This weekend we made a grand tour of the central mountain region and northern coast of the Dominican Republic. During our second week of classes we’ve been studying Dominican history and economics. Our trip this weekend deepened our understandings of recent Dominican history up through the Trujillo dictatorship. We also contributed to community development eco-tourism initiatives. (See the three entries about this weekend for more details.)

On Friday we had the great honor of meeting with Doña Dedé Mirabal. Doña Dedé is the sole surviving sister of the four Mirabal sisters who helped organize an underground resistance movement during the repressive thirty-year dictatorship of General Rafael Leónidas Trujillo. Three of the four sisters were murdered by the dictator’s henchmen. In preparation for our visit we read In the Time of the Butterflies, an historical fiction about the Mirabal sisters and their work.

Touring through the Mirabal family home, garden and mosoleum where the sisters are buried was an emotional experience. Meeting with the warm, wise and energetic Doña Dedé Mirabal inspired us all. If only we could all be so ALIVE at 80+!

From the museum in Salcedo we traveled over the mountains to Rio San Juan, a sleepy town on the north coast. We stayed at a lovely local hotel with wide ocean vistas from the top two floors. For many students this was their first trip to a Dominican beach. We celebrated Zach Benevento's 8th birthday with cake and a wiffleball game and frolicked in the calm bays until the sun set.