Recovery Part 1: 27 Waterfalls- We had a small hike up only to come down by jumping and sliding down 27 mother nature made waterfalls! It was incredible to see how they were all natural and the water felt amazing!
I made it back from Camp Discovery in Jarabacoa, DR and am now back in Puerto Plata! It was an amazing three weeks that flew by, and I had a wonderful time. The camp leaders spent yesterday recovering from three weeks of high schoolers and it was definitely much needed. I will be posting my adventures of the three weeks soon! Recovery Part 1: 27 Waterfalls- We had a small hike up only to come down by jumping and sliding down 27 mother nature made waterfalls! It was incredible to see how they were all natural and the water felt amazing! Recovery Part 2: We ate at a restaurant that was literally on the beach. It was so relaxing to be sitting on a couch on the beach eating fresh made food! Oh yeah, and the pineapple daiquiri helped some too! When in the Dominican... :) Recovery Part 3: The Beach! Laying on the beach, going in the water, laying on the beach, going in the water, drinking a smoothie. That was our final part of camp celebration and recovery and then we said our goodbyes!
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We are leaving the city of Puerto Plata in exchange for three weeks of the tropical rainforest climate of Jarabacoa...oh darn! When we tell people we are going there they say oh it's so much cooler (temperature), there's green everywhere, the waterfalls are amazing..sounds like a wonderful place to me! We will be camp leaders at the adventure summer camp, Camp Discovery, part of the Christian English-immersion school of Doulos Discovery School. Here we will guide teenage Americans and Dominicans as they spend their weeks growing in their faith with Jesus in the beautiful outdoors He created!
Week 1 we will be staying at Pico Escondido, a Young Life camp right outside of Jarabacoa. We will be hiking, playing Frisbee golf, conquering rope courses, and climbing the climbing wall! Week 2 we will be staying at Spirit Mountain Ecological Reserve and Organic Coffee Plantation. We will be sleeping under pavilions, and I'm hoping it will be close to the coffee for it's wonderful smell! Here we will be horseback riding, geo-caching, rappelling, mountain biking, and swimming in waterfalls! Week 3 is going to be more of a challenge as we climb the highest mountain in the Caribbean, Pico Duarte which is 3,098 meters or 10,164 feet. We will be challenging ourselves as we backpack to the top of the mountain while exploring all the beautiful sights I'm sure it has to offer. Needless to say with these conditions I won't be able to update my blog for the three weeks I am at this exciting camp. So, sadly (kind of), I must say hasta luego! But this just means when I come back, I'll have many things to update you about, and I can't wait to share my experience at the camp! Adios! We spent another couple days in La Colorado this week with our wonderful Dominican family! It was still a challenging week, but we were definitely better prepared and finished the rest of the 50 filters we were installing! Below is the home we have been staying in the past week. And of course they welcomed us back with more boiled green bananas with mystery meat for dinner and breakfast. This time around I got a new hairdo thanks to my Dominican sister! The good thing about living in the countryside here is that your house is surrounded by fruit trees! They have bananas, mangos, cherries, lemons, avocados, and some native fruits all around the house! The community also gave me a dancing figurine for helping their community by installing all the water filters! It is such a beautiful piece made by young students in their own community! Our Dominican father, Francisco, was so excited for us to be there for the time we were and only wanted the best for us! It was hard to leave him but hopefully we will be seeing him again! And finally I can't help but to take pictures of the countryside here. It's such a different place than I've ever been before, and I know the things I see here, both good, bad, and sad, will be with me forever. Chikungunya- an illness caused by a virus that spreads through mosquito bites. This virus is spreading rapidly through all parts of the Caribbean right now and, unfortunately, that includes the Dominican Republic. Although it has been around for a while it is spreading at an increasing rate right now and it is expected that 70% of the population of the Dominican Republic will get the virus. Don't worry, Eric and I already took care of our part and got the virus making our contribution to the percentage. I had a very mild case of it but Eric wasn't so lucky. The virus causes fever, severe joint and muscle pain, headache, nausea, fatigue and rash. I noticed it when I had a rash all over my face, arms, and legs and later than night I had an awful fever. I woke up and it hurt like crazy to move my wrists and later that day the same with