The DR has been in the news quite a bit this week. First the Caribbean was hit with a tropical rain storm. The heart of it passed over the south of the DR through the west of the island mostly in Haiti. The entire island has had rain for 5 days now. It rained nonstop from Sunday evening to Tuesday afternoon, and then only paused for a few hours before beginning again. For a country that supposedly gets a lot of rain they certainly aren’t prepared for it. I guess that comes with not having the money to invest in info structure. They have named several cities in the southwest, northwest and central of the country as disaster areas. The roads are flooded with water or destroyed. Lots of people are with out electricity. Hundreds of acers of agriculture have been ruined. More than 20 people have died due to various causes. Transportation in the city is still ok but between cities is dangerous and slow at best. So many roads aren’t paved and are going to be slow for…well a long time.
All of this is from watching the news. Besides all of the rain it really doesn’t seem that bad here. Nothing I haven’t seen before, lots of rain and a little bit of wind. It’s 75 degrees out and everyone is wearing pants and two sweaters complaining about how cold it is. I’m still in shorts and a t-shirt sitting under a slow moving fan. I have to say it has all of the rain has been a bit comforting. Although it’s still warm here, at least I’m not missing all of fall. I like clothes for this kind of weather, and being able to drink warm drinks and use a sheet or even blanket to sleep.
The thing is it doesn’t seem that rare to me. Our classes were cancelled Monday and Tuesday. I can only remember once in my life school was let out early because of a big storm. Even in Santiago, where we weren’t hit very badly, the people are worried about going out on the streets because of falling trees and electric polls. I feel fairly safe outside in a storm at home. Although I might rather sit inside and watch from a window, I wouldn’t be worried about putting on a sweatshirt and rain coat and walking to class. I had to be reminded that things are not the same here; safety is not the same. I got a lecture about not owning an umbrella. Although it is so practical, I have never owned one before. Dominicans believe that if you get wet from the rain you will get sick. Not even if you get inside soon and dry off, EVERY time you head gets wet from the rain you WILL get sick. The people here do not go out in the rain. There is a tradition when it rains like this everyone stays at home, no one goes to school or work, and eats sancocho (kind of like a stew) and drinks rum. We had sancocho…but no rum.
Another aspect of cultural differences, as well as a reminder that I am living in a developing country. I pray that no more damage will be done, as well as for the safety for those who have lost homes. It seems that those who have little to lose end up losing the most in unfortunate situations like these. I pray that help and support will end up in right places for people who need it.
Well there the DR has been in the news for another thing this week that actually relates to my trip this weekend and one of the classes that I am taking, but that will have to wait until later this week.
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