Incense and Blessings

I went to New York City to visit friends who lived in a section of Manhattan that is heavily populated with Dominicans. I got a chance to talk to some Dominicans, and when I went into a bookstore looking for books on the history of the Dominican, I got in a conversation about my trip with the Dominican owner and he would only take $20 for the $24 worth of books I bought and he threw in some incense for free as a gift to me, along with his blessings.

On the train I read a great book called Why the Cocks Fight: Domincans, Haitians and the Fight for Hispanola.

Talking with the Dominican superintendent of my friend's apartment, he echoed what I read in the book that for most of their history the poor in both countries have been disenfranchised and victimized by corrupt governments, and now multinational corporations. The Haitians are treated even worse than Dominicans. It will be interesting to get there and see what it is really like.

I've also been listening to some Dominican music including Juan Luis Guerra: Bachata Rose.

On Saturday I bought two suitcases, one of which will be filled with medical supplies. I leave on Friday. I'll write more about the trip tomorrow.