Hi Everyone!

After a well-deserved sleep-in this morning, the delegation got off to a strong start  with orientation and the Moca city tour. Students got to explore the layout of the hostel, climbing up and down the hills and enjoying the beautiful nature that surrounds here! We got an excellent view of the surrounding valley from the top of the mountain, without ever having to leave our hostel!

After lunch the students got started thinking about the Dominican Republic’s history and its relationship with the United States and Haiti with their academic seminar. Students later commented that they had never learned about Latin American history before, which made me realize what a great opportunity this is for them to gain perspective on a whole new region of the world.

We then headed out to embark on our city tour, where we were joined by two of our local youth embassadors. They helped us cross all the busy streets in Moca safely, and serve as cultural guides and English tutoring experts! We saw the iconic church in Moca (Sagrado corazon de Jesus), learned the symbolism in several murals around town, and learned about Moca’s penchant for inciting assassinations of despotic leaders. After some ice creams, we headed back to the hostel for some rest before dinner.

I’m very excited for this delegation! Thank you to all the families for supporting your students in this incredible experience! I look forward to another great day tomorrow.

viva Moca!!

amelia