Wherever you are, hope you have been having a good break.
Such a good thing that Christmas occurs so close to the New Year as it allows a
time of rest & reflection as we move into a new one.
2015 has not progressed exactly as I expected it to, but
overall it has been a good one, and I think I have made the best of it.
I started 2015 in Republica Dominicana and this is where I
will see it’s completion.
Towards the end of January 2015 I made my return to Sydney
Australia waiting in LA until February 1, when airfares dropped from ridiculous
prices to ok ones. I was lucky to be able to stay in a friend’s apartment in
Sydney while he was away, and this gave me time to look for an apartment. I
found a place to rent in Kings Cross near the city centre. It was no palace,
but it was functional and it was close to trains and walking distance to the
city and Hyde Park.
I was expecting to be placed in a teaching position this
year, but that did not happen. I put my name down to teach at various schools
and got a few days here and there, on average 3 days a week. I really feel that
as you get older, doing casual or substitute teaching can become more of a
challenge. After you have been teaching for a few years I think intelligence
emerges of which schools are being operated effectively and which leaders know
what they are doing, and which don’t. Of course as a substitute teacher, it is
important to not share your insights, even though you know a lot more than
newly graduated teachers. So a couple of schools stopped inviting me back! But
as a wise teacher friend in New Zealand observed, do you really want to be
working in schools that are not being run effectively? Only for the money would
be the answer to that question. When you are in schools that lack good
discipline and where students feel ok to talk back to teachers and refuse to
comply with instructions, you know the problem is most likely not just
involving yourself. The best school I worked at was in an elite part of Sydney,
where I usually find skerricks of psycho parents, but the thing that made this
school great was its age variation of staff. Provided there are older teachers,
the school is not all about pandering to the children, which some schools have
certainly become. Having grown up in a world where adults spoke and children
followed instruction, we now find ourselves in a complete opposite world. It’s
like 'is that the only way to think? One extreme or the other?' lol!
I had also expected to get back into the Sydney property
market with a studio purchase, but found properties selling before getting to
auction by overzealous retirees and superannuation companies. So the
opportunity to pay 350-400,000 for a studio apartment kind of fell away.
But when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. It’s all
good. And there is always a great solution to any situation.
So I decided that if I did not get reassigned to a full time
teaching job by September, I would make my way back to Republica Dominicana… no
regrets. It is great here.
I packed up my apartment at end of August, my friends
Brendan, Margot & Raff have all stored a few of my things assuming I will
be back working in Sydney before too long…
While Australia is a little bit my homeland and I am an
Australian citizen, New Zealand is still home as well. I decided that I still
wanted a piece of the NZ pie without investing all my money. So I set my eyes
on the West Coast of the South Island where it rains a lot and there is a work
shortage and where property is cheap. I started looking at ads on trade me in
May or June and in mid-September I travelled to Christchurch.
I found a nice little house near the town of Greymouth with
land and a duck pond. Friends Ady & John stopped me from buying one of
those do-er uppers that sometimes turn into a very bad decision! This one is my
bolthole in case work is scarce & I need a place to live in New Zealand-
Australia. I Have an agent renting it for me but still awaiting some tenants.
Hopefully some will emerge soon. Got it for 100,000, way better than those
ridiculous Sydney values. I guess something like that in Sydney would cost 2
million!
As well as going to NZ to find a house, I also had a chance
to catch up with friends and relatives and that was really good. I also checked
on my stuff which I have in storage there in Nelson. I drove up the North
Island staying with relatives in Wellington, New Plymouth & Auckland.
From NZ I flew to LA and after a night staying with friends
there, travelled to Dominican Republic. It is a long journey from NZ/Australia
to DR so stopping a day or two in LA is a wise decision for rest recuperation
& exploration.
Most flights to DR connect through NY but it was just a one
or two-hour connection this time, no sightseeing. This time my flight into DR
was able to be to Puerto Plata which is only 10 minutes from the apartment I
live in here in Sosua.
I have now been back here since October, so coming up to
three months soon. Most Latin American countries are fairly relaxed about
extended stays. Many North Americans and Europeans arrive at the beginning of
November and stay until April to avoid their winter. Overstaying the 1-month
visit requires you to pay $25 for 3 months and $100 for up to 9 months, which
is not so bad. Last year it quadrupled from previous fees, so before mid-2014,
it was really cheap.
