Day 2: History and Culture

Hello all!

It was a beautiful day today exploring the downtown and city center of Jarabacoa. We woke up around 7, had a lovely breakfast of toast, eggs, cheese, and a fabulous passion and oat drink. We began our day with a mental warm up about the complicated history of the Dominican Republic, and how we can appreciate the culture through music and dance.

We took a trip to the city center, and completed a brief walking tour filled with important spots such as the supermarket, the city hall, the fire station, etc. Because today was the flower festival, and it was a Sunday, the streets were very lively with lots of people. It was pretty hot, so we stopped for some traditional ice cream at Helados Ivon where students had some treats (the most popular flavor was Mango and Chinola (passionfruit)). Jerry even tried the “batata con coco” (Sweet Potato with coconut).

Our next stop was the flower festival, where we saw beautiful parade floats, and an amazing flower and plant market. We saw the river called “Confluencia”. Many students said this was the highlight of their day!

We then took a ride to have some traditional Taino cuisine at Bohios Campo Anil, where we met the owner named Eunice Marmolejos, who graciously told us that this house is her grandfather’s home, and was previously a coffee factory. Our lunch consisted of pork, chicken, rice, abichuelas (beans), salad, and an arepita (fried cornbread).

We returned back to our accommodations, and took a dance class where we learned the basic steps to bachata, merengue, and Salsa songs with our instructor Adderly Reyes (a professional dancer!). The students started out really nervous to dance, but quickly engaged when we had to do a specific move (you can ask the students yourself to show you.:) )

We finished our long day with dinner, a meeting, and a reflection about our day. Many students were grateful to the many staff who helped us along the way, and the highlights of the day. We are all bonding with each other in meaningful ways, and the students are excited for tomorrow’s activities. ?

Best,

Madison & Aileen, GGLs