Elizabeth Walsh
College of Nursing sophomore Steph Sehon is studying abroad this semester in the Dominican Republic as part of the Encuentro Dominicano program. After spending about a month on the island, Steph has taken notice of the cultural difference between Dominicans and Americans.
1) How have you enjoyed your experience abroad so far?
“I have loved my experience so far in the Dominican Republic! It is difficult to pick a favorite part because the country has so much to offer! I really appreciate just experiencing the culture, learning the language and enjoying the natural beauty of the country.”
2) Your semester abroad is primarily based on service. Can you explain the conditions of poverty you’ve experienced and the service that you are doing?
“The poverty levels that I have experienced so far have been like nothing I have ever seen before in the United States. Many people living in our neighborhood [in the Dominican Republic] go without water three days a week and there is a countrywide electricity crisis in which the government shuts down the power without warning on a regular basis.
We will be leaving for the campos in about a week where we will live in solidarity with some of the most materially poor people in this
country. This will be an eye-opening experience, but I am excited to share in the culture of these people and create relationships that I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to do without the Encuentro Dominicano program.
I am volunteering at a service site called CONANI which is an orphanage for children with severe mental and physical disabilities. It is difficult to summarize this experience because there are moments of great joy and others of complete desolation. Our job is to simply interact with the children because they are hardly stimulated. Many of them are bed-ridden and unable to sit, stand or speak. I am thankful for the opportunity to love and care for these kids because they are deprived of such basic needs.”
3) Have you found it difficult to communicate with the locals?
“Communication has definitely been a challenge…I had several years of Spanish classes in high school and grade school before coming here, but nothing could have prepared me for living in a Spanish-speaking country. The people speak so fast, and my vocabulary is so limited.
However, I am learning new words every day through intensive Spanish classes that are taught completely in Spanish! We have given presentations and even debated moral isswues using only Spanish. This has been a great way to push us out of our comfort zones and expand our vocabulary.”
4) What kinds of classes are you taking this semester?
“We take a class called EDP in which we discuss all things Dominican Republic including history, economics and theology. It has been enlightening to learn where these people come from and what makes them who they are as a country. We also take an intensive Spanish class four days a week taught by a professor at the local university in Santiago. It is challenging because he only speaks to us in Spanish which can be frustrating when we can’t understand him, but it definitely is a great way to challenge us and force us to expand our vocabulary and train our ears to register Spanish words.
I am also taking two online nursing classes. These classes have been very interesting, but difficult to balance with service, other classes and traveling.”
5) What kinds of activities do you and the other students engage in your free time?
“In our free time we love traveling the country! We have explored a new city each weekend-we have taken two beach trips to Sosua and Cabarete, explored a Taino cave up in the mountains, toured the colonial city of Santo Domingo and this weekend we are white water rafting in Jarabacoa!”
6) Name one thing about Dominican culture that surprised you.
“The Dominican culture is warmly hospitable. I didn’t expect them to be hostile, but I didn’t expect them to be as genuine and welcoming as I have come to know them to be.
For example, they are so quick to offer a visitor a chair to sit and share in their company. I admire how they value simply being together with the people they love. It is refreshing, especially when compared to my world at home that often consisted of me occupying my time with my electronics devices and social media.”