In 2018 I fundraised and was lucky enough to travel to Dominican Republic and go to a little city called Monte Cristi. I went with a wonderful program called Outreach 360. They provided us with a place to stay, food and transportation. While I was there we did many different and fun exciting things, but the main reason we went was to teach English at a local school.
On March 30th we flew out from Regina, and flew back on April 8th. We began the trip by settling in at our hotel and meeting the Outreach team and other students that came from New York! The next morning we took the charter bus to the Outreach headquarters and began to plan our lessons for the next week. For the whole week, every morning we went to the school and taught. During the afternoons we had free time or had little adventures planned. One day we woke up at 3:00 am and hiked up a mountain to watch the sunrise! (picture below) One day we got to see the salt fields and how salt is made, harvested, and sold. Other afternoons we spent at the beach or went downtown to learn about the local life.
I will never forget how grateful and willing to learn those students were, it was really a life changing opportunity. I learned so many things there, not just about teaching but about the different cultures there. I will never take for granted a simple piece of looseleaf or even desks. Sometimes it’s hard to remember that something so simple like a piece paper or chair to sit on, not everyone has.
That trip was an experience of a life time, and I will never forget the things I was told or taught there. I am now saving up to be able to go again and experience something amazing as that, and I hope other people will too!
