Visuals

I have started compressing images so that I can post them on the website. Not sure how great the quality looks compressed. I'll fiddle around with it when I have more time.

Had an hilarious experience in the hospital this morning. More on that later.

This is the garden behind house where Jose Marti and Maximo Gomez wrote the Manifiesto de Montecristi, declaring Cuban independence from Spain on March 25, 1895

Muela de cangrejo (Crab claw). Delicioso.

Playa del Morro

These kids loved the photo op.

Beth teaching the kids English.

Here's the view from the 3rd floor of the Institute. There's a great park right across the street. Since the summer OO interns arrived, the park's been bustling with activity. It's perfectly situated for the volunteers to get connected with the youth here in town. The mothers bring the kids to the playground in the afternoon and we play soccer, duck duck goose, and other games. One little tyke, Francisco, has taken a liking to me, and runs up to me whenever I come to the park and says, "RAAAAAAH, SOY MAS FUERTE QUE TU!" (I'm stronger than you). He then tries to tackle me unsuccessfully, and I begin tickling him without mercy in the ribs, and he screams "Aha, Escot, estopit! Escot! Ahaha!" (his English is decent for a 10 year old). It's possible that he has passed me in maturity level at this point, because I get just as much fun if not more out of this little game than he does.

These sanitation signs were distributed to the restaurants in town by the Red Cross. Unfortunately I think the Red Cross here is slightly underfunded. Why do I say that? Last March when a group of doctors came on a medical mission, they wanted to see the Red Cross building in town. Coco took them there, and when she tried to open front door, the door came off its hinges and fell to the ground. Whoops. An interesting sign, nonetheless. Sanitation will be one of the core components of the public health program I will try to build. There's a good chance that we'll be designing a sign similar to this one.

The Catholic Church in Monte Cristi- I'll have a funny story about this in my next diary

The Salt Flats near the coast- they've been using these flats since the 15th century

An Ominous Statue

Sunset thwarted by summer showers

The English Institute