After six weeks in Santo Domingo I would now say that we have completely settled in. Our apartment is looking great and feels very much like home. And the best part is that ANA FOUND A JOB!!! Yep, that's right, her carefree days of sleeping in and killing time are over. She is the production manager for a local web design company. She has a department of ten web designers and has been enjoying the job very much. The first week was a little tough as she has been away from the office environment for a while. As well, her co-workers speak only Spanish so she has been learning plenty of new words!
The most recent news to report is that we have already had our first visitor. My friend Earl made a surprise appearance on Friday afternoon then left Saturday. He had to make an emergency "US visa" run out of the country so he came to Santo Domingo. But we will be seeing him again very soon as he plans to return next weekend with his girlfriend for a two week stay which we are really looking forward to.
The area where we are living is superb. Within three blocks we have a bakery, gym, movie cinema, park, grocery store, pharmacy, movie rentals, shopping mall, Jaguar dealership (just in case...), and at least a dozen restaurants.
So things are going well, but hectic. We have finally booked our flights for Christmas. We arrive in Toronto on Dec. 20 and depart for the New Years bash in Saskatoon on Dec. 29. We then return to Santo Domingo on Jan. 6. It will be nice to be with family and friends this Christmas. They can fill the streets with lights and trees here, but without cold, snow and family, it just doesn't seem like Christmas!!
More soon....
Ana and Kris