DRST 2025 - Day 4 - Batey 50 and Med Clinic

Buenas noches desde la Republica Dominicana!

Today was an eventful and fantastical day! We started our morning off eating breakfast---oatmeal, bacon, fruits, and bread---and drinking our daily cup of Sqwincher's (electrolytes). 

Hey, it's Ja Seng Ra here!

After a couple of us finished eating, we quickly loaded 30 MannaPacks onto a truck for the med clinic. Leading up to our long day, the med team drove about an hour and a half away from Casa Pastoral, which was a snug space to fit the bus through. My assignment for the day was to hand out "bug juice," an anti-parasitic medication, to the kids and the adults. However, we finished in about an hour since many of the kids were at school.

I ended up spending the rest of the time with the kids---handing out stickers and toys---and helping out in other stations when they needed it. We saw about 130 patients today, so we all took different lunch times to account for all of the patients. By the end of the work day, we were all exhausted and took the bus ride home as a napping session before our delightful afternoon at the beach.

Hey everyone! Julia, here :)

As I come back to the DR for my second year (as an alumna, now), all I can say is that I couldn't be happier to be a part of this amazing team of hard working, passionate, and kind-hearted individuals again. For those who may not know me, last year I was very construction involved, so it's no surprise I've spent the past two work days at Batey 50, or as I recently learned, goes by its second name Batey Esperanza, which translates to the Batey Hope. Being here for two years, now, I can see why that is---the people we work with are full of this exuberant energy and hospitality that is unique and, honestly, quite beautiful. They are the reason I came back.

As for what we did today, I dug a trench. The construction team today split into two groups; one repainted the communal pavilion, and the other dug a moat around a house to prepare for cement to be poured into the new space. (That's tomorrows work, YAY!) I was in the latter group, and while it was a hot and hefty day, by the time I saw the pavilion at the end of the day, it was practically unrecognizable! 

As for the digging, we broke through rocks and cement, cut through roots, and shoveled until we were able to dig around the entire house!

After the work day at Batey 50, the construction team had lunch and went right back to work, distributing food packs at another local Batey, known as Agua Blanca, which is translated to White Water. We're not really sure why it's called that, but it was my first time at this Batey, and every experience here is a grand one!

As I'm sure you've all been waiting for...the Cake of the Day was...really good!! We're not entirley sure what exactly it was, but we ate it nevertheless. And lastly, as Ja Seng Ra mentioned earlier, we ended our day at the beautiful beach! Stay tuned for more!