked to us about his time in the peace core and we learned about the returnees program if we chose to come back next year. We then had to go fill out evaluations on our overall thoughts on the whole GLA experience, once everyone finished that we went to the beach for a bonfire.

We got to the beach to the sight of a huge pile of burning wood. After taking a bunch of squad pics in front of the fire, we got out the flashlights and started a dance party with the dominicans. It was so much fun, and a great way to wrap up the last night, by laughing and dancing with all the friends we had made over these 21 days.

– RJ Estrada

Dajabon

Today was by far the most impactful of all, the day that we would see poverty at its worse. The people here have always been friendly, but today the air here was filled with an intensity we hadn’t yet experienced. For those who do not know, Dajabon is a town located right on the Haitian-Dominican boarder that opens every Monday and Friday. The Haitians will gather everything they possibly could sell and bring it to the market place to sell and trade for food from the Domincans. After four long hours on the bus we reached Dajabon, ate, and then went to the border to see the river in between and Haiti. Fact: While Rafael Trujillo was dictator of the Dominican he started a campaign to get rid of all Haitians in the Dominican Republic. Close to 30,000 Haitans were chased and murdered in the spot where we stood. Surreal.

After this, we split into two groups to walk through the market place. Walking through was one of the best and one of the worst experiences of my life. You can see the “face of desperation” in any non-profit add or documentary, but I’ve never looked at desperation and had it stare back at me. The intensity from earlier, thickened, it polluted the air. Thousands of people crowded into this area and their sales of that day would dictate weather they and their family at home got to eat for the rest of the week. I’ve never seen so many people in my life. Imagine five people and a motorcycle all trying to step in the same spot. A frustrating thing was seeing what the people of Haiti had to sell. Everything there was from NGO’s. Like: bottles of lotion, plastic sand shovels, coasters, baby strollers and name brand purses. I’m sure that the donators of these products had really good intentions but helping people in 3rd world countries requires so more attention and consideration than a simple donation. It makes me wonder how many times people actually ask a community, “What do you need?”

The “What do you need?” concept is something that I want to carry with me for the rest of my life. Before this trip I felt like I had my life planned out and I knew all I needed to know. Not. I still want to pursue a serving career but there’s so much more than just getting up and going. I’ve been a very impulsive person, and sometimes talking things through and educating yourself could make a huge difference on the difference that one makes. If you’re going to put so much effort into helping a community, why not do it right? One person cannot change the world, but someone has to make a step. Let’s put our best foot forward.

-Alicia Root (Conard)

Caraballo Continued…

We headed out of the home base early today to begin our last day working on the bottle school at Caraballo. This also marked our last day of service on the trip. It was exciting to see how much progress our group had made in the few weeks we have been here. On our last day, we split into groups to finish the last couple of classrooms. It was a bitter sweet ending saying goodbye to all the children and locals we have been working with over the last few weeks. I wish we were able to see the finished project, but I am very excited to see pictures in the near future.

After putting in our last bottles, we headed back to Cabarete to have delicious burritos at a local restaurant for lunch. After lunch, we returned to the home base. We rested for an hour in preparation for a game of kick-ball in the hot sun with the locals. Thankfully, the beach provided a perfect breeze and it was a super fun experience. Everyone had a good time. The game got a little competitive, with the GLA team winning 14-4. However, the locals have a running lead of winning 4 games against previous GLA groups. After the game, we headed back home to do the final preparations on our projects and eat another delicious dinner.

Following dinner, we had a leadership session. We watched a Ted Talk about a teenage girl who managed to take a huge stand against child soldiers, despite her young age. We related this back to our group, and how we are able to take a stand for what we believe in no matter what your age, race, or education level is. After leadership, we began our presentations. We started with the Keystone Pipeline, then Mining in Bonao, Farming in Constanza, and the Drought in California. Each group had very informative and interesting presentations pertaining to each problem and how they relate to the 7 elements of human security. It was a great ending to the day, and gave me a lot to think about and bring back home.

– Robyn Burnside

Caraballo

Today offered a very nice look into a community I had only seen the outside. The group started the day by waking up at 7:00 am and having breakfast. I’m pretty sure I’ve become a psychic, because I’ve figured out what we have for breakfast every day. The menu goes Eggs, bread, fruit, meat, and mashed potatoes. Not to insult the food or anything, it’s fantastic. After we had breakfast, we got on the bus and headed to Caraballo.

We were originally going to Caraballo to paint the inside of the bottle school we were working on there. However after we got there, Dave told us that instead, we would be picking up trash around & inside the bottle school. But before we did that, Dave took us on a 30 minute tour of the community. Caraballo is a town that has received a good amount of attention from different NGO’s, resulting in things such as schools, basketball courts. I saw three different basketball courts but no one was playing on them. But as Dave mentioned, a lot of these facilities won’t really help if a child is too sick to attend schools or play sports, which is the case a good amount of the time.

As we walked through Caraballo, I saw a lot of stores along the way, which struck me as weird because in an impoverished town like Caraballo, putting a store here would be a terrible idea. But then Dave told the group that the stores are really dependent on NGO’s coming in and buying their items. The dependency that the people have developed is a direct result of the constant attention NGO’s give them without a good exit plan, something I remember Dave saying earlier during the course.

After the tour, we spent an hour cleaning up around the bottle school. After that, we went to Cabarete where we had a good lunch and relaxed on the beach for a couple of hours. We left for the home base at 4:00 PM and after we got there, we had research time to finish up our projects followed by a delicious dinner. We capped off the night with a lecture by Dave and an interesting documentary called Food Inc. Overall today was a very interesting eye opening experience, because I got to see the conditions some of the people were living and understand the reason behind this. It’s one of those experiences that’ll just stick with you forever.

– Yusuf Ali-Halane

Las Canas

The alarm going off at 7:30 early in the morning would mark the beginning of an extremely significant day. At 8:30 we loaded up into the bus and headed out to the clinic back in Las Canas for the final preparations of the official completion. I was excited to be the group present for the completion of the project. The clinic was cleaned and decorations and paint were applied. Personally, I worked on taking the plastic off the doors, cleaning the walls, and removing excess construction materials lying around.

Shortly after finishing the clinic, the local children lead the group on a tour through Las Canas. I noticed how friendly everyone was while we reminded them that the clinic would open at one in the afternoon and that there would be a gathering. After the tour we headed back to the clinic and had lunch with the locals. When it was time to cut the ribbons, everyone gathered around. To be a part of laying a foundation and changing the future of others was certainly a proud honor.

Back at home base, we went to the beach to cool off and then went on to research our individual projects until dinner. After eating, we played some volleyball and proceeded to listen to a lecture on economics and development. Then we watched Ted Talks. The speaker disclosed information on the power of why, what inspires us, and why people buy into passion and beliefs. Overall, it turned out to be a day of great significance.

