Los Hermanos in Washington, DC and Here in DR

This is the family that owns the Dominican Restaurant, Los Hermanos, in Washington, DC. On the eve of their trip to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps in the DR, the Friends of the Dominican Republic (FODR)  filled the restaurant! The family generously obliged me while I snapped  photographs the night I was there.

These two men  sitting with others in the room where they often played dominos. The man standing  is posing as though he were trimming his friend's hair.

Here is a photo as the restaurant appears from Park Rd NW, in the Columbia Heights area of
Washington, DC. And here are customers standing at the counter waiting to be served the delicious Caribbean fare served:

And below are the diners who accompanied me at our meal. One woman told me she was from Guatemala and came to eat at the restaurant, a local favorite, after her English class. The other woman said she was from Ecuador. The man did not mention his country of origin:

I guess you could say I was already experiencing the Dominican Republic while in Washington, DC. I found the dinner here very much worth my trip on the Metro from the Ball Park to Columbia Heights.

So now for something completely different, I am going to include some photos from a night of music here at the Hotel Barcelo in Santo Domingo, waiting out Isaac in resort style:

Here is a photograph of our group dancing to the rhythm of the Caribbean:

Ok, It's Check out time and I am under some pressure to get cracking now, so that is all for now, except for a photo of my friend in my near empty apartment that helped make all of this possible by packing my clothes in my back:

And one last photo:

That's all for now, folks!

Here in the DR with Hurricane Isaac!

So here I am, with 43 other Peace Corps Volunteers in the Dominican Republic. The photo is taken at the Training Headquarters in Santo Domingo, where we spent Thursday learning Spanish. There are a number of these delightful small out of doors "Classrooms" in which we receive our instruction. Tonight we're in our second evening at the Barcelo Hotel until Isaac passes. Isaac is more of a tropical storm than a hurricane, yet has resulted in a lot of wind and rain. This is Peace Corps Posh, for sure. We've enjoyed the buffet meals and spacious rooms. Yesterday I swam in the huge swimming pool.

What a terrific rest I am getting, and its been a fun time bonding with the other Peace Corps Volunteers. Numerous members of this group have spent time abroad in other countries, and five were previously serving in the Peace Corps. The ages of the volunteers vary, and while most are in their twenties, others are older. All are gracious and very dedicated. Our schedule has been arduous, with a lot of forms and minutae. Being an off the map Intuitive on the MBTI,  these Sensate details are stressful.

The trip to Washington DC went smoothly for me, and that hotel had a terrific swim pool, which was great. I was so excited to meet the Peace Corps Staff and the Peace Corps Trainees.  That evening I took the Metro to Columbia Heights and ate at Los Hermanos, a Dominican restaurant recommended to me by Friends of the Dominican Republic member Neil Ross. I'll post photos of my evening at the restaurant soon! In the meantime, here is a photo from our training:

Getting ready at 1 am in the morning for the bus to the airport and the 6 am flight to Miami, a layover and flight to the DR was hard. I can't remember when I've stayed up all night long without any sleep. We sat at the airport in Washington DC for several hours until we boarded the flight to Miami. I am including a photo of that wait below:

So we did make it to the Dominican Republic, and a whole group of Peace Corps Volunteers welcomed us. I handed out six of the Valhrona chocolate bars purchased for the occasion to some of the Volunteers, including Laila, Katy, Ellen and others.  It was all so rushed, because buses were waiting  to take us to the retreat center. I hardly got the time to chat with the Volunteers who gathered at the airport on our behalf. It was a short lived thrill to actually meet with Volunteers I've corresponded with on the internet.

I enjoyed our experience at the Catholic retreat center, and was so happy to meet Adele Williams. Also, our training Director, Jennifer McGowan has been incredibly gracious. I'm overwhelmed with happiness knowing I'll be speaking fluent Spanish in two years, so am particularly grateful for our outstanding language staff during training. These few paragraphs hardly do justice to my experience here in the Dominican Republic thus far, yet for now they are a start!

Sold my Toyota Camry-- Must be Leaving the Country Soon!

Thursday August 9, I posted my 1999 Toyota Camry on Craigslist at 2:15 pm and by 9:00 pm that night the car was sold and I had $3850 cash in hand. The fellow who bought my car wanted it for his daughter, a sophomore at UC Santa Cruz. He seemed really happy with his purchase, and with good reason. It is a terrific car, and well taken care of. 

I bought the car from the Toyota Dealership in 2003, in Metairie, Louisiana (I was living in New Orleans at the time) when it only had 36,600 miles. A two toned silver, it was a Certified Used Toyota, and a beautiful vehicle. I really enjoyed that car. Drove it across the country to California with my Cat in 2004. Now both my Toyota and the Cat have been lifted from me. 

