Dominican Easter

I wrote this Friday but never got around to uploading it from my iPad. Happy Belated Easter everyone!!!
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I was walking to campus Friday morning around 8am and was shocked by how deserted the streets where! Classes didn't start until 10 so there weren't many students out and about. The main thing missing was all the "buses" on the street, the weed-wackers cutting the grass and the locals at the shacks starting to prepare our meals. Also, the IGA parking lot was absolutely empty! It was eerily quiet. (I did like the fact no one was burning their garbage though. It meant I could actually breathe when I went outside.)

It turns out that the entire island basically shuts down for the Easter weekend (including Good Friday and the "Easter Monday"). This poses a slight problem because I normally go grocery shopping Saturday morning. I didn't realize the IGA was going to be closed for so long so I am going to have to get creative with my food choices. Right now it is looking like saltines with peanut butter, some grapefruit and an avocado with have to get me through until Monday when the Subway on campus opens up again.

The worst part of not having food was having to skype my family back home. My mom is visiting my sister for Easter, so I got to hear all about their wonderful Easter brunch plans, how good the popcorn was that they were eating, how they were going to get Auntie Anne's pretzels, etc. Such torture!!!!! I think they enjoyed teasing me.

Another semi-sad thing about Dominican Easter is that they don't have any Easter candy. No chocolate bunnies, Reese's eggs or even Peeps. I was debating trying to make a Pinterest version of some of the candy but then I realize I didn't have any ingredients.

I think this lack of commercialization of Easter is why I was shocked by everything closing down. It kind of snuck up on me. I am so used to the constant easter advertising in the States. So between the lack of Easter candy in the grocery store and my isolation due to studying, I was definitely caught off guard that it was Easter time. But I ended up celebrating my drawing a mustached Easter bunny so it ended up being a good day after all.