-Adam Lor

Puerto Plata: Cable car – Amber Museum

Today we woke up at eight and ate a delicious fulfilling breakfast consisting of eggs, sausage, and fruit. After breakfast we packed our bags, piled into the bus and started off to Puerto Plata. Once we arrived in Puerto Plata we boarded a cable car and ascended up a big mountain to a big statue of Jesus. While exploring Big Jesus’ mountain top we discovered a gift shop, a lagoon, a cave, and many more beautiful sights of nature.

After the cable cars we drove to the Amber Museum and learned about the ancient tree sap and its many varieties and qualities. In many pieces there are bugs and leaves fossilized and frozen in time for thousands of years. We also learned that amber floats in salt water which is the way they can tell the real pieces from the fake pieces. After the museum tour we walked through the gift shop on the bottom floor which was twice the size of the actual museum.

Once we got home we all went to the beach to enjoy the suns warm glow and the oceans refreshing waves. After our excursion to the beach we hopped in the pool at home base to talk and relax. After lounging in the pool we were challenged to a volleyball game by the ten day group. Volleyball has been an important activity to strengthen friendships and practice our teamwork since the beginning of the trip.

-Luke Torchin

Cano Dulce

Day 14 in GLA started like any other day wake up at 8 o’clock, breakfast at 8:30 and get on the bus at 9. The bus ride was about 10 minutes. Cano Dulce is not that far from home base. When we arrived at Cano Dulce we had a mini tour around the place. It was incredible to see the first bottle school completely finished. If you take a look at the beautiful peach school you wouldn’t believe it was made out of bottles. I was also amazed by the beautiful image of “El Mapa Del Mundo.” (The Map of the World) When I saw this bottle school I could only picture how beautiful the bottle school in Caraballo will turn out to be. After that we had to cross a bridge that was pretty scary. The bridge led to the place where Johnny processes his honey. Johnny sells his honey to make money to support his family. We have about 200 bottles of his delicious honey.

After the tour we were divided into our teams. There are 4 teams and each of the teams had different task to do. For instance, team one had to work on building the bridge, team two was focus on planting the trees from the reforestation project, team three worked on cementing the platform for the bridge, and lastly team four was working on cement for the kitchen walls. I was part of team two so my job was to plant trees. Planting trees might not seem much compare to the other teams, but trust me it was heavy work. First, we had to find an open area and take out all the weed and trash. Then we had to dig up a hole to place the tree. Since the dirt was dry and hard it was difficult to dig up. We finally placed the tree to its new home and water it.

We had lunch at noon and after that we went back to work. We went back to home base at 3 o’clock. Most of us were really exhausted. Some of us dipped our feet into the pool and enjoyed each other’s company. We then had dinner and after that we watched one ted talk and after that Dave introduced us to some of the returnee’s that are still here. The returnee’s spoke a little bit of themselves and of the projects they are working on. It was amazing how some of these returnees were younger or the same age as me and they already had great projects to help the community here. Afterwards, we watch three more incredible ted talks. Even though two ted talks were about 5 minutes long they manage to impact my life. I will always remember those two amazing ted talks that made me think about having guts to stand out. It was the perfect way to end my day.

-Melissa Flores

27 Charcos

Today we woke up at eight am and prepared for an exciting day of adventuring. We had the privilege of going to visit an ecotourism site named 27 Charcos which is a site filled with beautiful waterfalls and land made slides. Once arriving to the site we hiked up into the waterfall sites for about thirty minutes and once arriving to the first slide we realized how low the water levels were, it was sad to see such a beautiful spot so dried out. Yet we were all able to enjoy the first slide and begin our journey out through the park.
As we ran through all the slides they increased in size and velocity. Personally I tend to act tough but once I’m confronted with the act I get afraid and back out. On this trip I told myself that I would do everything so that I wouldn’t regret anything, and I was faced with an obstacle as we faced a waterfall from which we could either slide down or jump from a small cliff. I put my big girl pants on and walked onto the small platform to jump of, and I froze! I looked down it was only a ten foot drop yet it looked like a forty foot drop. I was too scared so I decided I would only slide down. But I heard all my group members cheering for me so I got up and jumped! It was awesome! We then ran through a few more and were finished with our tour.

After our big day at 27 Charcos we came home and had a mellow afternoon which then lead into dinner and leadership. Our leadership focused on the privileges that we have in the United States and the privileges that the Dominicans have here. It was great to discuss the cultural differences and privileges that we share. Overall the day was full of adventure and intellectual discussion which makes our group who we are.

-Cynthia Olivares

Las Canas

Today, I woke up at 7:00 am. Though I dread waking up at any hour before 8, I became accustomed to waking up this early and started the morning off by taking a shower and having a good breakfast. After, I went right to work with my group and we drove to Las Canas where we continued with our project on the clinic that provides not only a decent placement of health service, but also a good educational system for the children in the area who have almost to no education. I focusued mainly on putting up “trim” on the walls of the clinic to create a good structure for the place meticulously hammering down nails on the wood. After, even the kids tried to help by painting the wood red. Being in that clinic honestly made me reflect back on my experience in high school. My high school wasn’t the best nor did it do a good job on making the kids from low run inner city ghetttos profesional young adults. I imagined how the kids must have felt when they have never gone to school, so I felt content when I did my part in finishing the project for the health clinic.

-Aaronn Brown

Dudu

Today was a very fun-filled, adrenaline rushing day in the DR. We started out the day by waking up at 8 a.m., eating breakfast, and heading out to Dudu Lagoon. There was something for everyone at Dudu. Whether it was zip lining (and dropping 35 feet) into the lagoon, throwing yourself off an almost equally high cliff into the lagoon, exploring the underwater caves, playing volleyball and soccer, or just swimming around in the crystal clear water, I think it’s safe to say that everyone had a blast enjoying (or fearing for their lives) this break day. After eating lunch and waiting for the last minute decision makers to jump off the cliff, we left the beautiful waters of Dudu around 3 p.m. and made our way back to the home base.

We enjoyed our dinner of rice, beans, potato salad, ham (not chicken!), and fruit and waited for our guest speaker to arrive. In the evening, Dr. Kerolle, a local physician, came to talk to us about health care in the Dominican Republic. He explained to us the importance of giving proper medical attention to those who either can’t afford it, have no access to it, or both. He told us how him and some of his fellow physicians work with five communities at a time and strive to help those communities get up to par in terms of the overall health of that community. Many of the patients Dr. Kerolle treats suffer from one or more water-borne illnesses, which are very common in the Dominican Republic due to the contaminated water that we’ve been learning more about, along with water filters, throughout this trip.

