No me llamas "mami."

The first couple of weeks here have been extremely emotionally and physically burdening. The work has taken time to adapt to because it is a new environment, new schedule, new people I'm living with, and new goals I'm reaching towards. The physical burden mixed with exhaustion has made it rough. We walk a lot, sleep a little, work nonstop, and my lifestyle health-wise has made the experience all the more difficult.
This past week I've adapted VERY well, in my opinion. I've been creating prayers and mantras to help me get through days and stay positive instead of letting heat exhaustion and pain bring me down.
My roommates and I have squashed a lot of issues together and have been working well as a group. We were able to have a small amount of free time and spent a day in Santiago going to Centro Leon Museo de Santiago, and some other cool sites. Today we took the afternoon off, having worked really hard and handed in our midterms yesterday, and went to Puerto Plata as a reward.

Puerto Plata is only a 30 minute drive, and it's a REAL city! We went on a lift up a huuuuge mountain and saw some amazing sites. We toured the castle of Gregorio Luperon (a DR liberator) and we went to a Wal-Mart type store and bought in bulk. It was nice to not have to walk home carrying groceries. Oh the little pleasures.

We've had a much more tranquila week this time around. Three days where we dont have to walk around doing the mapping work we've been doing. After Spanish class at 12:30, I go home as fast as possible, have a quick lunch and do nothing! I have a lot of work that I've been avoiding, but doing nothing is almost necessary. We also have our first full Fr-Sunday weekend to ourselves! Hooray! Dancing and exploring, and hopefully milking a cow and riding horses :D (More to come on THAT)

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Allow me to take a moment to express my hatred for being called "mami" by anyone who is not my child or a close friend. I feel as though my experience in the Dominican Republic has given me numerous experiences for how a person can be hit on. There is the one who tries to get to know you before asking you to marry him. And by "get to know you" I mean, he's said "Hey beautiful!" and you've said "hi" in return. A lot of the shop owners here are Haitian so they speak English, Haitian, and Creol, which makes my life a whole lot easier. My favorite pick up lines have been, "You're a gift from an angel," "I have eyes for you," and the ever so common, "give me your time, baby." But I see a lot of these men everyday on my way too and from school, so I've created friends with some of the non-creepy shopowners and we joke and talk. It's hard to rudely turn down men that are obnoxious, because I know in this small town I will see them again on several occasions.

I figured out that Dominicans and Haitians really dont like girls as much when they smoke. So I've taken up smoking a couple times a week and only in very strategic ways. I went into my friends shop (a man who had asked me to marry him, and said that he would wait for me if I'm busy) and asked for a lighter for my cigarette and he gave me a gross look saying "ugh you smoke?" I said "yea all the time! I love it!" And he has not hit on me since! But we've become better friends, so that is nice.
I don't really smoke all the time, and I dont like it... but if that's the easiest way not get hit on while walking to and from class every morning and afternoon, than I will DO IT!
Not to mention I have to sneak past the security guard here who is LITERALLY in love with me and no matter how many times I tell him we're friends, it just does not get through!

I just don't want anyone calling me mami. NO me llamas "mami." No me digas como eso... tu no eres mi hijo. I understand if it's loving and respectful between friends... but if you're not my friend and you don't know me, than I just find it rude.

Sufficed to say, my experience here is definitely progressing and I am feeling like I live here, and Sosua is my town. Even though Sosua is a little bit sucio because of las putas y sanky pankies, y drugos... its not secret, and it makes it less hard to deal with than if it were a secret. Sometimes its hard when we want to walk to a bar or discotec that is close, and there's no way to avoid the sucio. I've just been getting used to it, it's a way of life here. It's adaptable, but I don't think I judge it less the more that I see it.

Inspirational quote that I have leaned on, "The more you lose yourself in something bigger than yourself, the more energy you will have." - Norman Vincent Peale