DJPrice said:
I have a friend who has just moved to DR (SD) to work for Peace Corps. His living allowance is small, so I'd like to send him some things that might help him. He is not living like a tourist. He does not have running water or electricity all the time. Can anyone tell me what kinds of things he might need down there. Common personal items like postage stamps (where can I get DR stamps in US?), hygeinic products, and any other things you can recommend would be useful to him. Would pre-paid phone cards be of use to him? Correspondence is slow from his end right now, so I cannot ask him these things yet.
Thank you.
Donna Price
Welcome to the board, Donna. In order:
1.
His living allowance is small Supposed to be so; enough to be able to live on though.
2.
He is not living like a tourist. He does not have running water or electricity all the time. That's the way it is in the DR. In Peace Corps training they address the issue of "Culture Shock". He has to learn to deal with it.
3.
Can anyone tell me what kinds of things he might need down there. Common personal items like postage stamps (where can I get DR stamps in US?) He can buy virtually everything in the DR that he can buy at home. Large supermarkets such as 'La Sirena' have huge inventory. Can't buy DR stamps in the US but they are cheap as dirt in the DR.
4.
Would pre-paid phone cards be of use to him? Correspondence is slow from his end right now He can always call from a phone center in the DR. Cost isn't bad. I've actually had pretty good luck with the Dominican post office. Just received a large
registered envelope from the DR yesterday that only cost the sender $RD64. Mighty cheap and got here (Illinois) in 2 weeks
On the issue of sending him things, I would say to forget it. After shipping costs etc, it would not be economical. Send money if you wish and let him buy the stuff locally. There are options other than Western Union that are more cost effective and convenient. Services such as
https://www.enviosboya.com/ cost less and allow you to send money to be picked up or deposit directly into his Dominican bank account.
Good luck to your friend. He will love the experience. There are several former PCV's on this forum and we are always glad to be of help.
Swede