After Dr. Kerolle’s presentation, we ended our day with watching a documentary called “The Dark Side of Chocolate”, which disclosed the horrors of child trafficking in the cocoa industry, mainly taking place in Africa. The documentary uncovered the selfishness of the owners of some major chocolate companies that choose to ignore the illegal ways in which their products are manufactured. It’s so important to raise awareness about things like this that go on in the world because it’s too often that people are blind to crimes that take place in other countries, yet affect so many people, in this case, innocent children.

-Marissa O’Donnell

Cabarete – Leadership – Teams research

First of all, I am tired and apologize for any typos that will most likely occur. Today was 100% amazing, probably because we got to hang out all day…like literally ALL day! We got to sleep in until 8. This might not seem great but it is much better than 6:30. After double coating ourselves in sunscreen, we headed to Cabarete: home of a beautiful beach as well as aggressive vendors. No matter how many times you tell them “NO gracias” they always find their way back and practically demand that you buy something. I’m not gonna lie, I have a hard time telling people to back the heck up so I got ripped off quite a few times. You learn from your mistakes (so they say).

The night before we were split up into four teams of 4-5 people. Each team has a project that we will present on near the end of the trip. Using Cabarete wifi, each team was able to begin its research on their topic. We worked until lunch, which was pizza, and then had the rest of the day to ourselves. A group of us played volleyball in the ocean with a few relatives for over an hour and then everyone split up to do their own thing: swimming, tanning, shopping, or being typical “gringos” on their iPhones.

As crazy as it sounds, 5 hours passes really quickly in DR time and by the time we knew it, we were headed back to home base. All of the men enjoy time at home base because we have volleyball tournaments were tensions are high and prides are at stake. I’m sure you will here plenty of stories about this. To close the activities of the day we watched Ted Talks on Global Priorities, Globalization and Countries that do good, a throughout discussion with Director Bea followed. All in all, I speak for all of us when I say this: everyone here has something different to bring to the table and all of us share a friendship that will last forever. I believe it is fate that brought this group together and I am cherishing every moment. Who knew that there were goofballs throughout the US just like me?

-Aaron Darden

Las Canas / The Roots of Division

When I woke up this morning, I was a little bit upset because we were told we were going to wake up at 8 o’clock but the mentors woke us 30 minutes early. So I had to rush to take a shower so I could be on time for breakfast. Today we were spilt up into 2 groups. One group stayed at the home base to help with the reforestation project and the other group went to Las Canas to help finish building the clinic/school. I really wanted to go to Las Canas so I could see how much work was done so far and see what I could to do to help and make it better and I also felt like staying at home base was the easy way out and if I wanted the easy way out I just would’ve stayed home back in Philadelphia.

We arrive at Las Canas 10 minutes after we left home base because Las Canas is not that far from here. The first job I did was paint the dark spots on the walls, so the walls could look perfect. Then my next job of the day was putting cement on the walls so the walls could be smooth. I was doing that job for at least an hour and I think I did a great job puttying. I was very tired afterwards. But I really appreciated the little kids in Las Canas helping us today.

We came back to the home base around 3’oclock and I was extremely exhausted. I jumped right in the pool with my clothes on, and I felt so much better. After I got out the pool, I had to do research with my group for our project. I’m really excited to see the final results for our project. I’m learning so much as I go through this beautiful journey.

After a delicious dinner we had a leadership activity, we needed to line up in silence in groups from younger to oldest and it was a challenge, some teams cheated but we all learned a good lesson. We end up our day watching a moving documentary called The Roots of Division, we learned about the history of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. It was a very insightful movie that taught me a lot about the differences between the people on this island and that Haiti was the first independent nation in the Americas created by former African slaves.

-Sarah Kone

Caraballo/Social Justice/E-waste documentary

Today the group woke up at 7:00 and enjoyed a wonderful breakfast of eggs, fresh fruit, and juice before heading to Caraballo where we continued working on the bottle school. The school, so far, is turning out beautifully and I still manage to be amazed at how much can be accomplished in such a short period. We all worked together with the locals to fill the walls with empty water bottles, cake them with cement, and let the structure come to life. Many of us really got to know the children, who excitedly helped out and spent time with us. After a delicious lunch made by the locals –rice, chicken, and fruit- we stayed working for a little longer before we hopped back on the bus and headed back to home base.

Exhausted from a long day of work, we arrived back at home base at around 4:00 and we immediately headed to the beach. The cool waves were amazing to cool off with, and we definitely stayed as long as we all could before thunder clouds started rolling in. Later in the day we had a great virtual conversation via Skype with Ric Murry, who spoke to us about social justice. He made some very eye opening points, and I’m sure we all left with lingering thoughts in our heads.

To end a great day, we watched a documentary on electronic waste, which I personally hadn’t known very much about, and it makes me want to be more cautious about where my trash is really going. We’re all going to bed with new information, mindsets, and excitement for the upcoming days of the trip.

-Sarah Kosian

La Grua

Today started much the same by waking at 7. We ate breakfast at 7:30 and were out the door by 8. The drive took an hour and a half and was very worth it. I remember the first thing I saw as I woke from my nap was a small pile of very dirty bottles and wrappers. This type of thing is non-existent in my hometown of around three thousand people. When I see these things it is very depressing, but just makes me work harder. It makes me want to help more and more and give back to those in need.
After we met the people of La Grua who were very welcoming, we helped clean up massive amounts of trash along the river. This trash was thrown there by the people of La Grua because they need to put their trash somewhere, by have nowhere to store it. Our goal today was to give them a cleaner river and to get the trash as contained as possible and to gain the villagers’ trust. They are later going to separate the trash into different bins that we provided as well. After it is all separated, they will sell the plastic bottles and have a source of income into the community.

Today was our attempt to gain the trust of a village never in contact with an NGO before. The village was a mix of Haitians and Dominicans which to me was a cause of concern. Haitians and Dominicans generally don’t get along, and my concern going into the village was that if I started playing with a Haitian, I’d lose a Dominican’s trust or vice versa. I did not see any of this which was wonderful to see.

This experience will make me think twice when I complain about small stuff. I never realized how bad people had it until I had to live like them. These people can find happiness with nothing but a deflated soccer ball and for the most part I have a lot of stress from the things that are supposed to be fun such as videogames. My experiences have also made me think less about my own life and more about others around me and be willing to help whenever people are in need.

We headed back to homebase and worked on our team’s project, we had time to do research and also enjoyed a insightful presentation on Human Security by Josh Skwarczyk, a graduate from Indiana University working as intern with 7e developing a model that will help NGO’s survey the communities they serve.

The leadership activity led by Andrea teach us how to find our true colors, a personality test that shed some light on the different strengths, weaknesses and values people posses.

