Being a gringa

First, a little history lesson: the word ¨gringo¨ (or ¨gringa¨ in my case) can about when US troops were in Latin America, dressed in green, and very unwelcome here. Hence, ¨green-go¨or ¨gringo.¨ Times have changed, however, and the term is now one of endearment (or so they tell me). It must be an term of endearment, cause the guys all say it while making kissy faces and staring at me.

There have been other white people to explore these parts before. And the Dominicanos all think that the white people are all the same person. There was a girl here before me named Marlon (atleast that´s the best I know how to spell it based on their accents). She was very fair, wore glasses and had blonde hair. We look nothing alike. But people keep thinking that she came back, when really its me. My family keeps explaining that I´m another person.

A little girl in church last night had fun examining my skin. She said its so smooth and was fascinated by the fact that you can see the veins through my skin. She also asked me how many kids I have. I had to explain to her that I didn´t have any and wasn´t married yet.

A little boy in the street asked me if I was from Spain, which I absolutely loved since that would imply that I´m a native Spanish speaker. Keep dreaming!

Another kid yelled out to my brother David saying ¨¿Es la tuya? David, es la tuya?¨ (meaning ¨is she yours?¨).

Needless to say, I get a lot of attention here. It´s amazing that by traveling, I suddenly become attractive to an entire country. I´ve been asked if I´m a model, lol. If you need an ego boost, just come visit. =)