Dominican Service: All Work and Some Play

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The Dominican Service Winterim has been working incredibly hard on their project for the past two weeks. Over the weekend, the group took a fishing tour in Boca de Yasica and celebrated the Mirabel sisters' 50th death anniversary in Salcedo with an activity. Today is their last day of working on the school in Cabarete, so they're practically finished. Tomorrow, before they leave on Saturday, the Dominican Service group plans to visit the Damajagua waterfalls.

The Damajagua waterfalls consist of twenty-seven cascades located in the Rio Bajabonico. They flow by rural mountain scenery, and fall into a series of large, clear pools at the base of the cascades. It seems that the Dominican Service group is going to take a hike in the tunnels and caves of these spectacular waterfalls. This hike is supposed to be increasingly difficult, and consists of going through not only tunnels, but the jungle and rock formations, too. In addition, there might be some swimming and jumping involved. One would have to be very athletic to make this immense climb. There are several trails along the waterfalls, all of them challenging and very long. The longest one takes about three hours to complete.

The Damajagua hike will be the last activity on the Dominican Service Project's itinerary. The Dominican Service group, after all of their amazing and worthwhile experiences, will be traveling home on Friday.

Just a Small Town School...

After leaving campus early Monday morning, the Dominican Service Project Winterim has been spending their first week mainly working on their project. This assignment entails the students working with the Cabarete Coffee Company and Tres Mariposas organizations to renovate a public school in Cabarete and spending time with the kids in and out of the classrooms. They've spent most of this week working with the school and the kids while getting familiar with the Dominican culture. Next week, in addition to working on the main project, the students also plan to climb through the Damajagua waterfalls, and trace the footsteps of the widely renowned Mirabal sisters on the 50th anniversary of their deaths. This jam-packed Winterim, led by Ms. Meghan Smith and Mr. Scott Smith, pushes students to widen their perspectives by working and interacting with people who have very different experiences and life-styles.

Cabarete is a small town known for its beaches and beauty and is a popular tourist attraction. It is located in the Puerto Plata province of the Dominican Republic. The area is brightly

illuminated by constant sunlight, while the sky remains a pale blue and clouds are nowhere to be found. Palm trees are everywhere, and the beaches are picturesque with the vast turquoise, yet freezing cold ocean sprawled out endlessly. Knowing how the gorgeous the scenery of this small town is, the Dominican Service group is very lucky to be in such a warm location, especially when compared to the gloomy rain and grey skies we're getting here in Groton.

(Beach photo cred: Cabarete Dominican Republic)

(Waterfall photo cred: 27 Waterfalls of Damajagua Cascadding Hike)