-Ryan Andreoletti

Las Canas

Today’s adventure started with my alarm blasting, waking me up at 7:00 on the dot. Here follow a strict schedule: wake up, wait half an hour, eat breakfast, and get ready to leave on the bus for a quick five minute drive through Las Canas to another bottle school. Unlike that at Caraballo, this bottle school was almost completely finished all we had to do was clean up the walls and outside and add some more cement. My day consisted of shoveling broken pieces of cement into a barrel, carrying pieces of wood, measuring walls and taking an occasional water break, because if there is one thing I have learned here it is that water is IMPORTANT to drink and hydration is key. For lunch we walked down a hill to a house and were blessed with delicious rice and chicken. Who knew that food cooked over a fire held up by only three stones could be better than anything I’ve ordered at a restaurant. After walking back up to the hill to the bottle, we put on our gloves, grabbed a shovel and got back to work. We worked hard only until we became distracted by passing around a rock with our shovels. However, we got back to work and packed everything up before leaving around 3:00.

After arriving back at home base we only had a few minutes to relax before going to the beach. They say everything runs a little slower here with “Dominican time”, but we seem to be running from place to place. The waves at the beach were huge as usual, perfect for body surfing and wiping out. After getting out of the water and drying off we walked back to home base to relax and play some volleyball. Later, we were called over by Dave to sit down and talk about the seven elements of human security and how they could be applied to the communities we have seen here and how they could also be applied back home. After we had finished discussing we learned more about leadership skills and the importance of understanding your own values as a leader. At the end of the night I start to write this blog entry, others play cards and some of go to bed, but we are all ready and excited for tomorrow’s adventures.

-Antonio Mestre

Falcondo – Moca – back to homebase

Today we woke up at 6:30am at the Primavera Hostel in Santo Domingo. We ate breakfast sandwiches and left the hostel by 7:30am. We rode on the bus for an hour and a half to Falcondo, which is a mining company and worksite. Falcondo employees presented a power point in which we learned about the mining safety, the process of extracting metal, and the process of reforestation. After enjoying a snack we all put on safety vests and hats in order to take a tour of Falcondo. We were able to see the areas where the reforestation was taking place. Lunch was provided at Falcondo, then we continued our trip to Aqua Pure. This company makes water filters which are used by people who do not have access to clean water. On the tour we learned that the filters are actually made from a combination of sawdust and other materials, then molded and put into a kiln. We headed back to the home base for dinner and ended a successful day with a group discussion.

–Grace Marino

Journey to Santo Domingo – Jarabacoa – Constanza

Today, we started our journey to the capital of the Dominic Republic, Santo Domingo. We began our day at 7 am. We had breakfast that consisted of bread, eggs, ham and LOTS of fruit. After breakfast, we packed up the car and like all the times before we go anywhere, Dave yells “Vamonos” to let everyone know that it’s time to go. Before we left, Andrea suggested to Dave that the group sing “Row, Row Your Boat” like we had done in Brison but, since we weren’t all that good then, he decided we wouldn’t do that. There wasn’t much to do on the ride there but to listen to Ivan’s horrible taste in music. We were going up and down mountains that at one point I thought people would begin to throw up. We finally go to a town named Constanza , where most of the Dominicans and Haitians food is produced. We were able to smell all of the pesticides that was used on the crops by just passing by the town. After passing through that town, we continued the very long journey to Santo Domingo.

When arriving in Santo Domingo, we saw so many people! We drove through the very busy city until we got to the Primavera Hostel, where everybody was excited about getting Wi-Fi. After an hour at the hostel, we headed to a local Chinese restaurant, where we sat down and had dinner. After dinner, we began a long tour of the city. We were able to see the Colonial District. In the Colonial District we saw where Christopher Columbus first arrived in the “New World.” We saw the First Hospital, First Street, First Church and the First Home that Christopher Columbus had when he arrived in the New World. After touring the city for about an hour and a half, we headed back to the hostel where everyone went their separate ways to end the day.

– Nancy Corral

Caraballo – Cabarete – Threats and vulnerability / 11th hour

Today we started working on the bottle school in Caraballo. The students worked hard to fill the walls with plastic bottles that were held together by chicken wire. The friendly residents of the nearby villages helped with the workload. Students hammered in the chicken wire and tied everything together. We enjoyed a delicious meal. After a short break we returned to work and put cement on the walls. When we were done, we got on the bus and headed to Cabarete where the students relaxed on the beach and enjoyed smoothies at Lazy Dog. We returned to the home base where we discussed our day. The documentary, the 11th hour was watched, and discussed throughout the group. In my opinion, the documentary was extrememly eye opening and interesting. Most agreed that we we can each slowly change the environmental situation that we are in.

-Fernanda Alvarado

Brison Mountain – Las Canas Beach

Today we hiked mount Brison. We started our day early at 6 to arrive at the mountain before the sun became too hot. After our one and a half hour bus ride we arrived at the foot of the mountain. We then began our trek up the 3 miles of steep rocky road. When we arrived at the top we were greated by friendly locals who greeted us with a warm meal and smiling faces and we were treated to some refreshing popsicles after lunch. After coming back down the mountain and returning to basecamp we enjoyed a refreshing swim in the ocean.

After battling the waves in the ocean we were greeted with a meal of fish,beans,chicken,eggplant and fresh fruit. After dinner found different ways to spend our free time whether it was play volleyball or relax in our rooms. We were then called to an assembly in the restaurant where we discussed the seven elements of human security and leadership. We will all surely sleep well tonight after a long physically tiring day.

-Nelson Pereira

We’ve Arrived!

We had a warm reception in DR, we are safe and sound in our beautiful home for the next 21 days. We visited the beach a block from homebase and after a delicious home made dinner we jump started our program with orientation and leadership activities to set goals and get to know each other.

We’re a lil tired but happy to be here.

Let’s get our summer abroad started!!!

The 19 participants 🙂

Headed Home

All students have departed and are on their way home!

Snorkeling – Sosua – Last Day

Today is the last full day that our group spends in the Dominican Republic. We planned to spend the morning snorkeling in Sosua and the afternoon gift-shopping in Cabarete. The bus ride from the compound was unusually silent as many people, myself included fell into a rather reflective and nostalgic mood, thinking back to the people we have gotten to know, the communities we have worked in, the memories we have made, and taking in the natural beauty of the Dominican before we all returned to our respective homes. Upon our arrival in Sosua, we were split into two groups, each of which had the chance to take a 10 minute boat ride to a snorkeling spot. The water in Sosua was much clearer than the other beaches we have visited and was perfect for looking at exotic fishes and coral in shallow water.

