Sunday, March 23, 2003
Dominican Republic Folknography
Beverly Stringer

As I stand here on the corner of Isabel La Catolic and Padre Billini, I am starting a new journey. The journey to discover a new city, Santo Domingo. I am told this is the place where Christopher Columbus landed on his first voyage across the Atlantic when he discovered North America. I am standing on a street that was originally a “street for the ladies”, which was one of the five or six ports to be built in the 1490s. Wow, the 1400’s… that sounds so long ago.

Our group is dividing up to go out to discover the city. My group includes Jason and his wife Linda, Cathy, Kelli, and Renae. We have decided that we will do some shopping before we head over to tour the cathedral. As we look at the map we are a little confused. We may as well head toward the cathedral and look at the shops along the way. We must have looked like we needed help, a guide has appeared and offered to show us around.

It is interesting how friendly the people are here. They are like a little family on this street. As our guide takes us into the different shops he is greeted by the workers warmly. I see a lot of commercial items, but there is also lots of art. It is wonderful. Their art has deep, vibrant colors and has a certain touch of sensuality to it. They use wood to carve some of their pieces. The wood has different natural colors to it and is rubbed to such a smooth finish. It invites you to touch it. By looking at these pieces of art the artist seems to have put a part of their history into the wood. One statue is of a Ragae singer with the authentic hairstyle. It captures my attention and seems to strike an interest inside of me. If only I could find a way to take it home with me. When I look at this statue it makes me curious about the history behind him. Who spent all that time making him and how could they let him go? He seems to be a free spirit that would be true to himself. It is hard to believe that a piece of art can invoke such emotions and so instantly!

As we wind our way through the narrow streets we make our way to the cathedral. I am so disappointed to discover the cathedral is closed today. The area in front of the cathedral is alive with activity. There is some kind of festival going on and there are lots of people and music. As we mingle through the crowd we can hear other English speaking people. This seems so comforting but surprising to hear so far from home! There are many street vendors and there are the little boys wanting to shine our shoes again. There is a new element to the boy vendors – some are making balloon animals and art to sell.

Our group has split again and several of us have stumbled onto an outdoor café. We find an empty table and sit down. Our waiter does not speak English very well, but we use the menus to communicate what we want. As we wait for our order, we find a chance to sit and observe the activities in the square. The music has a quick beat and there seems to be some sort of contest going on. The crowd under the tent seems to be very excited, I think they have announced some winners! There is cheering and there appears to be some really excited people. A group of dancers in costumes are now making their way onto the square. They are dressed in bright colors. The women have long ruffled skirts and the men have matching shirts. They are dancing to the music. As I sit here in the café with the music and dancers and a gentle breeze, I feel very content. These people, their music and their openness seems to be contagious!

As with most journeys, this one is drawing to an end. Our group meets in the square in front of the cathedral and head back to the bus for the ride home. As we ride home, we are trading stories of our journey through Santo Domingo today. We are a little more familiar with the streets of this city; at least a little more familiar than we were when we arrived at the corner of Isabel La Catolic and Padre Billini this morning.

Not only are we a little more familiar with Santo Domingo, but also we are also a little more familiar with each other. We have been bonding and making memories that we will be able to share for the future. I have been building relationships on this trip that I ordinarily would not have had an opportunity to experience – had I not gone on this trip. It is wonderful to be able to talk with each other and hear each other’s perception of some of the same experiences that we have and see it through each other’s eyes. This seems to only deepen my own personal experiences. As we sit around in our circle to discuss (or debrief as Dr. Lucas says) the events from today, we each share our experiences and feelings. Sometimes we laugh and sometimes we cry, but we are sharing. This has opened up a entirely new way of learning for me.