my ankles. It was the weirdest thing. Because Eric had started having syptoms before me I had increased my fluid intake until I could drink no more, and I think this is what helped my case pass so smoothly. Although Eric drank a lot of fluid his lasted quite a few days longer with more severe fatigue and worse symptoms. For this virus as well as many other health problems, fluids are the MOST important consideration. And I mean healthy fluids like water and Gatorade not Coke. Not only is the Dominican Republic extremely hot, but people do not drink nearly enough water. Some are only drinking two glasses per day. Without enough fluid intake and therefore output, toxins stay in your body and make the body more susceptible to contracting illness such as Chikungunya. Because of their already dehydrated state in the Dominican Republic, Chikungunya is hitting some people very hard, causing them to be in the hospital for days at a time without being able to move. As if this doesn't sound bad enough the first cases of Chikungunya were just confirmed in Kentucky and Georgia so...drink up!! Oh just the loud music that I hear guys jamming out to driving down the street in the Dominican. Excellent taste, I might say! That brings back all the great middle school years... CULTURE SHOCK TIME: The. Biggest. Difference. They are never ever ever ever on time! Never. But it's not late to them, it's the culture. They say something starts at eight or I'll pick you up at 9, but they don't really mean that. What they mean is that time plus two or three or four or, our record, six hours later. This was the most challenging thing the first couple days because even though I'm sometimes late (okay, maybe more than sometimes...maybe) they beat my time by a landslide! Every single day. FOOD: The one food that is common to both the city and countryside here is lunch: an enormous bowl of rice that looks like they cooked the whole package just for me, beans, and some kind of chicken. I expected this much so I wasn't too surprised, but I did think every now and then they would change up their lunch menu. Who was I kidding?! They are dedicated to this meal even more than Americans and pizza. For dinner in the city we usually had some kind of fried empanada or more chicken with plantains which are amazing!! Because the countryside has more food growing around them they serve different food for breakfast and dinner. Breakfast was usually boiled green bananas with rubber cheese (see cheese section below) or I think something that looked like meat. Although the bananas didn't have much taste it was very interesting to try them; however, the best breakfast I had in the country was two almost stale hot dog buns with hot chocolate..even though it was 90 degrees! Dinner was a variety with spaghetti that I think had cheese in it with Yuka (kind of like a potato), a cheese sandwich, or this meal that sounded like Ojama which tasted like sweet potato and was actually my favorite meal there! Tonight we're in the city and actually got some kind of chicken sandwich, definitely a nice break from that oh so yummy country food. CHEESE: Cheese gets its own category since I love it so much. Well I did love it so much. Except not in the Dominican Republic. One kind is exactly like rubber. I pick it up and it flaps around and if I touch it it's smooth and silky like plastic. Mmmm! The other kind they have is a fluffy kind from a squirt bottle similar to ketchup. It comes out almost looking like cheese..it's orange and creamy but the taste is nothing like it at all. I did try it all because I had a hope deep, deep down that it might be decent, but now I just stick to my plain bread and leave the cheese for them! CLOTHING: Pants. Pants. And more pants. That's all they wear! I tried it one day and before we even left the house I was sweating up a storm. Let's just say that was the only day I tried it! The only time girls don't wear pants is for formal events (conferences, church) where they wear dresses, skirts, and definitely a blouse that covers the shoulders.This is where my problem came in because all of my dresses are tank tops, and I didn't bring shirts covering my shoulders that matched my skirt (my last minute packing got me this time). This led to me combining shirts with dresses and tying them using ponytails (below) for church the other night. But I have definitely learned my lesson for next time I come! GENDER: Boys will be boys. Eric is interning with me from Berea, and I've noticed that men/guys will usually talk to him right away and possibly me later. The father we were staying with last week would always take Eric to the construction site or wherever else he was going. I'm definitely not complaining this meant time with his wonderful daughters, but it was interesting to see how men here are definitely ranked higher than women. It's a very traditional living here and even more interesting is I've only seen one woman driver in the whole two weeks we have been here! But girls rule anyway!