After both groups had had a chance to snorkel, everyone headed to the Lazy Dog in Cabarete Beach where people scrambled to find gifts for friends and family back at home. A popular destination was the Friends Cafe, which was known for its smoothies and milkshakes. At 5 o’clock and loaded with trinkets, the group headed back to home base for the last time. Dinner was a hurried affair as mentors briskly ushered people to complete evaluations about their experiences. Finally we all headed down to the beach for a bonfire and were joined by many of the kids that had worked with us at Las Canas.

As I sit here writing this right now, before bed, I know that I am not going to get much sleep tonight. Over the past three weeks, I have formed connections and built friendships stronger than I had previously thought possible with so many of the people in my session. And I am certain that I am speaking for everyone when I say that although we have all come for different reasons, these past three weeks has made a profound impact on us all and as reluctant as we are to say goodbye to our friends here, we also look forward to sharing what we have learned with our loved ones back home. On that note, I would just like to say thank you to everyone in my session, mentors, directors, for making this experience an unforgettable, life-changing one.

-Elaine Peng

Las Canas – Final Presentations

Today we went to our bottle school project Las Canas. Las Canas is a relatively new bottle school project and we set goals in the beginning of this 21 day adventure to finish most of the school. We worked hard and consistently for each of the four times we visited Las Canas, resulting in a beautiful accomplished bottle school, which will be used as a clinic in the community. The kids of the Las Canas community have been involved in building and painting this project and have expressed their excitement towards having a community clinic. Personally, I felt today I accomplished the most out of all the days of Las Canas, smoothing the cement walls which was a rewarding job seeing the hard work we put in come together. Also 3 walls were painted white which looked beautiful and we saw the kids faces light up with joy. Overall it was a great last work day!

After we got back the research groups that presented tonight finished gathering information. As that happened, the three groups that finished presenting last night played kick ball with neighborhood kids that helped us at Las Canas, we won 15 to 11!!!!!. After that, the three groups presented, giving great presentations on major global issues.

Each and everyone of us personally reflected on our trip and thoughts. This made for a great ending of the second to last night!

-Rachel Gealer

La Grua – Team presentations

Today we woke up a little earlier than usual to go to La Grua. A new location GLA and 7e are working on to potentially build a bottle school and clinic. We arrived after an hour and a half bus ride at the location and we were split up into two teams. One team was working with our mentor Sara on her water filtration project, helping her arrange and hand out water filters to families in need at the local church in La Grua. The team helped put together the water filters and then the first 50 families came to the church to hear an informational talk on the filters and pick up their own device.

Meanwhile, the other half of the team was working on cleaning up the area by doing a trash pickup. They also took time to interact with the local kids since this is a new community that we are trying to build a relationship with before starting a bottle school project there. We played with the kids and got to know them as well as some of the other locals. After that came lunch time, we ate rice, chicken and fruit at the location and some of us even got an extra surprise on our plate, chicken feet. After lunch we got back on the bus and headed home to complete the research for our projects. The first 3 groups to present tonight researched the issues of undocumented youth in the United States, the Syrian Revolution, and Boko Haram. Each group spent around 20 minutes teaching everyone else about their topics. We were all mesmerized learning about these issues in such depth and every group that presented had clearly put time and effort in to make their projects informative and interesting. They all did a great job! After the presentations it was time for ice cream in celebration of Melanie’s Birthday, yay! Everyone clearly enjoyed the frozen treat and – speaking for myself- it was honestly some of the best ice cream that I have ever had. After a long day of fun and learning it is off to our cozy bug nets until tomorrow when we head, again, to Las Canas. We are all excited to see what else we can learn and experience in our remaining time.

-Melanie & Jeannette

Puerto Plata – Cable Car/Amber Museum

7:00am, Alarms ringing, we shoot out of bed eager to wolf down a hearty breakfast to prepare for a day full of adventure. Our hard work has paid off, and we are in for a treat. Puerto Plata. 1 hour later and we are careening through the countryside and on our way to the Teleferico. This cable car journey is not for the faint of heart. All 36 of us pile into a finely crafted gondola. With a jerk and a bump we begin our ascent to see Puerto Plata’s finest work – a larger than life statue of Christ the Redeemer. As the wind rushes through our hair our only thoughts are of what awaits us at the peak of this mountain. The view is breathtaking. Below us lies the port city, teeming with everyday life.

Look to the west and you see the mountains, look to the east gentle waves lap against sandy shores. One gets lost in the sights, and you realize you are already at the top. Ears popped and legs shaky, the group begins to explore the peak and all it has to offer. Caves, lagoons, and Jesus. What more could we ask for? The hour at the top passes by in a whirlwind of excitement. Wooded trails and unforgiving caves beckon at every corner. We are rounded up at the cable car for a once in a lifetime group picture. Minutes later we are on our way back down the mountainside, an even more breathtaking view.

We hop back on the bus for a quick lunch at a local eatery. Chicken, rice, and beans wait for our hungry mouths. Next stop, the Amber Museum. Let me tell you, none of us will ever look at these specimens the same way again. Puerto Plata’s Amber Museum boasts ten different colors of the finest amber on the island. Its finest piece was of a lizard locked in a droplet of sap, trapped in time forever.

-Michael and MacKenzie

Las Canas

As we arrived in Las Canas, we unloaded all of the tools on to the work site. As soon as everybody got to the bottle school, we started on the cement. We started off slow but soon picked up to maximum speed for progress. We worked on putting the second coat of cement on the wall, concentrating on the craters to even out the faults in our walls.

Everybody worked as a team to get done as much as we could before we ate lunch and refueled on energy. Finally, noon came and lunch was served. We were in for a treat. We had chicken and rice (We never have chicken and rice). After lunch, feeling energized and rejuvenated, we grabbed our shovels and gloves and got to it. We continued working on the bottle school till three o’clock. Dave showed up to determine whether or not we did a satisfying job and he was pleased with our efforts. He decided that we did a good enough job to let us have a free day for ourselves at Cabarete the next day to watch the final World Cup game. Everyone felt super joyful that we worked together to build a school/clinic for kids who need it most.

-Shelby Bond and Genna Fuhrman

Dajabon

Today we woke up extra early at 6 am to head off to Dajabon at the Haitian – Dominican border. We left the home base at 7 am and drove for four hours to arrive at the border at noon. Upon arrival we went to the closest restaurant for a quick lunch and then headed off with the group to the Massacre River that separates Haiti from the Dominican Republic. We learned about the river a few days ago from a documentary that explained that in the 1960’s Dominican dictator, Trujillo, playing upon racism ordered the deaths of thirty thousand Haitians as they fled back towards Haiti. As we walked towards the river, the first thing we noticed was the Haitian children who were bathing in the water that was the site of a massacre 50 years ago. This is the only water they have access to and therefore they cannot choose where they want to bathe, despite the water being one of the most polluted sites in the world. After the river the group split up into smaller groups to head off into the market. In order to not get lost in the sprawling mess, we proceeded in one line, never straying far from the person in front of us.

