Day 18 - Between two worlds
Well, we made into the Dominican Republic and we are now back in the country of Haiti. We currently just passed the border and should be back into port-au-prince within 1-2 hours, hard to give an exact time here. We ended up staying in santo Domingo, the capital, and visiting areas around the capital. The capital is very modern but also very rich in historical landmarks. It was refreshing to see paved roads with lines on them and drivers staying on the right side of the road, for the most part. As in any culture there is poverty but the poverty in the Dominican is like the lower-middle class of Haiti. For the most part people with their own merchandise business have a store or a car that they run their business out of. This is a vast difference compared to Haiti where for the most part people only have a sidwalk and fence. I would compare Santo Domingo in between Denver and port-au-prince, with most of it similar to Denver and the rest similar to Haiti. The way that they do business is very much influenced by the Spanish culture and in this aspect is similar to Mexico. They often aren't very honest and everything is business. This causes a lot of chaos in populated areas but despite what appears to be the norm, we met many amazing, honest, and helpful Dominicans. The driving was still pretty wild compared to the United States but toned down a notch from Haiti, at least no one was driving on the sidewalks. The scenery is picturesque in Dominican between the buildings from the 1500's and the rolling hills along the coast. This was the general observations from my time in Santo Domingo and now I will give the day by day play.
Day 15:
Kerby and I got dropped off at the bus station by pastor Day at 730am and Dom had already gotten there. We checked in and got our passports stamped to leave Haiti and the bus left at 830am. We arrived by bus to the border around 10am and this was when our travel plans took a different direction. The bus approached the border and then it ended up turning around and parking on the side of the road. It turned out that there was an unexpected dispute between the Haitian and Dominican bus transportation companies. They wouldn't let each other's companies pass into their country, it was like two children standing in their own yard and one says, "you can't come in" so the other one says, "fine then, you can't come into my yard." So there we sat while they tried to figure out if we would be able to pass the border. As time went on people were deciding to just walk across the border to the bus station in the Dominican. After 4 hours we decided to make a move and go for it. There was a younger women who was on the bus alone and asked if she could go with us and we said we wouldn't want her to attempt it any other way. While we walked half a mile through the mud to the border, we each were praying that the lord would make a way for us. We eventually got through the customs but now we had to go 10 miles to the nearest bus station so we had to take the only transportation, motorcycles. We all fit on two mortcycles, one driver and two stacked behind. With no major issues we made it to the bus station and the bus station was more like a large van station. We ended up getting in one 20 person van with 35 people and this was the trip the rest of the way. Every thirty minutes was a check point and we all had to either get out for them to check out passports or we would have to hold them up. I honestly felt like I was being smuggled into santo Domingo. While in the van we had to use someone's phone to get a hold of Jessica, pastor Day's cousin, to make sure she was still able to pick us up. We eventually got a hold of her and let her know our new arrival time and she was very great in being flexible to pick us up whenever we can get there. We eventually arrived at the "van" station in Santo Domingo at 1030pm. Jessica picked us up and was able to get us some food and drive us to her place where we would be staying during our time there. Once we finally got to the table in Jessica's house to eat, Dom, Kerby, and myself all looked at each other and said, "wow, we made it!" The journey was never at a point of being to sketchy but it was the unkown for all of us because of a different land and A foreign speaking language. Thankfully between all three of us we had enough Spanish vocabulary to get by and someone every once and awhile could speak creole. It is amazing how ones mind will run wild with thoughts and fears when not having any idea on what is happening or going to happen. This was a time we all needed to be rooted and grounded in love so we could continue to demonstrate fruits of the spirit and extend love to those around us.
Day 16:
After a long journey everyone slept in and we had a vey slow pace morning. We got a few things done first off, such as get a rental car and pesos for a couple of days. After business was all taken care of, we left for the beach. We spent a few hours at the beach and avoided being heckled by the sales men by getting far into the ocean. It was a beautiful beach and an adult could walk a mile out from the shore. Dom, Kerby, and I didn't have any shorts with us but it was very European, so many speedos, and we figured boxer briefs would fit right in. It was great to be able to take the time to just enjoy the water and mess around, away from all of the chaos. Kerby said it was a time for him of getting to be rejuvenate and take a rest from the frontline of the spiritual battle. We then ate lunch at an authentic republican restaurant on the beach. It was amazing! We finished the evening seeing some of downtown and shopping at a Walmart type store for our food for the rest of our stay.