We installed about 30 Bio Sand Water Filters this week in various homes throughout the countryside of La Colorado. Installing the filters entails a very detailed, specific process in order to ensure the filters will be efficient and effective. 1. First, we gathered all the materials and went to a house. It was usually within walking distance so we passed donkeys, laundry hanging on bushes, and lost on people sitting on their front porch trying to get away from the heat. Once inside the house we looked for a place to install the filter. It had to be on level ground and in a place the family permanently wants it because if the filter is moved the sand will become compacted and the filter will slow its production. We told the family (mostly with the help of a Spanish man Raul or Francisco) we wanted to install a filter so their family would have clean water and improved their health and they usually had no problem accepting us. 2. One a spot was picked for the filter we put the white tube on the outside of the filter and screwed in the tube that the water will come out. A couple of gallons of water was then put in the filter to ensure there were no leaks. 3. Next we poured the bigger gravel on the bottom of the filter. We added more water using the diffuser that sits at the top of the filter. Once we added gravel to the filter we always had to have the diffuser to add water so the water we added would not be concentrated in one area and compact the gravel. Next, the smaller gravel was added, more water with the diffuser, and then the sand. Each material had to be poured slowly and leveled off so the filter would have an even drainage throughout. 4. One the sand was in we measured the water level, which water supposed to be two inches high. For the Bio Sand Filters two inches is the magic number the filter is in equilibrium with. More than two inches means water will be coming out to use for drinking and less than two inches means the biological layer will not be as productive as it could be. The biological layer is the bacterial layer that forms on top of the sand and keeps other bacteria from passing through ensuring clean water. We then used a smaller strainer to remove the particles left on top of the sand. 5. Next we put 30 drops of chlorine into a cup of water and poured it through the spout. We held the spout up for around a minute so the spout and tube can be sanitized. This will be the only time chlorine will go in the filter because otherwise it would kill the bacteria that is keeping worse bacteria from getting through the filter. 6. Finally, we added lots of water, put the top on, told them how to care for the filter and went on to the next house! Before using the filter you must pour at least five gallons of water twice a day for three days to ensure the filter is clean and ready for use. They must also add three drops of chlorine for every gallon of water produced to kill any organisms that may have made it through the filter. After this they will have clean, free water for most of their lifetime that they can use for drinking, cooking, or bathing! Wheeew this past week was probably one of the most challenging weeks I've ever had. We stayed with a wonderful Domincan Family in La Colorada, a country side of the Dominican Republic. It wasn't the lack of technology, showers, or missing home that made it challenging though. This week taught me more about the culture and people here than I can every imagine by: showering with cups of water out of a bucket with HUGE spiders, having electricity for only a few hours a day and you never knew when, living with 10 people a dog and a cat, the sickness from the unclean water, the different food, the houses of all the people we installed filters, and the happiness each person there shared.
The Good: I have a wonderful Dominican Family now full of brothers and sisters I can visit anytime. They were so sweet and caring, especially when I was sick, and I couldn't of asked for anything better. My new family showed me how relationships with people matter most and how an afternoon can be spent playing with balloons, learning to crochet, trying to understand Spanish soap operas, and still playing some heated Domino's by candlelight in the night. The Bad: I was sick some of the week..I think it was from the water (or the way too many mangos that I ate!). I figured it would happen sooner or later so hopefully no more after this! It amazes me the different level of hygiene that is here compared to the states. It's indescribable. Most houses in the country here have dirt floors, water from the rain or unclean pumps, and trash out the door so the mosquitos hover near. It almost reminded me of my dorm bathroom on the worst days, but thankfully we had enough health education to prevent it from being that bad! The Great: Water Filters!!! We finally got to install water filters...every day this week!! The first one took us so long to install but by the last one we had a system going and whipped them out like no other! I don't think all the people understood the impact the water filters will have on their life: and if they did, it was only monetary reasons because no longer would they have to spend money on clean water. However, we educated them on how it would help and how to take care of the filter so hopefully they will soon see a difference! This is an extremely short version of my life this week in a nutshell and more will come later. It was a long, mentally challenging, but insightful week and I get to go back Sunday to..install more BioSand water filters! Yesterday and today I completed my four open water dives needed to finish my Scuba Diving certification and I passed! The first day we had the boat to ourselves so the private instruction was very helpful. My DiveMaster was Ricardo from Portugal, and he had been here for seven months after traveling to many other places. The worst part of the dive was my ears. It took forever for them to equalize on the way down but each time once I got past that stage they were perfectly fine! The sights were amazing. Fish would swim just an arm length away, crabs were crawling all on the bottom, and coral reefs held an array a beautiful creatures.. It felt like I was in the movie Finding Nemo because the vast, blue ocean view was all that was in sight. Thanks to my mom and Norman I was able to take pictures with my GoPro on the second day of dives. The turned out pretty good for my first time using it, but I definitely learned how to make them better for my next scuba adventure! We installed our first bio sand water filter in the house we are staying today! The process was so interesting and it is fascinating the amount