The first time we went to Boca Chica was in January 2012. We were with Mina, Jorge and my parents, and we went for lunch on our way from the airport to La Romana. It's located just minutes from the airport, and it has a beach and plenty of restaurants. After being hounded by a few restaurants and by many others selling things along the beach, we picked a restaurant at the end of the beach and consumed large quantities of fish and fresh juice. When the bill arrived, Mina exploded. The price was double or perhaps even triple what she expected. She bargained hard with almost no result. We left a little less then pleased.
The second time we went to Boca Chica, it was a week later and the day before we were flying back home. We had an early morning flight and it seemed like the most convenient place to stay, given its proximity to the airport. At first glance, the hotel looked nice. But at 2:00 am, when the music at the bar next door was so loud we thought we were inside of the bar, comfortable was not the adjective that came to mind. After a sleepless night we boarded a plane hoping to never utter the name Boca Chica again.
The third time I went to Boca Chica was yesterday. I was not looking for food or place to stay, but a story. I've been doing volunteer work for Entrena, a Dominican organization that both offers Spanish classes to foreigners (like Melissa) and administers several large USAID grants throughout the Dominican Republic. I'm helping collect oral histories for their newest grant, which focuses on youth violence and crime prevention. My goal is to collect inspirational stories to help kick off the grant, which brought me to Boca Chica, land of the Dominican tiguere.
What is a tiguere? According to UrbanDictionary.com a tiguere is "sneaky" person or a "thug". Think of a kind of sneaky thug...someone who is out to get you, but in a smooth kind of way.
Anyhow, in order to find an inspirational story in a place seemingly devoid of any type of inspiration I contacted Caminante (http://www.caminanteproyectoeducativo.org/), a grassroots youth organization. Caminante staff connected me to Sony, a 34 year-old man who had lost both parents by age 14. Shortly thereafter, he quit school and began living and working on the beach. With support from a nascent Caminante (he was one of the founding members), he went back to school, got a job at a nearby hotel, and then transferred to the restaurant business. After endless years of hard work, he now owns one of the larger restaurants on Boca Chica's beach. He admitted that without the support of Caminante he would either be dead or in prison. Instead, he is the father of four and a generous business owner, regularly providing funds and time to both Caminante and his church.
Sony talked about how youth continue to run Caminante and a staff person who was present during the interview conferred. They shared a story of how after hurricane George the youth decided to use the money the organization had raised for a summer camp to buy beds for people who had lost their homes. The youth went so far as to raise additional funds, and eventually provided 200 beds to community members. The staff person acknowledged that not all their stories ended so well, but that there were many positive endings (for example, her own...she too had been a former youth participant in the organization).
I began seeing Boca Chica in a new light. It wasn't just a home for tigueres, but also a home to deeply committed community members. It wasn't just about pushy restaurant owners trying to make a quick buck off of tourists, but hard working people trying to provide for their families and community. I now wonder how many other Boca Chicas I've visited where I've been too close-minded to see the inspiration that lies just beneath an ugly surface.
The third time I went to Boca Chica was yesterday. I was not looking for food or place to stay, but a story. I've been doing volunteer work for Entrena, a Dominican organization that both offers Spanish classes to foreigners (like Melissa) and administers several large USAID grants throughout the Dominican Republic. I'm helping collect oral histories for their newest grant, which focuses on youth violence and crime prevention. My goal is to collect inspirational stories to help kick off the grant, which brought me to Boca Chica, land of the Dominican tiguere.
What is a tiguere? According to UrbanDictionary.com a tiguere is "sneaky" person or a "thug". Think of a kind of sneaky thug...someone who is out to get you, but in a smooth kind of way.
Anyhow, in order to find an inspirational story in a place seemingly devoid of any type of inspiration I contacted Caminante (http://www.caminanteproyectoeducativo.org/), a grassroots youth organization. Caminante staff connected me to Sony, a 34 year-old man who had lost both parents by age 14. Shortly thereafter, he quit school and began living and working on the beach. With support from a nascent Caminante (he was one of the founding members), he went back to school, got a job at a nearby hotel, and then transferred to the restaurant business. After endless years of hard work, he now owns one of the larger restaurants on Boca Chica's beach. He admitted that without the support of Caminante he would either be dead or in prison. Instead, he is the father of four and a generous business owner, regularly providing funds and time to both Caminante and his church.
Sony talked about how youth continue to run Caminante and a staff person who was present during the interview conferred. They shared a story of how after hurricane George the youth decided to use the money the organization had raised for a summer camp to buy beds for people who had lost their homes. The youth went so far as to raise additional funds, and eventually provided 200 beds to community members. The staff person acknowledged that not all their stories ended so well, but that there were many positive endings (for example, her own...she too had been a former youth participant in the organization).
I began seeing Boca Chica in a new light. It wasn't just a home for tigueres, but also a home to deeply committed community members. It wasn't just about pushy restaurant owners trying to make a quick buck off of tourists, but hard working people trying to provide for their families and community. I now wonder how many other Boca Chicas I've visited where I've been too close-minded to see the inspiration that lies just beneath an ugly surface.
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