Sunday Home run-day

I'd just finished annihilating Josh at rummy when Dana sent me a WhatsApp message. 

[8:07 pm]: Are you at the monument watching the game?!​

*Me, 8:29 pm: Spontaneously orders an Uber from Josh's apartment to the Monument to watch the DR play the US in the World Baseball Classic*

There were thousands of people. If I hadn't realized the depth to which this island worships baseball, I did now. Bars and restaurants were packed and illegal broadcasts were projected on the sides of otherwise nondescript trucks, but you didn't even need to be near one of the bajillions of screens airing the matchup to know what was happening; the crowd's collective reactions told all. 

As we abandoned the Uber and scurried up a dirt path to the base of the Monument, it started sprinkling. 

By the time we found a spot where we could see the screen if we craned our necks, it was full-on pouring. 

I was that most miserable of combinations - cold AND wet - but the rain worked to our advantage in that all of the Dominicans who didn't have a chair to put over their heads (see below) fled for cover. 

Albeit a little off to one side, we snagged a prime viewing spot seconds before Gunnar Henderson homered in the top of the 4th to tie the game. 

We decided that a couple of Dominicans surmising that we were gringos and boisterously insinuating that the DR was surely going to win capped off our experience enough that we could head home. By the time we made our way down and found a street corner suitable for an Uber pickup spot, the rain had let up and we'd warmed up a little from the walk. We bought beers from a guy with a cooler and decided to stick around for another couple innings. During our descent, the US had scored again, making it 2-1. 

The rain picked up again before we could finish our drinks, so we wisely darted across the street and huddled under the edge of a restaurant awning - in view of a screen - until we scored an Uber home on the 3rd try.

Despite feeling like a drowned rat, I have no regrets about what's definitely going to be a core memory from my last month here. The game was still going on by the time I took a hot shower and went to bed, but I checked in the morning...and the US won! They'll play Venezuela for the championship tonight at 8 pm. ¡Vamos, Estados Unidos!

Until next time, blessings in Christ!