So, lots of exciting things have happened in the past few days!

El dia de la Altagracia (January 21st) came and went with quite a bit of fanfare. For those unaware, Altagracia is the patron saint/protector of the Dominican Republic. It was a high holiday here. The devoted/70% of the town ventured on flatbed truck to a town 45 minutes away to ring in the holiday at the new megachurch. We weren’t the only ones who attended, as probably over 1,000 other catholics attended the mass and the church was standing room only (but don’t worry, somehow I found myself a seat). While the mass was only about 2 hours, the whole morning was taken up by the fieldtrip.

We came back for lunch, and I got off the truck only to be greeted by a fellow volunteer who had found her way to my site, wandering aimlessly (literally, my boyfriend picked her up on the dirt road a few kilometros away). She heard that Antony Santos was playing and came to attend the concert with us! So, after a quick lunch, shower and change of clothes (I didn’t end up wearing the mini-dress to mass) we were back off to La Leonor (where the megachurch is) on motorcycle to attend the Antony Santos concert. One word can describe the night: WILD. Our senador, as part of a “public works” project built a large event center/outdoor party place where the concert was taking place. Thousands of Dominicans passed the night dancing meringue and bachata to fantastic, live music. This party was the classiest thing I have seen yet in the DR. Think: a wedding party at a nice outdoor restaurant. We sat at tables with white tablecloths, had waiters taking our drink orders and paid a cover fee of $10 USD. I ended up spending $45 USD that night. Wow. Especially when your monthly stipend is $350 USD. But, it was definitely worth it. We arrived at the party at 5pm (it started at 3pm) and left around 1am.

As well, I finally got my little house okay’d by Peace Corps! The move in date is set for the first week of February. I need to prepare a bit by buying some containers to store clothing/books, a mirror, pillow, etc. But, I can’t wait to have my own space!