University Life–this one goes out to Jennifer G Moran

Received the following email from my mother the other day:

Love to see an update, que sea posible.  Corazon de melon, mi hijita.  How are you publicly feeling and what is new in the jo world? a beautiful world.  XXOO

So that will provide sufficient motivation for a new post. Thanks mom! With these inspiring words, I will use my “corazon de melon” to write (Corazon de melon=melon-heart for those English speakers out there. What does that mean? I understand as much as you right now).

I realize I haven’t really been talking about school so I’ll try that? It is STUDY abroad after all.

UNIVERSITIES

For our program, we are able to chose classes from 4 different places. They are:

CIEE

This is our study center. I am taking 3 classes here: Dominican Haitian Relations (taught by a knight! Our professor was knighted by Queen Elizabeth for her work on human rights! (sidenote: are women called knights? Not sure and don’t feel like looking that up)), Language and Culture (a Spanish class where we eat fruit and write comedic sketches, don’t tell Tufts, I need credit for the semester) and Living and Learning (not a real class, more like a seminar about study abroad where we talk about learning styles, cultural differences and learn buzzwords like “mindfulness”–my only class in English).

UASD

Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo. This is the only public university in the DR. The first university in the Americas™. It was founded by Columbus’s son or some stupid colonizer like that. However, it is severely underfunded because the president spent last year’s education budget on the Metro. There is now a movement for a commitment of 4% of the country’s GDP to education. The current administration isn’t budging though from what I can tell (from my irregular perusals of El Diario). There are a lot of strikes at the UASD (pronounced la waz). There are also not many classes. The first week that classes officially start, the professors don’t go, so the students don’t go. The second week, the students don’t go, so the professors don’t go. Finally things get started the 4th week. However, at times you can show up for 4 weeks in a row. The fourth week, you leave after waiting an hour and a half only to be told the next day that the professor showed up 2 hours late. I am not taking any classes at la UASD. (see stingy with credit, tufts)

INTEC

This is more of a science/technical school, but I’m taking Contemporary Social Thought. Everyone else in my class is studying psychology. No one understands what American Studies is. This school is a private, predominantly upper or upper middle class university. Everyone is on their Blackberry all the time. I showed some classmates my phone that I bought for these 4 months, which cost about $15, and they laughed at it. Whatever, BBM isn’t even cool anymore ok? But INTEC is definitely the most similar to the universities I’ve accustomed to, with a campus with a bookstore and cafes and stuff.

BONO

The best! El Bono is a seminary training the next generation of Caribbean priests. The future priests are probably the nicest people you will meet in your life. Today we went to the beach with a few of them and we had a great time! They even gave us a ride in their Jesuit truck. I am taking Latin American Social History at Bono, which is taught by a Jesuit who speaks English and French (and Spanish but I hope you assumed that) and will sprinkle in references to the USA to help us out. And he gives good movie recommendations, like “Even the Rain” which I also recommend. The readings are pretty hard though.
So that’s that. Bye!