Around May or June, I discovered that the apartment next to
mine was for sale. Last year I bought the first apartment for US$31.5K and this
one I got for US$24K. The declining value of AU/NZ $ compared to US meant that
this year’s purchase kind of worked out the same. But the price is cool and I
now have the 2nd apartment rented. Currently a woman from Finland is
staying, next I think will be Italians. It becomes free after February 22. Come
and stay J
When I got here in October it was really hot. DR had maybe
its worst drought ever recorded. Climate change is going to have serious impacts
on developing countries. This year a food staple plantain had to be imported
from other countries for the first time.
When I arrived here the pool was just about to undergo
serious repair and it is now back in action. It really is a great pool for
swimming, but I got an ear infection just after it came back into action, so
maybe I jumped the gun, before the water had become clean. Am now back to 30
lengths a day J
And speaking of illness, I have had one of those bugs we all
fame developing countries for. This time it happened in Christmas week, last
week. The highlight of the Christmas eve dinner which is the main celebration
meal here, was salad with lots of salt and vinegar, for a body in recovery
mode! I have been more vigilant this year with mosquito repellent, touch wood. Last
year I suffered chikungunya. This year dengue has been big so I have been
careful.
This year I learnt of the passing of 2 old school friends
and then at the same time that another friend, somewhat older, had a terminal
illness. Suddenly all headaches and other body pains become the basis for fear
& paranoia! I was blessed to get to see this friend in September while
staying in Nelson. Such a great guy and a privilege to have had him as a
friend.
Now I have time to read & write. I am working on about 5
different ebooks, plus re-creation of various websites. I also am quietly
chipping away at strategies for effective environmental, entrepreneurial and
effective policies and processes here in DR. Of course my developing Spanish
does not hurt in this endeavour J
Being a poor country, many things in this country are a good
price, especially people’s costs for work. Yesterday my neighbour put on a new
door handle for the bathroom and charged me $2.50 J. He also changed the kitchen
taps $12. Not bad especially compared to labour costs in gringo lands J
At the moment my employer in Sydney is trying to revoke work
resumption options for a whole bunch of teachers that went on breaks. I suspect
I will be put back into a school in February or April and if that does not
occur I suspect my union will seek redundancy for us… All good.
In the meantime, I have a gym nearby, a great pool to swim
in, plenty of neighbours and locals to talk with, from all over the place, lots
of books to read and many ideas for writing. Been online dating with lots of Dominican
and Haitian guys. Taking lots of time to talk as this prevents confused
expectations that can happen between people from rich and poor nations. Meeting
people is easy but when on a break from work, not looking to fund someone’s
university fees lol! So lots of chat helps to keep situations clearer.
I have been really inspired this year by lots of things
going on in the world. Education about the causes of poverty and a commitment for
worldwide resolution is emerging amongst many. The idea that wars fix stuff is
falling away and unlike Iraq, the idea to depose another possible dictator in
Syria has not resonated with general agreement. People are waking up. Genuine improvements
take time, education & development.
There is much education work to do in poorer nations. From
inspiring hope and giving people strategies and ideas of how they can move
forward. I promote kiva.org to many as this is a great organisation for
microeconomics. Education is so important and when you spend time in a
developing country, you get to notice all kinds of insights and strategies that
we get taught by family, school and community that many in poorer nations have
not been given.
It would be a false report to suggest that all is hunky dory
here. Every time you make friends here, there will be the possibility of
requests for help. So many problems occur here that people are resigned and
used to, so while there is sadness with various tragedies, people are also used
to it. For example, a teacher at a nearby school died recently because a bunch
of dudes were stupidly having a motorcycle race and he happened to be on the
same road at the wrong time. In western nations, people would be up in arms
increasing education and demanding better police management of these guys and
roads in general. Cars & motorbikes emit pollution on a bad scale, there is
quite a lot of crime, there are bad relations between Haiti & DR. The
rubbish everywhere including at the beautiful beaches is almost invisible to
locals as it has always kind of been like that. But all this can be improved
through education and other strategies. So here I see options and ideas of how
I can make a useful difference.
Wherever you are and whatever you are up to, I wish you good
health, wealth and companionship in 2016
Love & Justice
Graham
Graham
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