The sights we saw deplored us. A million Haitians and Dominicans jostled and elbowed each other in a river of people in a struggle to reach their destinations. The Haitians are only allowed into the market twice a week, and they bring just about everything they own that isn’t edible. Clothes, shoes, toys, along with assortments of trinkets are all carted to this market to sell, and the proceeds are almost always used to purchase food to feed their starving country. But this wasn’t the disturbing part; the truly disturbing part about this transaction is where the Haitians get their goods. They come from well-meaning NGO’s and other organizations that send over clothes and shoes as part of their relief effort for the recent earthquake that devastated the country. But when we went to the market, we all saw how Haitian vendors displayed piles upon piles of shoes to sell, shoes that they definitely did not need as much as the food their neighbors sold. This trip to Dajabon was definitely a powerful eye-opener to the truth behind the Haitian situation and the effectiveness of aid distribution.

After another four hour car ride (and thankfully little harassment from Dominican military looking for Haitian stowaways), we returned to home base for a steak dinner, a welcome relief from chicken, beans, and rice. Dinner melted away into free time, and free time quickly became 7:30, when we all gathered to watch three TED Talks. The first was a long one by a person from India who, rejecting his private and elite education, went to work in the poor villages without opportunities to found barefoot schools, which educated women from around the world on solar energy. The other two showcased less lofty goals. One featured a Canadian speaking about how he unwittingly gave a New Brunswick woman the confidence to stay in college by giving the man next to her a lollipop and asking him to “give the beautiful woman next to you a lollipop,” before finally concluding that leadership didn’t need to involve people doing lofty ideals like the Indian school founder, but merely positively affecting somebody else’s life. The last one showcased a viral video of a lone nut dancing, before a few first followers joined him and made his crazy dancing a movement, emphasizing the importance of the early adopters to join in on a lone nut’s good ideas.

Sincerely,
-Olivia Mamane and Jeffrey Qiao

Last Day at Caraballo

Today was the groups last day at Caraballo, our biggest bottle group. It was an emotional day for many because of friendships made with some of the children in Caraballo. After a morning of cementing and forming walls from chicken wire and bottles, a delicious lunch was cooked for us while a traditional band played music. The group then took a short walk into the Haitian resettlement village of Ascension.

During the walk we were able to see where the people grow their crops and where they keep their chickens. We were also invited into a woman’s house to see her water filter and clean burning stove. Once in their park we played a game of soccer and played with children that many had built bonds with. In small groups, Some people went into the market and bought hand made bracelets. It was time to say goodbye and we walked back to the bus holding hands with the children. When it was time to let go and some people shed tears. Though we had made the bus ride home many time, this was a particularly difficult and emotional one for many, knowing that for some of the students it would be the last time seeing the children we had grown to love so much.

As we arrived back to home base we had a lot of free time to reflect and relax. Some went to the beach, some stayed and swam in the pool. Following dinner students were given time for research on our human security issue, that was interrupted by a surprise birthday cake for Shelby’s birthday. The lighthearted celebration gave the group a good end to a hard day.

-Daniela Cerda Vega and Taylor Parrella

27 Charcos

Caraballo – Cabarete

Today marked day 11 of our 21 day adventure. We hopped on the bus at 8 in the morning-after being awoken by the sound of music (thank you Conor)- and headed off to Caraballo. After arriving in the community we cleaned up trash and rocks from the area inside the school. There was little else to do so many students found themselves bonding with the kids in the community. The children are constantly in the mood for games and entertainment of any form; they love to hold hands and braid hair.

After play time was over we sat ourselves down for a lunch of rice and chicken, as per usual, then it was time to go to Cabarete. The afternoon spent at the Lazy Dog restaurant and beach can be described by one word- relaxing. We ordered our favorite foods, spent time on the beach, played volleyball, and watch Germany smash it in the World Cup (go Germany!!).  Soon it was time to depart from our mini paradise and it was back home to the GLA home base.

Once at the home base we, again, enjoyed a lovely meal of rice, beans, and chicken…with a few other dishes on the side. We learned more about human security and the seven elements of human security following dinner. After the short lecture  we watched a riveting documentary on the history of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Finally it is time for bed. It has been an incredibly relaxing and informative day and we are all excited to continue our adventures for the next 10 days.

-Jeanette Schwalm and Eliott Haddad

Caño Dulce/Las Canas

Today our groups switched activities and half of us went to aquaponics and the other half went to the bottle school in Las Canas. The Aquaponics project we worked on consists of a system of fish tanks connected to a bed of plants and the nutrients circulate and create a sustainable way of growing plants without depleting the soil. We cleared the area of weeds with machetes (which was awesome) and finished digging trenches. After working we were taken on a tour of Cano Dulce where we had to cross a foot-wide bridge over a river made out of wire. In Las Canas, the group continued cementing the walls of the school with the help of local children. After eating lunch all together at Las Canas, we headed back to the compound to work on our research and went to the beach. We didn’t have chicken, rice, and beans for a change but we did have fish, rice, and beans (and french fries). After dinner we had a leadership lesson from Andrea and a very compelling Social Justice speech/activity with Rick.

-Eva Parr and Jonathan Tabet

Dudu

Day 8 was the first day themed around adventure. We bussed an hour and a half to Dudu, a natrual equilvalent to an amusement park, with a giant zipline running 30 feet above a great blue lagoon, and a pair of natural cliffs about 35 feet high. Many people stepped outside their comfort zone and faced their fears of heights, falling, murky water, and quite randomly, ostriches. After a day of swimming, exploring pitch-black natural caves, plummeting loudly into green waters, and avoiding giant, African, flightless birds, we were all extremely tired. Exhausted, but with many good memories, we returned to home base just in time to welcome the new 10 day group. 

After dinner, we moved into a serious discussion about a few short films we watched concerning human security and specifically, the Maldives, eWaste, and  problem prioritization. Ready for bed after our long day of adrenaline, adventure, and discussion, the group headed to bed. 

-Zhi Yang and Jackson Phillips

Our Holiday

This Fourth of July we began our day making the long journey from Santo Domingo to Puerto Plata. Along the way, we made a couple of stops during this 5 hour ride. The first stop we made was at a rest stop where students enjoyed delicious ice cream and other treats. At the second stop, we observed the manufacturing process for making water filters and learned how clean water plays a role in human security. 80 percent of illnesses world-wide are caused by contaminated drinking water, and water filters can play a huge role in reducing this number. Dave explained that each water filter costs $45, but can savethe lives of people who do not have access to clean drinking water. However, because most Dominicans cannot afford to pay this price, donating money to distribute these filters is a great fundraising idea.

