Grannies on a Mission: Day 5 Mission: Get to work!

Monday, February 20

Well we have been here since Thursday evening so it is high time we get some work done. I have spent the last two nights at Eddy's parents house while Karen enjoyed some precious time with Carrie and Eddy. The house reminds me of a park shelter in that there is a frame with a peeked metal roof and inside walls that go up about 6 ft. The morning light peeps through where the roof meets the outside walls. These openings invite in all types of unwanted guests so I am sleeping under a net here too. The neighborhood dogs decided to have a few 'conversations' through the night and the roosters made sure we were awake early with their call of 'Kiki-ri-ki'. There is no hot water here so in the mornings I am pretty quickly in and out of the shower.

We start our morning going to pick up some last minute supplies so we can start our project for the day. The Crown Point team not only built a tall brick wall around part of the school property but also custom made a cabinet in Shelley's office to store school supplies. Up until now these supplies have been stored in suitcases which made it difficult to access them.

We unpacked suitcases and inventoried supplies during the afternoon. At any time we can pop out the door and watch the kids play which we find ourselves doing often. One of the Crown Point team folks bought hula hoops and bats and balls for the kids and they are having a blast.

For dinner we all went out to a hamburger place which is a favorite of our hosts. We sat outdoors and enjoyed our burgers and many of us had chinola juice, which was delicious. We had good conversation and really enjoyed our time together. Karen headed back to Carrie's and I went with Shelley, Guille , Mark and Sarah to spend a few nights with them.

You can not talk about the DR without making mention of the insane driving here. There doesn't appear to be any rules and I can only compare it to bumper cars at the carnival except no one seems to run in to each other. When driving you are free to pass anytime and as many people can pass at one time that wants to. I can't tell you how many times I have just covered my eyes and waited for the sound of crashing metal. It is a plethora of cars, trucks, motorcycles,mopeds and pedestrians all going helter skelter this way and that. Glad I don't have to teach a teenager how to drive here! Ruth