The Caribbean Sea

March - July 2021
My friend Claudiazul and my self for six weeks in Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic volunteering in a program in Sea Conservation. Hopefully I can do my diving license! Read more
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  • 29footprints
  • 112days
  • 82photos
  • 17likes
  • 17.0kkilometers
  • 15.0kkilometers
  • Day 1

    25 Kilo instead of 17

    March 13, 2021 in Switzerland ⋅ 🌬 11 °C

    My journey has started with missing a team and a bus because my suitcase is too heavy 😩.I usually manage 16-17 Kilo for overseas .... but I never packed for diving and snorkeling AND had to bring my own 🛌 linen. Goodness🙄. I hope I don’t miss the train to Wiesbaden.Read more

  • Day 2

    Police ranging carts:-)

    March 14, 2021 in Germany ⋅ 🌧 6 °C

    Well, I did catch the train, literally last second. The train almost empty so I thought it’s getting better..... nope.Apparently my online train ticket which was given to me for free by the airline (CONDOR) I’m traveling with as not valid.
    A phone call with the airline explaining and asking for a valid ticket, yes, yes, yes he will send it to me! What I got was the confirmation of my flight.. Another phone call.....yes,yes,yes she will send it. I insisted I need the online ticket. Another confirmation of my flight. What is it with these people?? Deaf? Dumm? Am I speaking Chinese?? So, a long conversation with the train conductress, very friendly and forthcoming I must say (@Claudiazul.. withhold your comment:-) and several documents later it’s okay. I have to send all of the documents to the Deutsche Bahn and I don’t have to pay the ticket. Yeah!
    The train station in Wiesbaden is empty..... just about 30-40 police officer standing around in groups, chatting, texting, phone calls. WTF? I struggle with my 25 kilo.....
    My friend and best travel companion Claudiazul picks me up. She said there are demonstration of against-corona-protester and a counter demonstration of against-against-corona-protester..... Maybe they will demonstrate away the virus?
    She was supposed to fly with me. Unfortunately she had emergency medical issues quite serious and decided to come a week later.
    IT’S VERY 😔 !!! But certainly reasonable. We had greek dinner, she provided breakfast and drove me to the airport. A good girlfriend! And this after I drank almost a whole bottle of Prosecco by myself. Saturday is my drinking day.
    I can’t wait for her to join. When I travel with her less thing happen to me because she keeps me on track:-). She phrased it something like: “ Du generierst kompetent Probleme für dich welche du dann kompetent löst:-). She is right.
    At the airport; It makes me uneasy and a anxious that the airline did not ask for previous corona tests before boarding the plane. it’s a 10 hours flight.
    When I flew to Madrid, knowing that everybody was tested at least 72 two hours before somehow was reassuring.
    But watching the police ranging carts is 😄. They must be bored as hell!
    I will be seeing sun, beach, palms in about 12 hours!!!
    Claudia
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  • Day 10

    Adjusting

    March 22, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    So here is what happened in my first week;
    - I was not picked up at the airport as agreed.
    - lost my credit card
    - my Garmin watch died whilst diving although it say’s waterproof until 100m...
    - lost my progressive sunglasses in the waves of the Caribbean sea....
    - locked myself out because the key broke off when locking from the outside. The key pin stuck in the lock. Lots of drama, phone calls and anger to get a locksmith to my place and fix it. Will not elaborate.
    - had one diving class in a pool - went really well!
    - had a second diving class in the sea - did not go well at all😫, fed my breakfast to the fish🤢
    - several trips to different stores because the kitchen is practically unequipped
    - Organize a cleaning lady because the apartment was... lets say not really clean. it took her 4 hours. She is one of a kind. Her name is Gercia. She does a lot of community work, is involved in neighborhood projects, in the church, president of this and that.... and very well connected in las Terrenas.

    As one can see my travels are expensive because of my clumsiness!

    I’m in my second week and things start to improve. I’m developing basic diving skills!
    A couple of days earlier I had a panic moment. I was under water, saw literally nothing because the water was full of sand and also could not see my instructor Daria (who is hilarious and a very good instructor!). I signaled that I wanted to go up and wanted to quit diving altogether!
    She convinced me to try again and she was right. I think it was the first time in life I experienced panic. I’m familiar with anxiety but panic?

    Now I just remembered a moment when I was on a exchange program (Erasmus) in Germany during my studies. Federica and I lived in a student home for foreign students. One night police bangs on all doors and evacuates us - they have received a bomb threat. Federica was nine year old. I totally panicked.

