I am
sitting here trying to write an entry while my youngest host brother overlooks my
shoulder. Every time I am on, here is right here beside me, waiting for me to
get off the internet so that he can go on as well and play games. He just
burped and it smells like salami even though I know all he had was a cheese sandwich.
So gross. But he cracks me up. He is this chubby 7 year
old that is always eating and likes to wander the house in just his undies. Yet,
he just patted my belly and told me that I was ¨ llenita¨ which means full, in
a chubby sense. This from a 7 year old boy! I cannot escape comments on my
weight. Thanks. I just have to remember
that things are told the way it is. At least for most things. For example, I have been parading around in
either tank tops or short sleeved shirts. ¿No shame in that, right? This would not be
the case if I didn’t have a tattoo halfway down my arm. Apparently I must cover
up when entering in any church, school, or any type of meeting. I have no
problem with that, but why didn’t anyone tell me that before my director showed
up and then brought it to my attention in front of her? They could have told me
before, and I would have listened. I
felt like an idiot, but now I know. Must wear a long sleeve or sweater when meeting
with youth, so that their mothers don’t think I am a bad influence. I forgot
about that. Which means that I will be sweating even more than the usual-who
would have thought that possible? My
same host brother just came and breathed on me so that I could smell that he
just brushed his teeth. Yum.
I forgot to
mention that there is a common word-phrase that is used in every conversation,
young and old. It took me a while to figure it out. In the middle of any
sentence you will hear ¿Oiste? – which means ¨You hear or listened?¨ or ¨Me entiendes¨ which means ¨You understand
me?¨ I thought they were trying to make it clear that I was understanding what
they were saying, but after every few words? I kept shaking my head, over and over.
Yes, I understand you. Yes, I understand you. I felt and sometimes still do, like
a human bobble-head. My neck was hurting
from shaking my head all the time, nonstop. I would have stopped you if I didn’t
understand! Now I realize that they say that to everyone, it is just a common
way of speaking. But it is even funnier
to hear it from little kids, as if they have all the authority in the world. I don’t think I will pick up that phrase, but
never say never. It just may come out one day, and I won’t even think it weird anymore.
I do still shake my head when they say
that, but not after every one, otherwise my head would have rolled off by now.
Last week I
went on a mini boat trip to help search for dolphins. I volunteered with a researcher
here in town who takes a few boat trips every week around the bay. It is part
of a feasibility study for an ecotourism project. Pretty nice volunteer trip,
lucky me. Out to sea in a bote or small
boat, searching the horizon for any dolphin activity. I didn’t see any, but we
did take a break on a very pretty beach that was empty and had clear water.
Coconuts were dropping from the trees. I heard them plopping around me, and I
made sure to not be standing directly under one of those. Otherwise I would
have had to have a nice Dominican carry me back to the boat. It was hot, of
course, and I got a bit burned, despite the sunscreen and hat I was wearing. It
was a peaceful ride out to sea, and the captain was not bad to look at either.
I will probably be joining her again this week, since I need to check out a site
for an ecotourism project I will be working on as well. Need to take some
pictures and have an idea of what I am working with. This time I will definitely wear sunscreen on
my feet, so that they don’t get burned. Right now I have some weird tan from my
tevas. And I really need to get rid of it. ¿Oistes?
