We finally arrived at the COTN mission residence in the city of Barahona. There, we were greeted by some of the teams who were already there since the earthquake. After getting out of the bus and unloading our baggages, we were given a quick orientation to the place. The first thing we were told was that, to NEVER play or pet the residence's dog named Kelley and the house cat. Scott told us that dogs and cats here in the D.R. are not considered pets (gawd, hopefully not as meals!) but rather, just part of the local wildlife. I didn't know whether to believe it or not, but I was just determined to follow the rules since we were there as guests/volunteers.
We were shown to our room. All the men in one room that had 10 bunkbeds and the women in another similar room. Once we got our bunk assignments, we we back to the main house for dinner. The paid laborers made us a nice hot traditional meal which comprised of rice, beans, potatos, and chicken. We all gathered up in a room where the meal was served, said a prayer led by a COTN member, and then we all had our meal.
After an hour, it was time to hit the hay. All the rooms had airconditioning. Unfortunately, ours didn't work! Luckily, there were no mosquitos in the room. I did get bit once in the arm earlier. Good thing we were taking anti-malaria pills! Because I was a light sleeper, I came prepared with earplugs. It didn't work though, since Walter and I shared the same bunks, I was wide awake all night because Walter kept tossing and turning. Little did I know that this was the start of my getting only less then 3 hours of sleep for days to come...
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