“History, for all its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.”

Maya Angelou.

Saludo de Constanza! What an amazing day for learning, growing and bonding. The day began with a smooth 8:30am wake up call and breakfast at 9:00am, where students enjoyed some delicious fresh fruit and a variety of cereals. After breakfast, students participated in an engaging discussion about culture and safety, which included students sharing poems titled “Ask Me About”, in which students shared information about themselves and culture. This activity allows students to get to know each other and helps facilitate conversation. After lunch the students took a tour of the City, which included historical facts about the independence of the Dominican Republic and its struggle to maintain its freedom after independence. Students also had the opportunity to visit Constanza’s firehouse, where they met with the fire chief and got to ask questions about firefighting in Constanza. The students did a great job of listening to directions, maintaining high energy, and navigating the city. As a small treat, Global Glimpse treated all the students to ice cream, which they enjoyed throughly.

Later in the afternoon when we returned to Hotel Dileńia, the students did some self-reflections in their travel journals. This activity allowed them to take a few minutes to reflect on their initial experiences thus far on this trip. After this activity students were treated to some tasty traditional Dominican food, which was mangu (mashed plantains), salami, and delicious steamed vegtables. Thus far we have encouraged students to cut down on food waste by eating the right portions and not leaving behind food on their plates, I am happy to report there were over 30 clean plates and 30 happy smiles from C1B. After dinner, we surprised one of our glimpsers, Angelique Cruz, with a birthday cake and some singing for her 17th birthday celebration. The students enjoyed some delicious strawberry flavored Dominican cake.

To end our eventful second day here in Constanza, students gathered up for the nightly meeting. During the meeting we reviewed the expectations for the Leader of the Day and eventually designated leaders for the next 14 days of the trip. The leader of the day is responsible for many aspects of the daily routine which includes facilitating meetings and reminding students to drink water, apply sun block and bug spray. Leader of the Day is also responsible for checking in with students, modeling expectations and providing general guidance through the day’s activties. The leader of the day passes the torch to the following day’s leaders in a unique ceremony which include the future leaders of the day sharing a talent. Tomorrow’s leaders will be Mr. Luna and Amber Holland, who energized the room with their display of bachata skills and got everyone in the room to get up and give it a try. It was a good experience and a perfect transition into culture day.

Till then, please enjoy the blog and pictures. Don’t forget to leave a comment below, it is really nice for the students to hear their loved ones and friends dropped them a comment.

John Presimé