The past three weeks here in the Dominican Republic have been fantastic: learning new things at teacher training, meeting great people, eating tasty food, enjoying enormous amounts of sun, drinking fresh juices, and relaxing in the breezes. I am extremely grateful to be here and for this opportunity. I couldn’t be happier to be here.

I am back in Santiago after two weeks of training in the capital, Santo Domingo. All of us new teachers from the schools’ two campuses were trained together. We learned school policies, teaching methodologies, classroom management strategies, and how to structure lesson plans.

The new teachers I met in Santo Domingo were an amazing group of people. They were from all over the world and all brought unique ideas to each activity. I will miss them, and I hope to take a trip to the capital to visit.

During our time in Santo Domingo, we took a tour of the Zona Colonial, where there are historic buidlings and museums; relaxed at Playa Juan Dolio, a beautiful beach; shopped at the luxurious Agora Mall and went to Ikea (yes!! Ikea); went dancing outside at “las Ruinas” with a live band; and enjoyed our spacious apartment.

Then, it was back to Santiago. I started training today at the school here. The entire day of training was held in Spanish; I was more or less able to follow along. The staff here have been really welcoming and I look forward to getting to know them better.

We received our class assignments today – I will be teaching Social Studies and Music. I am excited to get my teaching materials so I can start planning my lessons.

Today’s adventure after training was going to a pet store which had two monkeys, a huge scary shark, Siamese cats, and lots of fish. My housemate bought some bright colored fish to liven up our house. Suggestions for names are welcome!

Until next time.. hasta luego!