of help a simple filter can provide for a family. Because the tap water here is full of contaminants, families have to buy bottled water to drink. This leads to people not drinking enough water as well as some spending around 20% of their income simply on drinking water. The water does not just provide the people with clean water, but also better health. In one case a parent started to bathe a sickly child in the water from the filter now that they received the clean water for free. Her skin conditions became immensely better and quality of life was much improved. The water filters we will be installing flow at a rate of 0.8 liters per minute which provide families with ample enough water for drinking, and if they want to bathing and cooking. We received intensive education on the process, reasoning, and background for installing a biosand water filter and if you are interested most of it is below! Why BioSand Water Filters? These filters are easy to move and very sustainable with little or no maintenance. Because most of the filters are going in remote, mountainous areas of the Dominican Republic far away from the cities, having filters that are lightweight and easy to move are a necessity. This allows trucks to easily move many filters at once rather than just a few to a specific area. Furthermore, these filters require no maintenance or replacement of parts and last 30 years or more. If the water that is poured in the filter has numerous clay particles, occasionally the particles will have to be lifted from the top of the sand, but that is the extent of the maintenance. Even people with little or no education can obtain the knowledge to maintain a BioSand Filter which is the goal of this project. How do they work? The BioSand Water Filter contains gravel a couple inches on the bottom, a smaller particle a couple inches in the middle, and sand another foot or two up the filter. Water is poured through the diffuser on the top of the container which evenly distribute the water over the sand without causing the sand to compact in any area too much. Once is passes through the sand it goes through the gravel and up the pipe into a water bucket. The contaminants in the water are removed through biological and mechanical processes. The bacteria and other organic matter is stopped at the surface of the sand while the water undergoes filtration. Because two inches of water is always kept on top of the sand a biological layer, or schmutzdecke, forms. This bacteria prevents other bacteria and contaminants from getting through because the bacteria can eat other bacteria and some viruses to survive. If any bacteria happen to get further in the sand they will eventually die because there is no oxygen or food for them to breathe. Some viruses may get through the biological layer as well but they will 'hide' in the sand because the conditions are not good enough for them to reproduce and so they never affect the filter. Why is education needed too? The recipients of the BioSand water filter will be educated on the do's and don'ts of the filter It should not be placed in an area with lots of traffic because if the filter is hit and moved the sand will compact and not let the water filter through. People make freak out because there is ants or larvae in the top of the filter; however, this is okay. The water on the top is not what people drink. Once the water is filtered through the water is fine no matter what is on top but people may remove the pests with a cup if they wish. The family must understand that only water can be poured in the filter, no juice, soda, or sugary drink. If this happens the sugar will pass through the sand filter to the bottom where the gravel is. Here there may be anaerobic bacteria living which may thrive off the sugar and produce a methane smell in the water. Depending on how big the group of organisms living are and how much sugar was poured in depends on how long the water will have a foul smell. However, after enough filtering the smell will disappear and the water will be back to normal. Although the BioSand process removes most organisms, there will still be some left in the water after it is filtered. The CDC recommended using three drops of chlorine for every gallon of water produced to purify the water to a complete state. Although we learned much more about topics relating to BioSand water filters, I have informed you on the basics involved in what we will be doing next week. Next week we will be installing 30-40 BioSand Water Filters in homes where they are greatly needed. I'm sure I will have a lot more information to bore you with then! :) I've fallen in love with mangos! The sweet, succulent taste of them makes my mouth water every time, but the thought of cutting them stops that feeling right away. I used to get the string caught in my teeth and it'd be stuck all day, with no amount of flossing or brushing helping. Yesterday we visited the community we would be staying in all of next week and what do they have, but mango and banana trees everywhere! AND they taught us how to peel/eat them the right way! If you let the mangos sit in water for a few minutes, then peel them with a knife and cut the edges, you get a string free mango and a wonderful snack! (Hope you paid attention to that grandma!) I guess it's a good thing I like mangos so much because the people we are staying with next week said we will have mangos for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! It should be a very interesting week. One of the girls in the town we are staying in next week is deaf and cannot talk, yet she has an amazing talent for drawing. She drew a portrait of me and I couldn't believe all the little details she included! I also attended my first rotary club meeting last night. I didn't know much about rotary clubs; however, by the end of the night I knew all about the clubs and their purpose all around the world. The food was delicious and from the little bit of intense Spanish conversation I could understand, the topics were very diverse!
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Hola!I lucked into this amazing internship in Domincan Republic this summer and couldn't be happier! I will be spending five weeks working with Project Las Americas providing household water filtration, treatment, and education to the citizens as well as helping in children camps for locals. I get to spend an additional three weeks at Camp Discovery, an adventure summer camp, where I will help teenagers grow in their faith while enjoying the outdoors through hiking, moutain biking, rock cllimbing, and more! Archives
August 2014
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