    Yesterday I did my first dive without out my teacher attached to me. Compared to the other students she takes her time with me. I think it’s because I told her about my lung issues (I’m not supposed to dive....) and she wants to make sure. We are not diving deeper than 10m. I feel fine.

    But sometimes this thought crosses my mind. “Why am I learning to dive at almost 60 years old and with a lung issue?????”

    The fish and corals are really pretty but not as colorful like in the movies😥😩. Think I have to go elsewhere!
    I’m not sure year whether diving is my thing or not. But from now on I can dive with the other volunteers to clean the coral nursery and more.

    The volunteer program I’m with “Aldea de Paz” ist chaotic. Communication and Organizational skill have a lot, a lot!!! of room for improvement. Most of the time the volunteers are not told what to do.

    Two days ago coming back from a dive on the boat the captain realized that he didn’t have enough gas to go all the way back...... The captain had to call someone, organise gas, then land on the closest beach, gas was handed over and we could continue our trip home.
    This is really irresponsible. If someone had to be brought back immediately because of an emergency or the boat was close to a riff and out of gasoline......🤔?

    The mostly early 20 year old volunteers organize themselves. They are full of idealism! They started a project to put bins on the beach..., lets see how this goes.

    At night when Claudia and I sleep they go for dancing, cocktails and parties and end the party on our rooftop terrace with a lot of alcohol involved😀 basically doing what 20years old are supposed to do! Two german girls, one Austrian, two french and two Americans.

    After 10 days I settle in a routine of diving, meditating, doing my workouts, cooking and hang out on the beach.

    As you see in the pictures the place is really beautiful. The beaches, the palms, the light, the food. It is paradise!!

    I was here ten years ago and I’m told that things improved. Now most kids (ca. 80%) go to school. Ten years back this number was a lot lower.

    I’m in contact with the Spanish teacher I had 10 years ago. His name is Jose. He mostly, with his wife, does volunteer projects. He has always been very invested in the community.
    Going to rural places teaching how to wash hands (that was pre covid). Building parks for elementary schools, raising money for school uniforms which are mandatory here, teaching about hygiene.

    Many expats on retirement live here and some of them help with substantial financial input in community projects.
    10 years ago Las Terrenas was a small, peaceful fisher village with some Expats - today it’s very populated. We live in a apartment house right behind city hall on one of the two main roads. Very noisy.
    Fortunately the tourism is still residential - not like the other Dominican touris places like Punta Cana, Puerto Plata.
    No high rising buildings, still a lot of Dominicans wherever you go.

    The motoconcho is the choice of transportation. See pic! Four can fit😂😳! It’s fun!

    Covid somehow seems not to exist. People (sometimes) wear mask indoors.There has been curfews, caribbean curfew😂. You can be out until 9pm, then you have time for two hours to go home - or hangout at the beach until 10.50pm😂.

    The age demographics are inverted compared to Switzerland. Mostly young people and thinning out at the top. Since everything’s is outdoors it easier to avoid contamination.
    One evening we went for dancing with the girls. It was on a rooftop. We sat there with our FFP2 mask, barley breathing. We did not dance since dancing is probably the second most dangerous activity after sex.... We left after an hour.
    Two of the volunteers were infected, quite sick but now well again.
    We are cautious and adapt our behavior to situations.

    So far so good, I adjusted.

    Cheers
    Claudia
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  • Day 15

    Spuren

    March 27, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    In meiner Ganzheit fügen sich meine zerbrochenen Teile zusammen.
    Meine Ruhe steigt aus meinem Chaos auf.
    Meine hellen und dunklen Seiten vermischen sich im Fluss der Zeiten.
    Ich komme nicht um zu bleiben, ich bin im Transit.
    Ich hinterlasse Spuren für dich und für mich.
    Damit ich uns wieder finde, wenn ich gehe, um wieder zu kommen.
    Die Schönheit meiner Seele wärmt dich.
    Mein Herzenslicht ist deine Inspiration - sie ist der Schmetterling, der dich morgen besucht.
    Ich bin Vergangenheit, Gegenwart und Zukunft - im Diesseits und Jenseits deiner Vorstellung.
    Meine Seele trägt alles Wissen durch alle Reisen, Orte und Zeiten.
    Ich bin Liebe. Ich bin Energie. Ich bin wunderbar.
    So wie du.
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  • Day 19

