Maria is a maid who works for one of the wealthy families of Santo Domingo. Her husband Julio works in restaurants in Washington, and sends money home to help his wife and two children, as well as his mother.
Maria receives his remittances every month in the form of a package of dollar bills, which arrives by messenger. The business of taking dollar bills and delivering them to homes is big on the island. She then goes to a Western Union branch to convert them into Dominican pesos.
