Alternative Spring Break Dom. Rep., day 1: Greetings from the Dominican Republic

While other students are looking forward to some rest and relaxation this spring break, close to 250 FIU students will be spending their time helping others. From March 13-22, the students are participating in FIU’s Alternative Spring Break, a program that gives them a chance to volunteer all over the world. One of FIU’s groups is in the Dominican Republic. You can follow their adventures in this blog.

Today was an eye opener as our group walked down the streets of La Punta. The villagers welcomed us open-heartedly and showed us their homes. La Punta is a small village in San Pedro. There are no paved streets and the houses range from colorful sheet metal shacks to deteriorating concrete structures. Mothers swept their front porches and watched over their children who excitedly ran over to us, “the americanos.” Our group members took turns taking photos. “Can I see the photo?” one boy asked me right after I took a shot. I showed him an image of himself through the small screen on my digital camera and he jumped up with joy.

During our foot journey through these streets, I realized a sense of comunity. I realized that even though these people live in extreme measures of poverty, they are still content and connected within one another; everyone in this village knows each other and they take pleasure in the simple gifts of life. “See my white horse,” a proud man said. He displayed a tall, skinny white horse, and he explained that it is his prized possession. But these villagers also live next to piles and piles of accumulating garbage. I became overwhelmed by the fact that the garbage consists mostly of plastic bottles and Styrofoam. Something needs to be done, the garbage needs picked up and the villagers need to be informed. I left La Punta realizing that a lot of change and support needs to occur.

Afterwards, we headed towards the beach side of San Pedro to inform tourists and workers about the harms that Lion Fish are causing the ocean. Many of the people we spoke to were surprised to hear that this poisonous fish is eating all the smaller fish in the sea, but is also edible once it is dead. I felt accomplished as we relaxed in the crystal clear ocean water and talked about all the people we informed today about Lion Fish. Tomorrow I look forward to being further exposed to the simplistic daily life of La Punta and researching different ways of helping this village strive. — Michelle Almonte