When we finally returned to Puerto Plata, we immediately ate lunch while Dave lectured us about how cities are different from rural areas, and many of the issues that exist in urban areas. Some of these issues are sanitation and clean drinking water, as well as the climate, which is generally 5 to 10 percent warmer than in rural areas. After lunch, we had free time to go to the beach, swim in the pool, or take a nap in our rooms. During this free time, certain groups were doing research for their culminating projects, which are various modern day events and issues (such as the Syrian Revolution and human trafficking) that incorporate the 7 elements of human security. We concluded our day with a fourth of July celebration which consisted of a bonfire on the beach and music.

-Pierce Cohen & Marissa Garcia  

Santo Domingo

A Great Day

Day Five was primarily characterized by the long bus ride that took us from Puerto Plata to Santo Domingo. During which we sat with our newly formed human security groups. We briefly stopped in Constanza to discuss the pressing issue of dependence on pesticides and herbicides. We were taught that the usage of herbicides  and pesticides makes the ground become dependent on these chemicals. We also revisited the concept of resource  distribution among the growing population of the island. After we had left the agricultural fields, we stumbled  upon a protest regarding the condition of health care and infrastructure. When we finally arrived at the Hostel  we found our room arrangements and quickly settled into our comfortable air conditioned rooms. A few minutes  later we waked down to a Dominican Chinese restaurant and enjoyed a delicious meal. We look forward to the opportunities Santo Domingo has to offer!

Service

By: Charlotte Hunt and Conor Wight

We started in Caraballo working at the bottle school. We continued to create and cement walls, leading to the near completion of one of the rooms. We worked for the first half of the day, finishing our time at Caraballo with a delicious lunch of rice, chicken, and plenty of fruit. From there we travelled to Caberete, where we ate at the Lazy Dog, where we experienced wifi for the first time on this trip! While there we visited the beautiful beach below the restaurant while others explored the local town and visited shops and super markets. While there many of the students enjoyed world cup matches, despite the heartbreak of the USA’s loss.

Once back at the base camp students waited for dinner, passing the time with volleyball, card games and swimming. When the time came the GLA sat down to rice, potato salad, pork, fried eggplant and plenty of fruit. Thirsts created by a days work were promptly quenched with a variety of juices and water. With stomachs satisfied we watched a very interesting, informative documentary on economic security (one of the seven elements of human security, a topic we are studying) called The End of Poverty. This documentary will be discussed over the next couple of days in Santo Domingo, to where we travel to tomorrow.  A productive, fun, emotionally devastating day has come to a close and everyone is preparing for bed and the long trip to Santo Domingo to come in the morning.

A Productive Day

Mount Brison

Off to a Great Start!

Bienvenidos GLA Participants,

Everybody arrived safe and sound to our beautiful lodge in Playa Las Canas. Our program is off to a great start, after some volleyball challenges, we had an amazing dinner with yummy food aplenty. The orientation provided an overview of all the cool community service projects we’ll be participating here in DR and the leadership activities led us to create community standards, get to know each other and built our GLA community.

Tired but happy we’re going to bed and we can’t wait for the all adventures awaiting in DR.

Arrival!

Almost all students have arrived and are ready for their adventure in the DR! More blogs posts and photos to follow!

Headed Home

All students are through customs and headed home!

La Grua

Part of the reason I came on this trip was to experience change and diversity by exposing myself to new cultures. Today we went to La Grua, a community of both Haitians and Dominicans that is stricken with poverty, pollution and many environmental problems. Their river (which was more like a stream) was not only used for bathing, drinking and cooking, but for bathing their pigs and dumping their toilet waste in. Their houses were inching their way down the cliff because of erosion. Most of the people were unemployed and unable to provide for their families. Trash was almost everywhere you stepped. But here these kids have huge smiles on their faces, never been happier. What’s wrong with that? America is so heavily reliant on material things as sources of happiness. We have so many privileges in America that we take for granted. We helped pick up trash and played with all the kids. It was a blast giving them piggy back rides, and some of the guys had kids on their shoulders. They were adorable. And although we are doing good things in this community and building good relationships, there are so many other communities like this that need the same attention. And I know we’re supposed to be writing about what we did today, but I just can’t pass up the opportunity to hopefully inspire others to take action. Stop waiting on the world to change.

-Riley Staal

A Full Day

Today, we got to sleep in an extra hour. It was much appreciated, especially after a long day in the sun yesterday at Dudú. We did a really neat reforestation project at the home base. If you can believe it, we planted exactly 1,500 cacao seeds. We all started by filling little bags with dirt with either our gloved hands or water bottle halves as shovels. Once we had a few done, we split up into two groups to start watering and seeding them. We had to fill a wheelbarrow with filled bags and transport it to a shaded area of basecamp. We watered the bags and placed a fresh cacao seed in each one, straight from a cacao bean. It’s really hard to believe that something so funny looking can produce such amazing chocolate, not only here in the DR, but also in the form of Hershey bars around the world. We got to taste the seeds, and they tasted like sour mangoes and were slimy to the touch. It’s pretty interesting as to why GLA is deciding to plant this particular type of tree. Once planted, given two years, each tree will yield $10 in profit. So far, that’s $15,000 per year starting two years from today. That’s more money than most villages around here see annually. With this much to spend on things other than food, locals will be better able to demand political rights and will be able to afford health care. This simple task to help the Earth leaves more of an impact than it may seem by touching upon all 7 elements of human security – individual, community, food, health, political, economic, and environmental. We really enjoyed doing the work, knowing how beneficial it will be for so many communities. It’s extraordinary to think that one tiny little seed can make such a huge impact. After a hard day’s work of “being the change”, we got some free time to go to the beach, the local store, or just hang around and play cards. We ended the day by watching a Ted Talk about passion and its importance to connecting with others. Passion is something that those who lead must possess in order to be successful. Everyone here at GLA has that necessary inspiration to make a difference, starting right here in the DR.

-Fiona Muir and Lily Krietzberg

Service

Today we woke up early at 7am and we got ready for the day. At 7:30 we had breakfast. For breakfast we had eggs, sausage, toast, and fresh fruit. For our drink we had hot chocolate. After that we packed our day bag and headed out to Caraballo. Some of us stayed behind sick. It took a little more than an hour to get there. On the way, we saw mountains, the Carribbean ocean and lots of palm trees. When we arrived we grabed our materials and went straight to work. We worked on an amazing bottle school with 6 rooms used for a clinic, and a school. Today was our third day helping to build the clinic. Some of us put bottles in the wall and others cut and put up chicken wire. We worked for a few hours then had lunch at 12:30, made by some of the locals. After that we hopped on the bus and went too a public beach. We bought souviners, got henna tattoos, ordered food and drinks and, of course, went swimming. Many of us enjoyed the wifi and some of the girls had their hair braided. It was very relaxing after working for a few hours. We stayed untill about 4pm then headed back to the home base. We met up with the students that stayed home sick and then enjoyed dinner. We had buritos, tortillia chips, guacumole, rice, and beans. After that we had education and leadership. For education, Dave talked about Food Inc. A documentary we watched the night before. For leadership we played rock, paper, sissors cheer and talked about tomorrow’s schedule.

