so i left my community this morning having no water, light or gas in the stove. it was a good time to leave!

i will be at the beach in puerto plata for the next 4 days soaking up the sun. vacation finally!

sebastian!

So I promised you I would write about politics. But, in truth, I am tired of the politics that have dominated the DR and my community for the past month (1. I couldn’t participate, 2. Corruption is frustrating, 3. Politics pins community members against community members). I will therefore make this entry short.

There are two main political parties, PLD and PRD. PLD is currently in power, dominating the legislative bodies. This past election was the congressional election, so the people were voting for senators, deputies and local mayors who will rule for the next 6 years. People here are obsessed with politics due to the power and money it brings. If your party wins, you will benefit (as a community and as individuals); if they lose, you despair (jobs will be lost—school bus drivers, govt nurses, town hall employees will all turn over). Here in my province, specifically in my community, we are PLD supporters. My boyfriend was very active in this election and was actually paid for much of the work he did, as registered member of the PLD party (money=good, tainted money = bad). In short, the elections were all around me. My main observations were as such:
1. Many votes were bought on election day with the excuse “if we don’t reimburse people for their transportation, no one will vote”. Many voters actually claim the same excuse, saying “if no one pays me, why would I vote?”
2. PRD and PLD interactions around the elections were petty and violent. I went to a dance where there was a PRD candidate voodoo doll being burned. Also, caravans of both parties would charge through communities whipping and taunting signs of the other party’s candidate. A bit too intense for my liking.
3. Everyone in Guayabo knew everyone else’s political affiliation. This led to lots of gossiping and occasional confrontations between people of different political parties. Drama for no reason, really.

So the election outcomes? PLD won senador and deputy, but lost mayor (which is the most important for me). The current mayor helping with the aqueduct lost the reelection.. Maybe I can woo the upcoming PRD mayor with my “blonde” hair and American accent (lets hope!). Unfortunately, the election outcomes mean that many local jobs are in jeopardy due to the turnover from PLD to PRD which could affect some people in my community. Vamos a ver.

Other Updates:
• I have a new cat as of 2 days ago! His name is Sebastian and he is about 1-2 months old. He is white with yellow patches. I’ve uploaded a photo. While he is cute and cuddly, he refuses to sleep at night and meows frantically for hours on end. Hopefully within a few weeks he will adjust and start catching the rats and cockroaches in the house!
• I’ve discovered that my host family’s house is a black hole. Anything you put down will either be lost, misplaced, or used by someone else (I guess that is what happens when 6 people + 3 animals live in a 4 room house). My boyfriend has lost multiple textbooks, motorcycle keys, papers, etc. Being the detective I am, I found both the lost motorcycle keys (under the bed, duh) and my boyfriend’s textbook that was vital for his final (in the trash.. hmm..). My discoveries were definitely a highlight of this week.
• It has been raining most afternoons which brings down the temperature. Last night for dinner I made tortilla soup for the family and it was surprisingly delicious (and easy/cheap to make)!

stay tuned for blog updates on-

1. the recent congressional elections. in one word- insane. my candidate who was helping me with the aqueduct lost. this could be bad news for the aqueduct.

2.all volunteer conference in the capital last week was rejuvinating in every sense. i feel revived and have some new ideas!

rafa making the hammock and me lying in it!

I’m pretty sure I have hit a wall in this peace corps experience. Not the kind of I-Want-To-Cry-And-Need-To-Go-Home kind of wall, but more of a I-Crave-Too-Much-American-Food-And-Am-Tired-Of-My-Community kind of wall. I guess I need a vacation, really. My work has been really slow the past few weeks, averaging three 1-hour classes a week. The aqueducts have been put on hold (due to upcoming elections and the politics of it all), all my grants have been submitted and either funded or delayed. My walking-group that I was very excited about has died. Too hot. All the time. In the past few weeks I have spent more time in my room, by myself, than with community members (but I’ve seen some great American movies!).

I’ve become a bit tired of my community. Not of the people, but the actual ruralness and inactivity that thrives here in Guayabo. There is literally nothing to do (and I’m not baking for a while in hopes that my rice-belly diminishes a bit). At least the youth have to go to school, the husbands work the land, and wives cook, clean and take care of children. I have none of these roles to fulfill and am finding myself with too much time on my hands (although everyone assures me, “is part of the peace corps experience”). I could always walk the 30 mins-1.5 hours to my nearby neighboring communities, but in the daily 95 degree heat, I just can’t muster the energy (and not like there is anything different there, anyway). Thus, I’ve decided, I need some “learn-how-to” books. If anyone is feeling generous, be sure to ship me “Learn Easy Yoga!”, “Cooking with Paula Deen” or “Computer Programming for Dummies” (don’t actually send the last one- I hate computers).

I also have had a terrible head cold for the past 2 weeks that has put a damper on my enthusiasm. Just last week I called my mother and complained for 25 consecutive minutes. But, I felt a bit better after that! I have even been splurging a bit on food, which I miss most about America/any industrialized nation. I bought some packaged orange juice and finished the 2-liter in 1 day. I also bought a Milky-way Midnight which wasn’t worth the $1. I even dreamed about a turkey sandwich last night, no joke (coldcuts don’t exist here).

Okay, enough of my complaining. My best friend, Anna, is coming in just about 2 weeks for my birthday, which will be AWESOME. We are going to the beach in a touristy town in Puerto Plata (first time I have been to the beach since November – I live on an island, right?) and I will drink some cold beer and hopefully I can find a turkey sandwich or a cheeseburger! I have also instituted a “date night” with my boyfriend once a month, which consists of going about 15 minutes motor away to a shack that serves smoked chicken and cold beer. This will hopefully keep me going throughout the summer when things apparently get REALLY slow and REALLY hot.

Whelp, this upcoming week is All Volunteer Conference which consists of all volunteers in the DR in the capital for one day. Details have been sketchy and I’m not actually sure what the conference is about. But, hopefully seeing some friendly American faces will pop me outta this funk and give me some ideas about things to do at my site! Until then!

So my host mother has been gone for the past two days and you can really start to tell we are missing our ¨dona¨:
1. no soap to wash dishes
2. dogs are hungry
3. my 19 year old brother, 23 year old boyfriend and host father havent eaten anything besides eggs and crackers
4. chickens are running in and out of the house, pooping everywhere.

All of this on top of the fact we have had no water for the past day, due to broken aqueduct pipes. We cant wash the dishes or the floor anyway!

Recent highs: making a delicious potato soup!, my boyfriend completing our grain-sack-hammock, planning my vacation to the beach in 3 weeks!

Lows: deleting 60 photos of my neighbors 15th birthday party, getting a bad cold AGAIN, our acqueduct repairs being put on hold for the next 3 weeks due to elections.