Your Senses

The Dominican Republic is an assault to the senses. This definitely isn’t meant as a criticism. Just an observation.
Hearing is the most obvious. The city of La Romana is bustling with the activity of its 400,000 plus residents. Stray dogs walk the street and “communicate” with each other. Roosters start their day early. In the Baraca Bautista church, volume was equated with depth of belief. The percussion section at the Toros baseball game was explosive and spirited.
The country is full of smells. Sugar cane fields are being burned and the smoke will fill the air. The cooking in Casa Pastorale (our home this week) fills the air with delicious, enticing aromas. On the bateys, the sense of smell is challenged in a variety of ways. Too many people in too small a space living with their animals explains it best.
As I alluded to above, the delicious cooking spoils our taste buds. The food is richly seasoned and flavorful. Local vanilla is strong. Sugar cane directly from the field is fibrous and sweet.
Your sense of touch is rewarded by the gentle hand of a small child grabbing it as you walk house-to-house delivering food. More of a challenge is the itching/irritation of the inevitable mosquito bite.
The greatest sense challenged is your sight. They are exposed to a range of images. The country is devastatingly beautiful. Scenescapes of trees, small mountains and valleys can take your breath away. The repetitive rows of sugar cane can be hypnotizing even as the bus jostles you down the dirt roads leading to the batey. Your eyes are blessed by the angelic faces of young Haitian children with their disarming smiles. However, many images are disturbing: the malnourished baby we transported from batey Plumata, “houses” for a family of eight made from corrugated metal we saw in batey 50, the young boy from Guazabal peering between the school window slats as we prepared our lunch.
I will let the pictures finish my story.