Arrival in Santo Domingo

All 10 teachers and 2 leaders arrived safely in Santo Domingo this afternoon. We were greeted by a light tropical rain and two of our Dominican guides, Elisa and Francis. They warmly welcomed us and brought us to our home for the next three days in the colonial zone. The "Zona Colonial" is the oldest part of the Dominican capital and home to many of the "firsts" in the new world--first church, first hospital, etc.. We will have a full walking tour of the area tomorrow, so we will share more of the history and culture then.

We checked into our hotel and were welcomed by the hotel staff and a glass of fruit punch. Even though it's a study tour, the teachers felt fully pampered (see pictures). We spent some time as a group processing our first hours in the DR and placing ourselves in this new context. We then walked to the Plaza Espana and had dinner at La Atarazana, a gorgeous restaurant in the heart of the Zona Colonial. Teachers indulged in fish and steak and a tower (literally) of desserts, including dulce de coco (a kind of coconut pudding), flan, bread pudding, and fruit salad. Yum! We then rolled ourselves home and are now unwinding before a busy day tomorrow. Stay tuned for more updates...

Pictures: 1) Cori G., Aleida B., and Elisa loading our stuff into our very own "turismo" trailer, 2) Jim B. and Flavien C. enjoying their welcome juice with Elisa and Francis, 3) we enjoyed tostones at our meal--twice fried plantains, 4) a view of the Alcazar de Colon, the residence built by Christopher Columbus' son, Diego, in the early 1500s.