hemos llegado! (aka we have arrived!)
hola from the tropics of the republica dominicana. we have arrived and are settling in to the digs at the padres' facility down in najayo, dominican republic. thankfully, the trip has been without a flaw so far, unless you count r's seat reclining about an inch less than mine. but, i did give him my window seat, so really, that cancels it out, in my book. not to mention that by the power of mr. power's charms, we had a couple of glasses of wine head our way after receiving word that the plane was dry. and free wine is never a bad thing.
we headed out saturday night, catching my first-ever red-eye out to the east, and got through with enough time to watch the sunrise over the new york skyline while sipping on some dunkin' donuts brew. once on the ground in santo domingo, we met our driver, grabbed some lunch (methinks we will quickly get tired of plantains, chicken, and rice, but for then, it was DELISH), and took the bumpy 90 minute ride out to the san diego padres' latin-league training center in najayo. the facility is exactly what you'd picture for an $8 million investment in the DR: clean, well-manicured, and simple. in addition to the training fields and batting cages, there's a gorgeous clubhouse (complete with a decent workout facility... r's sold), cafeteria, coaches' quarters and players' dorms. that's where we are, and despite the simple but comfortable setting, it is lacking one thing: CARPET. in all practicality, probably not the best plan since no one wants to be cleaning baseball field out of the threads, but the austere walls and tiled floors carry noise for miles, and these young players are boisterous communicators. i think yelling might be the nation's OTHER past-time. ... aaaaand of course i don't have earplugs (wicked awesome).
tomorrow our small foursome (r's the only boy in our ranks) will introduce ourselves to the town in various capacities, including at schools, to the players, and who knows what else. i've deemed myself official historian, so hoping the wi-fi stays connected, i should be able to share some pics soon. until then, bueno noche, and think happy-spanish-comprehension thoughts for me... gracia (dropping the -s is the first step in making me local).
current mood: cansada!