IMMIGRATION DAY

Hello guys. It’s me, Palina. Savana and I were the second leaders of the day. We had a long day ahead of us as everyone had to be up by 6:00AM! Even though we were all sleepy we still managed to get ready and be early for breakfast. For breakfast we had cereal and fruit. After we were done eating, we quickly got our bags because we were scheduled to go to Puerto Plata! Our destination was a three hour drive away from the Villas we are staying at so we had to pack an overnight bag and stay at a hotel. After we got our bags and hopped on our guagua (bus), our first stop was a small community health center. 

The community health center we traveled to is owned by a Haitian entrepreneur. In said center, we learned about the community and their values as well as their living conditions. When taking a tour around the village we got to walk around and interact with the local children, which made the experience that much more interactive. During our tour, we learned about the lack of clean water present in the village due it being contaminated with various bacteria and the economic disparity these individuals were facing. After our tour, we had the opportunity to visit the village’s market to buy bracelets and other jewelry that was crafted by the locals. 

From there, we took a short bus ride to a Dominican household which was kind enough to host us for lunch. The lunch consisted of chicken, rice, beans, salad, and macaroni. After getting our fill, we finally headed to our hotel to check in at 1:30PM. When we checked in, we were given 30 minutes to get ready for our surprise beach trip. Upon our arrival at the Playa (beach), we were able to swim in the crystal clear waters, tan, and play beach volleyball for 2 hours. Later on, we got ice cream from a kind street seller and headed back to the hotel for a meeting and dinner. During our meeting, we watched a heartfelt documentary on the inhumane deportation of Haitians from the Dominican Republic and discussed its implications. Afterwards, we had dinner at the hotel and enjoyed the rest of our night relaxing in our rooms. Overall, Savana and I had a wonderful time leading our peers through this long and diverse day. Though we were presented with the disheartening parts of The Dominican Republic, we are very grateful for the opportunity to experience Puerto Plata to the fullest.