    Bacardi Island

    March 31, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Who remembers the Bacardi television add years ago, many years ago?
    There were beautiful tanned people with a Bacardi cola in hand, dancing to soft music on the beach under softly swaying palms and the turquoise Caribbean sea in the back.
    Today we did an excursion to said island.... and where disappointed. The tiny island is of course a tourist magnet but it’s quite dirty. The island and the sea. Lunch was okay, the mandatory Pinia Colada was way to sweet.
    The love the beaches in Las Terrenas where we are staying much more.
    Before we visited caves in national park https://www.parquenacionalloshaitises.com/.
    It must be said that Claudia and myself have traveled a lot so the bar to what is beautiful or stunning is high. Let’s say we weren’t impressed, The whale watching season is almost over. We saw to dolphins for a short time.
    The really fun thing was the boat trip from the national park to the Bacardi Island (the island is called cayo levantado). The sea was high, the boat small. Fortunately I took two pills (motions sickness). It was less of a boat ride and more of boat jumping😳😎.
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  • Day 28

    How to do a beach profile

    April 9, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    So, there is these folding yardstick, a measuring tape and a device I have no idea what it's called
    Beach profiles are done to monitor the health of the beach. Here in Las Terrenas the beach has been retreating.
    Because of climate change and urban construction in Las Terrenas where there are now rules around construction.
    Houses are built, sometimes unfinished, left alone for years. Sediment goes into the river which transports it into the sea. Corall reefs (and the whole marine envirement) get damaged.
    In 2018/2019 there have been very strong storms which, without protection of the reefs, have washed out the beach and a part of the road along the beach.
    Coral reefs are important to lessen the power of storms.
    The corals need a specific temperature to for to be in good health. Global warming stresses them and ultimately die.
    We started to have classes about the marine enviroment. How it works, what the cause for damages are.
    Some of the volonteers (still: not me) will have the chance to actually transplant corals which have been planted, nursed and brought up in a special constructed nursery on the bottom of the sea, to a existing coral reef and plant them there!
    The volonteers regularly clean the nursery and the reefs ...loads of plastic.
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  • Day 34

    Steile Lernkurve beim krank sein

    April 15, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Wie schon im Facebook Post erwähnt bin ich jetzt seit mittlerweilen 6 Tagen ziemlich krank. Mehrheitlich (oder sogar nur?) wegen eigener Achtlosigkeit. Das ist nett ausgedrückt. Ich würde sagen aus purer Dummheit:-).
    Aber was habe ich gelernt!
    - Es ist gut eine Ärztin (wenn auch gerade frisch nach Staatsexamen) in der Gruppe zu haben. Marta aus Madrid, so ihr Name, macht hier in einer Klinik ein kurzes Praktika. Spanischer Muttersprache.
    - In der internationalen Klinik in Las Terrenas (eine private Klinik für gut betuchte) gibt es Aerzte welche ohne Masken rumlaufen. Hat Marta berichtet.
    - Marta berichtet jedenTag aufs neue interessante Dinge aus der Klinik-mir sträuben sich die Haare. Ich möchte mir nicht vorstellen wie es in einem öffentlichen Krankenhaus so zu und her geht.
    - Die Menschen hier konsumieren Antibiotika für alles erdenkliche, also wie wir das Asprin,
    - Antibiotika ist nicht verschreibunspflichtig und gibt es in kleinen Supermärkten zu kaufen.
    - in den Apotheken werden Pillen einzeln oder auch in einzelnen Blister verkauft. Weil die Menschen es sich nicht leisten können ganze Schachteln zu kaufen. Habe ich allerdings in ganz Zentralamerika gesehen.
    - Als ich mal in der Apotheke was kaufen wollte war schon die Verständigung über Schachtel versus Blister ein Problem. Es ist wirklich praktisch besagte spanisch sprachige Ärztin zu zu kennen welche für mich in die Apotheke geht um mir ein Medikament zu besorgen. Ihr Kommentar: " Denkst die brauchen hier in der Dom Rep keine Ausbildung um in der Apotheke zu arbeiten....?"
    Ich wurde gut betreut und versorgt.
    Es geht mir viel besser, bin nur sehr erschöpft. Die Treppe auf die Dachterasse fühlt sich an wie die Erklimmung des Mount Everest.. oder so.
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  • Day 43

    Heilmeditation meines medial Zirkels

    April 24, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Liebe Nicole, liebe Heilmeditationsteilnehmer

    Ich bin seit Samstag den 17.4.2021 im Krankenhaus mit der Lungenentzündung. Vorher eine Woche zu Hause mit asthmatischer Bronchitis. Übers Wochenende ging erst besser, dann steil bergab.
    Die Antibiotika griffen nicht.

    Ihr habt die Heilmeditation am Mittwochabend 21.4. gemacht. Für mich war es 13.00. Das Erste Bild ist von meinem Mittwochmorgen. Die anderen vier nach eurem Input am Nachmittag.
    Worte sagen mehr als Bilder. Seither gehr es bergauf, heute kann ich entlassen werden.

