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!