Dudu

Today was a good day. Everyone got to get up an hour later than normal thanks to Cameron’s graciousness. Three people went on a run this morning at 7 which is better than the normal two. Breakfast was at 8:30 and consisted of eggs, French toast, salami, and real syrup. After breakfast we got on the bus for an hour drive (everything is and hour away) to DuDu for a fun day of cliff jumping and zip lining. The 35 foot drop was conquered by most but a few of us, not going to name any names, chickened out. The water was much cooler than the surrounding temperature of 85 degrees making every jump a refreshing experience. Aside from cliff jumping there was volley ball and soccer. Many competitive games of volleyball were played as Becca and Cameron squared off in an epic battle of wit and agility. Lunch was quite American compared to most other lunches. We enjoyed the luxury of fried chicken (no ketchup) along with the usual rice and beans. We ended up leaving around 4. Everyone was tired after a long day of fun and sunburns. Despite the bumpy ride back to the camp, around half of the bus was able to fall asleep. We got back to the camp, hung out, ate dinner and watched the well-known documentary “Food Inc”. We are looking forward to the upcoming days in the DR.

-Benjamin McCourt, Aiden Prentice

Caraballo / Cabarete

Today we woke up at 7:00 in the morning and we ate breakfast at 7:30. We ate eggs, toast and fresh fruits. After everyone finished getting ready we got on the bus at 8:00 and we went to Caraballo to help work on the bottle school. The locals were really friendly and helped us a lot. For the school, we cut wire, filled bottles in the wall and cemented and painted it. We finished our work at noon and a local person make us lunch. We had rice, chicken and fresh fruit.

After we ate, we got on the bus again and we went to Cabarete beach. There were a lot of tourist and venders selling things such as; bracelets, jewelry and Henna tattoos. Some girls got their hair done in cornrows. At the beach, it has a lot of tables and chairs for visitors. Then the water is really blue and a lot of people were kite surfing and swimming. Also, the weather was really nice and there was a nice breeze. It was really relaxing and enjoyable. We all liked it a lot and can’t wait to go back again. We stayed 3 hours at the beach and then got back on the bus. Unfortunately, the batteries of the bus died and ours mentors pushed the bus until it worked again. It was really hot in the bus but it took only a few minutes to get it working again.

When we all got back to our home base, we went into the pool. Then we hung out until dinner 6:30. For dinner we have two types of spaghetti, with fresh fruit and other dishes. We started our leadership activity at 7 pm. First we learned about climate change and discussed the cause of it. Then we all took the True Color Personality Test. We all learned about ourselves and our weaknesses and strengths. Today was really fun and we can’t wait for tomorrow’s activities!!

-Shealah and Annie

Caraballo

Today, we went to Caraballo, a small village about an hour away from base camp. Caraballo is the home of the biggest bottle house in the world, and GLA has been spearheading its construction. Our group is going to be able to complete it by the end of the trip. That’s not something that everyone has the opportunity to say. It’s so amazing to be able to finish this building, and even more inspiring to know that it will make a tremendous impact on the little village of Caraballo, as well as other surrounding villages. There were so many children there. We learned later that the DR is one of two countries in the world where the children born in a country to illegal parents are also illegal. Due to this illegality, the kids have extremely suppressed opportunities. Thanks to the construction of this building, about 5,000 people, a majority of them illegal immigrants, will have access to medical service. The work was, at times, physically difficult, but it was very rewarding. Besides, it was nothing in comparison to the hike up Brison yesterday. We did everything from painting to filling the walls with plastic bottles to cutting chicken wire. The children were a big help. They were adorable, and also really interested in our phones. A group of kids got a hold of someone’s phone, and it was a struggle to get it back. They clearly understood our limited Spanglish, but just held their hands up as if to say “One more minute”.

Our lunch was cooked by locals in the village. Everyone got a heaping pile of a steaming rice dish. We gave our leftovers to the children, and they happily accepted. The essence and necessity of community is so powerful there. A village like Caraballo is comprised of people working together for the overarching cause of the well-being of the community. Most towns in the US could learn a lesson or two about the true meaning of neighbors from Caraballo. Later, in place of leadership activities, we watched the documentary “11th consequences of climate change, including exponential population growth, use of toxic pesticides, and the overall attitude humans have towards nature. We have such privileges in this world. We have a moral obligation and responsibility to lend both hands to those who do not have such privileges. -Lily Krietzberg and Jocelyn Ding Hour”. I highly recommend it to anyone who has Netflix. It explains the true  consequences of climate change, including exponential population growth, use of toxic pesticides, and the overall attitude humans have towards nature. We have such privileges in this world. We have a moral obligation and responsibility to lend both hands to those who do not have such privileges.

-Lily Krietzberg and Jocelyn Ding

Just to highlight a quick quote for you Dave..
“The essence and necessity of community is so powerful there. A village like Caraballo is comprised of people working together for the overarching cause of the well-being of the community. Most towns in the US could learn a lesson or two about the true meaning of neighbors from Caraballo.”

Hiking Brison

Today we woke up at 7 and took a long bus ride to the base of Brison Mountain. The hike was around 2 miles up and 2 miles down. The steep inclines and hot temperatures caused everyone to slow down and take multiple breaks. After about 2 hours, we made our way to the top where we were greeted by locals who served us a delicious meal of beans, rice, chicken and fruit. Everyone was most excited about the ice cream, which was the main form of motivation throughout the hike. While at the local’s house, we got to see what their everyday life consists of as well as their living conditions. On the way down, we got to enjoy the beautiful views and an easier walk. During the hike, we also learned about the deforestation within the community due to the farming methods and need for land for cattle. We also learned that with the help of GLA and the Peace Corps, pipes were put in place to provide a water spigot at each house. As hard as the hike was, we learned a lot and felt a great sense of achievement when we reached the top. We have continued to learn about leadership, human security, the lives of Dominicans and have had our own physical and emotional strength tested in various situations. We are all having fun playing cards, going to the beach, interacting with locals, and are excited for the rest of the activities!

We’ve Arrived!

All students have arrived in country and are ready for their program! Stay tuned for blog updates!