Guetta

Oh. My. God. Incredible. Just incredible. Victor picked me up from my hotel at 9 30. We queued for about half an hour and weren't in until about 10 30. The warm up DJ played for quite a while and I was thinking how soon is now? I wanna see some guetta! At 1 45 he came on, 10000 people cheering and screaming. A lone figure on a collosal stage with awesome lighting displays- it was one of the most epic things I've ever seen... He played the classics and some new stuff, including one he wrote on the plane on the way over. All his changes were so seamless, everything just worked! It was hard getting over just how good he was. Everyone was really getting into it; one love uniting us. When Guetta is playing I just wanna go crazy, and when love takes over, this club can't handle me on the dancefloor.. It was actually a go-karting track which I absolutely loved! At 4 we headed back, savouring the memories of an incredible night.. (excuse the puns)    

It was then that i discovered that we work on saturdays here. It meant i got 3 hours sleep which was perfect. It would have been more, but Victor insisted we stop for food at 4 30. Apparently, it's the done thing over here... We were talking about music and it turns out he's a big fan of Maroon 5 and Jamiroquai, as well as David Guetta obviously. He then told me  about the big music names over here. Salsa is the most popular music; in fact the way people are hinting, I'm going to have to learn some dance moves... They also have 'reggaeton' which is a sort of dance pop reggae thing and something called 'bachata'.  

The other day, Cristian introduced me to his neighbour. The area he lives in is a massive network of alleyways crammed full with as many houses as possible. There were about 10 people in the living room, so we went and sat on the front porch with his friend Sindy. We seemed to be in the middle of a thoroughfare; loads of people walked past and both of my hosts seemed to know everyone! "Oh look, there's Herman from work", or "that's Mario- he's gay." Half the people popped into the house as well and I was starting to wonder just how many people lived there!

The good news is that my Spanish is really improving. People have commented on how they can actually have conversations with me now. The guys at work are asking questions about life in England now, mostly about how much everything costs and how attractive the girls are. To be honest, I don't think they're interested in anything else..

Early Impressions

I feel like I'm starting to get a feel for the Caribbean life. I haven't yet been to the beach, but other than that, I'm living the life. Everything is so relaxed here- the pace of life is much slower. I was never really told what i would be doing and I don't think people here even had much idea. The company is privately owned and is the biggest supplier of parts to cars made by Volkswagen, Seat, Audi, Bentley and Ssangyong in the Dominican Republic. My job entails finding the specific part required by the mechanic in the enormous stock room, according to the code on the order form. It's quite easy and very chilled, so it gives me a chance to chat to all the guys and practice the español... 

I had a pretty quiet weekend, just trying to get my bearings and settle in. My hotel is pretty good. I have a nice bed, good air conditioning, shower, fridge and tv. I've been keeping up with the tennis. Last night, my work buddy Cristian took me out. My hotel room seemed like a palace compared to his tiny living space. We went to see a Dominican film called 'Lotoman' about two brothers who win the lottery. It was a comedy, but the laughter coming from that audience was ridiculous. The main character had only to open his mouth and then guy next to me would be wetting himself. I think everyone is just more cheerful over here.

Getting about also meant that I had my first taste of Dominican public transport. We first went in a bus. They don't really have bus stops here; basically the conductor just shouts at people on the side of the road to see if they want a lift. Next we went in a 'concho'. This is a taxi that functions as a bus. As you can imagine, it was a bit of a squeeze... I was disappointed and impressed to note that a battered old taxi with 8 people in still had better acceleration than my skoda! I had experienced crazy driving before in China; luckily this wasn't as reckless, but it was still pretty intense. I would classify it as measured crazy. Here the drivers are very alert and wary, although they do make some outrageous manouvers. In China, I never felt safe.

I've also tried some Dominican produce. I had some 'Presidente' yesterday, the local beer, which was pretty nice and is served in litre bottles. And for lunch I was eating what I thought was potato and Cristian told me it was basically a mix of mashed bananas and butter, called 'mangú'. I still don't understand how it tastes of potato... I also had some 'pig lasagne', or at least that's how it was eloquently described to me.

I'm told we're going out again tomorrow and Saturday so things are starting to get busy!

Arrival!

So I've finally arrived, 25 hours late, but I'm here! I was met at the airport by my to be boss, after a very uncomfortable flight. He was very welcoming and I was taken straight to my hotel for the night. My room has TWO double beds in it and there is a rooftop pool and jacuzzi. Unfortunately, as I understand it, I'm here for just the one night. Señor Frias told me that I don't need to worry about any visas or anything- apparently Dominicans seem to care about very little and lead relaxed lives. Indeed, everyone was talking on the plane as if they all knew each other and laughing and cheering when the plane landed and, rather awkwardly, there was an airport proposal waiting for one lucky woman as we came out of customs. It is very warm and wonderful here, but I've got to be up at about 8 for my first day at work... Exciting!

False Start

So, the trip didn't get off to the best start... My flight from Gatwick to Madrid was delayed because of fog, which meant that I couldn't catch the connecting flight to Santo Domingo. Hopefully it will be second time lucky...

Countdown to Departure...

Great News!! My US Visa arrived today, so i can actually go! I leave in 4 days now and i'm almost ready. Haven't really started packing yet, but i've got most of my stuff that i will need. First stop is the Dominican Republic, which is very exciting. Can't wait!!