    Es könnte die Hypothese aufgestellt werden, dass die Antibiotika sich am Mittwoch Mittag “spontan und plötzlich” entschlossen hätten zu wirken.
    Die zeitliche Übereinstimmung und die schnelle, drastische Verbesserung meines Befindens sind meines Erachtens schon fast empirische Evidenz, dass eure Heilmeditation der absolute Hammer und extrem wirkungsvoll war.
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  • Day 48

    Transplant Coral Logs

    April 29, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Claudiazul and myself are here in a volunteer program with the organization “Aldea de Paz”. We clean reefs (not me…..).For marine conservation they work together wit CEPSE, a local marine conservation program. Since many weeks a major coral log transplant of 600!!! logs are being prepared. Dry runs outside and in the sea. The coral have been planted, nursed, cleaned, monitored until big enough to transplant them into existing reefs. Along with nails, hammers, ropes and more tools, the logs this week slowly have been transferred from Samana to Las Terrenas and further to the destinated reef. Today about 30 people in three boats left for the mission.
    In teams of two, each teams has to attach with hammer and nail 60 coral logs onto the rock. Hoping the corals will grow and survive.
    Tomorrow they go out again. Claudiazul will come back with underwater pictures!
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  • Day 53

    Die Notfallstation

    May 4, 2021 in Dominican Republic ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Ich habe diesen Bericht 10 Tage nach Klinikaustritt geschrieben.

    Kaum liege ich im Notfall auf dem Schragen; «Versicherungskarte, bitte?» fragt der blasse, etwas gequälte aussehende Mitarbeiter aus der Abteilung Administration im Notfall.
    Er hat diesen professionellen Gesichtsausdruck; Ich-weiss-es-geht-Ihnen-schrecklich-aber ich-muss-Sie-trotzdem-nach-Geld-fragen Ausdruck im Gesicht. Auch kein lustiger Job. Ich fische sie aus meiner Tasche und falle erschöpft zurück. Ich bekomme kaum Luft. Was würde sie TUN wenn ich nicht ansprechbar wäre? Mich nicht behandeln? Mir abgelaufene Medikamente geben?
    Eine Notfallstation ist eine Vollzeit immerwährende Paniksituation.
    Die Ärzte sind getrieben vom diesem drängendem, internalisierten Wunsch Leben zu retten. Den schwarze Teufel, den Sie gerne an die Wand malen, schwer lastend auf den Schultern.
    Die Ärztin untersucht mich. Anamnese/Diagnose. Antibiotika. Was NATÜRLICH keine Diagnose ist. Plötzlich ist die Ärztin weg und die Krankenschwester will mir Antibiotika spritzen welches dann in meinem Körper einen Monstersuchtrupp aufstellt und aggressiv bewaffnet nach bitterbösen Bakterien sucht. Ich wehre mich; ERFOLGREICH!
    Was wenn es keine von diesen boshaften, gemeingefährlichen Lebewesen hat?
    Na, dann wird die Antibiotika noch garstiger als die Bakterien und als Rache macht es einfach die lieben Bakterien kaputt. Nein danke. Bitte erst Labor Resultate.
    Nachdem Röntgen und CT eine richtige (und doch nicht so richtige) Diagnose: Lungenentzündung. Bakterien? Viren? Frau weiss es nicht.
    Ich sage der Krankenschwester mehrere Male, dass Zugang legen in meinem Handrücken nix bringt.
    Mir geht es so schlecht, dass ich mich nicht mehr durchsetzen kann. Also unglaublich schlecht.
    Sie sticht in den Handrücken, Blutbad. Sie legt ihn dann in meine wunderschöne, deutlich pochende Starvene in der linken Armbeuge. Alles gut. Ich nenne sie Maria Tudor die Blutige, sie kommt später noch prominent vor.
    Einzug auf Bettenstation. Einzelzimmer mit Bad. Hygienisch sauber, also fast. Nur eine kleine, fleissige Ameisenstrasse der Wand entlang. Ist okay, die sind längst nicht so hinterlistig wie die Antibiotika! Klimaanlage auf vollen Touren; Unerhört hilfreich bei Lungenentzündung.

    Später auf dem Zimmer; verschiedene Medikamente tropfen in besagte Starvene. Unterdessen auch Antibiotika, kein Fünkchen Widerspruchswille mehr in mir. Die Ärztin steckt den Kopf halb zur Tür rein und fragt so ganz nebenbei, ob ich auf irgendwelche Medikamente allergisch reagiere. Sie hatte vergessen die Medikamenten Anamnese zu machen.
    Bin jetzt tot. Ende.
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