On our tour of the Centro Leon museum, our tour guide told us that there were no class systems here. As someone from America where class plays such a large role in our every day lives, it’s hard to believe that what he says is true.  Everything from where we live, where we eat, where our children attend schools, and even who our friends are Is affected by our social standing. As a result of this, the richer individuals have all the access to the best things available and the poorer individuals are stuck in ghettos with poor education systems and for the most part, unhealthy foods, and obviously, the rich folk don’t want to be associated with the poorer class. As we drive to our service location in Navarrete, I’ve noticed how close in proximity the most run down homes are to very large, nicely built gated homes. Perhaps this plays a role in the nonexistence of classes here. It seems as though people here are more aware of the benefits of helping everyone as a whole as opposed to only helping themselves. They all suffer hardships here whether it be living without knowing when their next meal may be or not having clean running water, or struggling with transportation and I feel as though these things bring people closer together. I like that whether or not you have money does not limit you to what part of town you can live in or who you can associate with. Relationships shouldn’t be determined by class like it is in America. Being here has given me a different perspective on how we live. We are a very self centered country and because of this, the gap between the upper class individuals and the lower class individuals just gets larger and larger. It’s a shame that there isn’t much we can do about this except treat everyone equally. All we can hope for is that we set an example for others to follow and all we can wish for is that people would want to follow in our example. 

Working in Navarrete has been such a grounding yet rewarding experience. I realize how lucky I am to have a loving and caring family that is not only able to provide me with all of my needs but also my wants. The children here don’t even have running water; it’s heartbreaking. The funny thing is, though, they’re happy. They have fun. They smile and they laugh. I’m very glad that we got to work with children for the service portion of our trip. We get to give them a better learning environment and that, in turn, will hopefully inspire them to want to be in school and value education. 

In addition, I’m glad to be working with Ruben on the mural. At home, I love drawing and painting and I get to do what I love as a means of service to a community in need. Rubens lessons in art are invaluable. I mean, I get to learn from a famous artist for free. What more could I ask for? Furthermore, I’d like to add how proud I am of everyone here. We’ve only been working at the school for two days and already, there is so much improvement.  

Below is a picture from the progress on the mural from the first day and a picture from when we finished up today. 





Also, it was hilarious seeing mr. G hanging from the roof 

Yesterday, several of us went to eat at a restaurant on Calle de Sol during our break between arriving at the hotel and our first class. After seeing the hotel and the scenery while we were en route from the airport to the hotel, we were a bit awestruck at how nice it was. When we were seated, we noticed a boy, probably around 16 years old, hanging behind our table. He was quiet at first and smiled at us so we assumed he may have been trying to say hi or was interested in who we were; however, we soon learned that he was asking us for food even though we had no food in front of us. The restaurant’s security and even other restaurant goers tried to shoo him away but he was persistent and stayed. Some even handed him money or their leftovers but that didn’t get rid of him either. I felt bad for him and wanted to help, but after having spent so much time in philly and being around bums there, I can’t help but think that the money I would’ve given him wouldn’t be used for food or basic necessities. We ended up giving him some of our leftover nachos after we were done eating, but what is a few chips when you’re starving. The experience overall was very humbling. 

The trip so far has been amazing and I can’t wait to see what else this week brings us. 

Hey everyone, I just wanted to give you guys a heads up that currency exchange with banks usually take a day or two to be done.  I have banking with Bank of America and when I spoke with them, they said they can order the amount you want and it’ll there the next business day.  I also read online that banks affiliated with Mexico (like Santander and Bank of America) charge much less to do the exchange.  I know with bank of america, the fee is only 5$ and possibly 5% of what you exchange.  I also spoke to Mr. G about what he has done in the past and he said currency exchange is free in the DR so what I was planning on doing was maybe exchanging 50$ here to use on Saturday and Sunday and then doing the rest at a bank in DR on Monday when the banks are open.  Hope this helps!