And here is a photo of the last I saw of the Toyota before Mary, her 19 year old driver, took her away:

A chapter in life has ended and a new chapter is about to begin. One more week before I leave for Washington DC, on Monday August 20. Today, I booked a reservation at the Holiday Inn Express at the Oakland Airport, for Sunday August 19. My friend Limor and her husband Josh will take me there Sunday afternoon. And in the morning I'll get up and take a shuttle to the Oakland Airport. I am packed and ready to go! 

Last week I wrote a couple of prose poems and it occurred to me that I could post them here. This is the first one:

Listening to the Radio

Listening all day to the radio about the effects on 300,000 people’s lives after the US bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki is damned depressing.  Just last week I was reading about social reformer Juan Emilio Bosch Gavino and his election in the Dominican Republic as President.  Lyndon Johnson's response to Bosch was to send Marines (Operation Powerpack) down to the DR to thwart his reforms, just as some real progress on behalf of human rights for Dominicans became possible.  FDR called Long time Dominican Dictator Trujillo a bastard, “But he’s OUR bastard,” he famously stated.  US Imperialism is a quite a legacy, one I’m really feeling sad about today today.

 Lee Haworth, August 6, 2012

Here's my second piece:

On My Way to the Dominican Republic (Really Soon)

James Howard Kuntsler says the grocery shelves will be empty and there’ll be martial law in the US by November.  Good thing I’m getting out of the country, just in the nick of time. It’s a little daunting though…getting rid of nearly everything, including the car... My good friend Alex gave me a big gleaming smile yesterday, saying,” Man, you must have really wanted a change to be doing something like this…I can’t imagine myself doing what you’re doing.” 

In the beautifully appointed Bodega Bay home in which we meet, no financial implosion seems remotely evident--views of the Pacific Ocean are calming; and the rolling hills feel peaceful.  I admire the matching pottery as I lift bowls from the kitchen shelves.  Oh, how I enjoy tasteful, matching pottery.  Until I don’t. And next thing I’m taking it all to the Salvation Army.

I would have had a lot of matching everything if I hadn’t left it all behind at one time or another.

“Living in the Dominican Republic can be frustrating, as well as challenging,” a woman named Kate emails in response to my query about her life. Kate still lives in the DR twenty years after her service as a Peace Corps Volunteer ended.  She adds, “But life is never boring here, and nothing is ever routine.”

Lee Haworth, August 6, 2012

Two Weeks Before I Leave for the DR!

Two weeks from tomorrow I'll be heading to Washington DC, and Wednesday, August 22, I'll be in the Dominican Republic. Today I spent the day in beautiful Bodega Bay with friends Alex and Ellen Rush. They hosted a gathering for those of us who wanted to do The Work, a process taught by Byron Katie. Basically this is an inquiry process, designed to question belief systems, and stay open to acceptance of life on life's terms. It was a day of deep internal work, empathy and laughter. I was so glad that I took the day off to participate.

Of course, the number one false belief most of us have is that we are in control of life's energies. Right know I am realizing how little control I have over a lot of things in life. For instance, next week I'll put my car up for sale. I'm not in control of whether it will sell over the weekend. I bet it will though! I am doing my best to manage my anxieties about wrapping everything up and starting a new chapter in life. Time with friends and a gorgeous drive helped a lot to increase my relaxation level.

So all of my life's possessions are in storage, with the exception of a few minor articles I'll add in the last few days before I leave California. I was very glad to have the help of a friend putting my things in a closet sized storage room. I think I got things pretty well distilled out over the past six months, considering I've been on the planet 63 years. Here is a photograph.

And I've pretty much got what I need for going to the Dominican Republic, too. Hope all of this stuff fits into my pack and rolling duffel. The Peace Corps allows 80 pounds. You can see I've got a package of balloons and a pump to blow balloons up with. Over my years as a child therapist I've developed a certain expertise with balloon animals. I'm taking a few card games, and some puppets. Also, I've wrapped a few gifts for host families I'll be staying with. Several DR travel books and a map are in the pile, as well as a few swimsuits, a warm weather sleeping bag, a sleeping pad, clothes, rain jacket, electronics and so on. The Peace Corps DR packing list suggests that we pack a can opener and vegetable peeler, so these are here too!

Here is a photograph. Oh, and of course, there is a ribbon for outstanding 8th Grade Spanish...just to remind myself that at various times of life my Spanish has been pretty decent. In my last few days here I plan to get in some concentrated time studying...if I can just get my jumpy nerves to settle long enough!