Monday, August 10, 2015 Team Building/Day Camp Prep - 1

  At 8:17am this morning I was rudely interrupted by a knock on the door. I went to open it and it was Charlie, with a note telling us that we were meeting in the lobby at 9:30 am. I thanked him and shut the door, slamming my finger in the process. What a way to start the day, am I right?

                

After breakfast we had the chance to sit down and talk to Jake Kheel, the Environmental Director for Grupo PuntaCana and the Director of the PuntaCana Ecological Foundation. He spoke with us about the sustainable tourism projects and programs they’ve done to help preserve the beauty of the Dominican Republic. He was from America and traveled to the DR with an exchange program and he fell in love with the country. He then decided to pursue a career in environmental science.

                

Shortly after we met with Jake, we headed over to the Ecological Foundation to meet with the Dominican teens and prepare for our first day of camp. We played some “get-to-know-you” games and had a lot of fun. Being around the Dominicans and interacting with them is so rewarding in itself. At times there are language barriers, but they are patient and understanding. Even though we speak totally different languages, we laugh and interact in the same way and I think that is beautiful.

Later in the day we made the trek to “Ojos Indigenous”, which are freshwater lagoons that are believed to have special healing properties. We got to swim in the crystal-clear water and it was absolutely breathtaking. The water made it seem like it was only about four feet deep when in actuality it was at least fifteen. At this lagoon there was a spot where you could jump down into the water. I found this terrifying, and I wasn’t going to do it. That is, until all of our friends shouted “JUST DO IT!”, like Shia LaBeouf’s speech. I thought Hey, when in Rome! And jumped.

The next lagoon we went to was full of flesh-eating shrimp. We waded around for a bit until we got our bearings, and then stood still while the shrimp swarmed our feet. It was basically a spa treatment! They nibbled at the dead skin on our feet and toes and it tickled. A lot.

After we left the forest, we found our way back to the Foundation for dinner. We had tacos and French fries (Domincan x American cuisine!). All of the teens gathered at one table even though there wasn’t much room just so we could all sit together.

In conclusion, today was a success. On a scale of 1-4, I’d give it a 27: excellent. I love interacting with the Dominican teens (even though they mess with us and laugh at our inadequate knowledge of the Spanish language) and getting to know them and their culture.

Carter Adcock

Alleghany County​