On the 15th of June we were given the option to have a free day. We were all very excited to have our first day to explore San Juan de la Maguana. We did not have a scheduled time to wake up so we all woke up at our own time. When everyone was awake, we all had breakfast together. At the table, we laughed with each other and shared jokes as we ate cereal and pineapple. All of the food we have been eating has been so delicious by the way. We all have been eating like queens ;). We then waited for the ambassadors to come at Onaney so they could be our chaperones in our free day. However, we ran into an issue and the ambassadors couldn’t get here on time so we all couldn’t split up into the groups we wanted to be. We all decided to go together to a cathedral that was near Onaney. The cathedral was called Catedral Metropolitana Basilica de San Juan Bautista. It was amazingly beautiful. There were walls and parts of the roof painted with stories from the Bible. One of the paintings that stood out to me was a painting of Adam and Eve. It was absolutely beautiful, it seemed as if all the paintings were painted by hand and I think they were. We then went to the top of the cathedral and we were able to see the whole city. Some of us were even able to write dates and names on top of the little dome that were important to us. We then went back to Onaney and ate lunch. After lunch, the ambassadors were here and we were able to split up and go to different places in the town. My group went to go eat ice cream first and then we went to the pharmacy to get some necessities we needed. We then came back and quickly got ready to go to English Tutoring. My class was a mess that day. Nicolette and I were trying to teach the 8-12 year olds about pronouns in English but we explained it wrong and the kids ended up getting more confused. I spent most of the time trying to explain and helping this one students who is such a cutie. After that, class was dismissed and we were going to head back to Onaney. As we were getting ready to leave, we got to meet other Glimpsers that were on the trip. I got to meet some of the people that were from my school and so did others. We then went to Onaney and ate dinner. When we finished dinner, they shut off our electricity and turned off the water so we could begin Living like a Local. Some of us, like me, slept on the floor in the hallway because the room was too humid. Surprisingly, I didn’t get bit by any mosquitoes. Probably cause I sprayed like 5 layers of bug spray and made everyone in the hallway start coughing. Whoops. We then had check ins with the Glimpsers that were still awake, like me again, and I talked about the loved ones that I miss from home.
Personal Note:
Mamí y papí los extraño muchísimo y pronto regresaré a casa. Papí, felíz dia de padres ya sabes que te amo mucho y cada día que estoy aquí, aprendo más de cómo tu has vivido. Yo sé los sacrificios que has tomado y me he dado cuenta todo lo que has sacrificado por nosotros, tus hijos. Ya les tengo regalos para cuando regrese. Los quiero mucho y extraño muchísmo tu comida mom. Quiero unas enchiladas verdes :(. Le dicen a Angie que la extraño y apenas encontré su otra nota y su cobijita. Casi lloré. Los amo mucho y falta otra semana hasta que regrese.
Con mucho amor, Monique <3
Hey Alex Kwan! Did you get to see ugly Chloe and Sam today? Lucky. Castro Valley hasn’t been the same without you. Today Kentris declared a town-wide day of mourning to mark 1 week since you left us. We all wore black, and Mr. Maloney delivered a tearful eulogy. We start selling “Do it for Alex” t-shirts in the student store tomorrow, $15 a pop. I miss you so much my nut-fearing bean. Love u!!
PS: Chloe, you, and as of today, Makena, have all left CA, so now there is nothing stopping me and Lexi from, well…
HI JAZZY!
It’s your cousin Ben. Hope you’re having a great trip thus far. Your mom misses you very much and she’s also very proud of you. To the glimpsers, some of you guys might be feeling home sick and at times are so exhausted from all that productivity throughout the day. Just keep on making the most of the remaining days because you will miss the DR when your back home. I sure do.
Hi jasmine! how’s you’re day? Are you having fun? Hope you made a lot of friends and are having a good time. Don’t forget to use your spray and take lots of pictures for me. We all miss you so much.
LOVE, MOM
My beautiful Nancy,
I feel so bad I missed your call, at that time I was setting the bed and thinking of you so much and wandering how you were doing and hoping your are having a great time and experience, then I missed your call. I did not know it was you till I listen to your message then I was like OMG it was my Nancy! Since my identity has been hacked I thought it was them… I finally got another glimpse of my beautiful Nancy, it looks like you were eating a mango..:) Keep the pics coming! Sending you love across the miles…:). Distance between our Hearts is not an obstacle. Rather a beautiful reminder of just how strong true love can be… MISS YOU! Your my teddy bear warm sweet and cuddly too. I’m sure you are having a great time!:). Missing you a lot and can’t wait to hear all you have experienced…:). Emoji “Heart”.. LOL. I hope to hear your voice soon, and this time I’m answering all calls…:(
not sure if it sent so resent lol. it keeps erasing
Thinking of you sweetie! I bet you were the last one to wake up on the 15th! LOL! I love you so much! I am thankful for these blogs and photos, I love seeing you happy and hearing all about your day! Thank you everybody for this blog! Make great memories and I’ll see you in a week sweetie!
P. S. Indy misses you a lot too and can’t wait to go to the park and play with you! Hugs and kisses for you sweetie!
Mi hermosa Monique que gusto nos da leerte y saber q la estás pasando bien… nosotros pasamos contando los días para tu regreso te extrañamos mucho… ayer Angelique se corto el pelo tratando de cortar su liga q le apretaba mucho y le quedó el pelo como alfalfa el de la película… hay moriamos de risa con Jr y ella lloraba como una Magdalena… cuando regreses te enseñaremos el vídeo.
Cuídate mucho hermosa y ya sabes que te amamos infinitamente!!!!
Tus papas y hermanos!!’ Besos
Hi Gena, I can’t wait to hear all the amazing stories when you get back! It was great to hear from you on Saturday! I hope you are enjoying the last few days in San Juan de la Maguana. We all miss you and are very proud.❤️ I enjoy reading these blogs of what you all are doing there, sounds very busy and exciting. Love you much! Mom