Day 17:
We started our day much earlier because Dom and Kerby have an uncle that has been in the prison by Santo Domingo. He was sentenced seven months ago for abusing his girlfriend and was suppose to only be there for three months. we ended up getting in by paying one of the guards and then waiting for him in a small building just outside the prison fence. With anticipation both Dom and Kerby stood there waiting for there uncle to get a lawyers number from him and to give their uncle some money. He finally arrived to the fence with great joy of their arrival and the guys were able to talk with him from the other side of the fence. It was a great moment and brought much joy to their uncle because no one in his family has been able to make it over to see him or be able to help him get released. We left the prison and left for a house Dom and Kerby knew their uncle had a friend living, to get more information. We arrived to her place and it reminded me much more of Haiti but still a step up in the living circumstances. She greeted us and they had a long conversation full of questions and answers. It turned out that he never abused her but they just had many arguments. When their uncles girlfriend called the cops she said she was just living at his house as a roommate and that he abused her physically. With this information it made the situation harder to swallow and if true, then he has been in there for sevens months off of a false accusation. The guys took it well and they said they would do what they can for him because no one else in their family can and at the same time trusting God in what He is only calling them to do and entrusting everything else in the hands of God because He is good. It is amazing to see how set apart Dom and Kerby are compared to the rest of their family because of, and only by Gods grace. They are living examples of Gods love and how He truely makes all things new and paves a path to do what is impossible with man.
We finished the day by going to a historical street filled with stores and structures built as early as Christopher Columbus's time. One of them was a cathedral built in 1542 and is a hot spot for tourist attractions and school field trips. The street was gorgeous and it felt like what I imagine how it feels in Europe. After spending a few hours walking up and down the street and talking with people, we finished the night watching some pick up basketball in a near by neighborhood close to Jessica's house. It was another great day full of adventure and first time experiences.
Day 18:
We got to the bus station at 7am to leave at 8am. We all spent many hours on the bus sleeping and sharing stories back and forth from our stay in Santo Domingo. The journey back was quick and we didn't have any unexpected problems crossing the boarder. We will be back with pastor Day and taking the rest of the time meeting missionaries and seeing more of pastor Day's direction for his ministry for the upcoming years. We all agreed that our stay in the Dominican will be one we will never forget! All though it was only two full days, much was seen, much was experienced, relationships were formed, and family was reconnected.
After a long journey everyone slept in and we had a vey slow pace morning. We got a few things done first off, such as get a rental car and pesos for a couple of days. After business was all taken care of, we left for the beach. We spent a few hours at the beach and avoided being heckled by the sales men by getting far into the ocean. It was a beautiful beach and an adult could walk a mile out from the shore. Dom, Kerby, and I didn't have any shorts with us but it was very European, so many speedos, and we figured boxer briefs would fit right in. It was great to be able to take the time to just enjoy the water and mess around, away from all of the chaos. Kerby said it was a time for him of getting to be rejuvenate and take a rest from the frontline of the spiritual battle. We then ate lunch at an authentic republican restaurant on the beach. It was amazing! We finished the evening seeing some of downtown and shopping at a Walmart type store for our food for the rest of our stay.
Day 17:
We started our day much earlier because Dom and Kerby have an uncle that has been in the prison by Santo Domingo. He was sentenced seven months ago for abusing his girlfriend and was suppose to only be there for three months. we ended up getting in by paying one of the guards and then waiting for him in a small building just outside the prison fence. With anticipation both Dom and Kerby stood there waiting for there uncle to get a lawyers number from him and to give their uncle some money. He finally arrived to the fence with great joy of their arrival and the guys were able to talk with him from the other side of the fence. It was a great moment and brought much joy to their uncle because no one in his family has been able to make it over to see him or be able to help him get released. We left the prison and left for a house Dom and Kerby knew their uncle had a friend living, to get more information. We arrived to her place and it reminded me much more of Haiti but still a step up in the living circumstances. She greeted us and they had a long conversation full of questions and answers. It turned out that he never abused her but they just had many arguments. When their uncles girlfriend called the cops she said she was just living at his house as a roommate and that he abused her physically. With this information it made the situation harder to swallow and if true, then he has been in there for sevens months off of a false accusation. The guys took it well and they said they would do what they can for him because no one else in their family can and at the same time trusting God in what He is only calling them to do and entrusting everything else in the hands of God because He is good. It is amazing to see how set apart Dom and Kerby are compared to the rest of their family because of, and only by Gods grace. They are living examples of Gods love and how He truely makes all things new and paves a path to do what is impossible with man.
We finished the day by going to a historical street filled with stores and structures built as early as Christopher Columbus's time. One of them was a cathedral built in 1542 and is a hot spot for tourist attractions and school field trips. The street was gorgeous and it felt like what I imagine how it feels in Europe. After spending a few hours walking up and down the street and talking with people, we finished the night watching some pick up basketball in a near by neighborhood close to Jessica's house. It was another great day full of adventure and first time experiences.
Day 18:
We got to the bus station at 7am to leave at 8am. We all spent many hours on the bus sleeping and sharing stories back and forth from our stay in Santo Domingo. The journey back was quick and we didn't have any unexpected problems crossing the boarder. We will be back with pastor Day and taking the rest of the time meeting missionaries and seeing more of pastor Day's direction for his ministry for the upcoming years. We all agreed that our stay in the Dominican will be one we will never forget! All though it was only two full days, much was seen, much was experienced, relationships were formed, and family was reconnected.
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