Domincan Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a colorful tapestry of Spanish, French, Haitian, and African influences woven by a rich and storied history. Christopher Columbus described this lush land as "a beautiful island paradise with high forested mountains and large river valleys". This statement is still as true today as it was in 1492. In addition to the comforts of sun, sea, and sand, the Dominican Republic offers an exciting and unique cultural experience that will captivate your senses.

In January 2009, I made a trip to Puerto Plata on the North Coast. My husband, son, and mother-in-law accompanied me on this trip as we were utilizing a time-share. A note about our accommodations: although there are beautiful time-share properties in the DR, ours was probably on the "lower end". They were comfortable but unassuming and compared to other properties in the area I visited -- a bit lacking in their amenities and services. Click here for pix of Breezes Puerto Plata.

So, I'll focus more on the beauty of the Dominican Republic, particularly Puerto Plata and the surrounding area. The pictures below are of the beaches in Puerto Plata and Cabarete. View beach pix below by clicking on the first pix.

We did several "tours" while in Puerto Plata. We did this for two reasons; first, we decided not to rent a car as I had read that driving is a bit of a challenge and second, our spanish was (and still is not) very good.

Our first tour was simply a city tour of Puerto Plata which included a trip to Isabel de Torres Mountain via a cable car, a visit to the Fort and the Amber Museum and Gallery and ended with a tour and tasting at the Brugal Rum Factory. This tour did not include the visit to Isabel de Torres and they tried to convince us to do that one afternoon. But we convinced them that we wanted to do it in the morning so our private tour (taxi) included a guide -- whom we didn't ask for -- but he was helpful and yes, we did need to tip him as well as the driver! Tour Isabel de Torres IN THE MORNING. . .as clouds and mist move in in the afternoon and you won't have the fantastic views.

Our second tour was the one I think we all enjoyed the most. It was a full-day tour into the countryside to see "the real DR". Transportation was in the back of a truck fitted with seats down the sides. We did ask if my mother-in-law, Nell, could sit up front as we were told -- it could be bumpy, dusty, hot ride.

We were picked up promptly at 7:30 am and had a Canadian couple and a young German couple as company for the day. Before we headed out of the city we made a stop at a little store (think country store) where Eddie, our guide for the day, purchased drinks. He mentioned that the children in the villages along the route loved lollipops so we all dutifully traipsed into the store and bought huge bags of lollipops. The children, upon seeing a tourist truck coming, would line the roads, shouting, "minta, minta". . .sometimes running along beside and behind the truck. None of us were very comfortable throwing candy to the children but . . .

At the first stop we learned about local fruits, vegetables, and nuts with "breakfast" after. The tour also included a lunch stop with delicious local foods, along with more of the local drink (RUM!) We also witnessed a cock fight (spurs taped up), a stop where we visited a Dominican kitchen, (the way they are in the country), and lastly a stop at area waterfalls which required hiking up the waterfalls, and then jumping down them! No pictures of this other than the last one -- but you could purchase a video which they carried in a waterproof bag as they swam up and climbed up along with you.

The third tour we took was to Caya Arena, an idyllic spot on the north coast. To get there, required a 2-hour bus ride on country roads at high speeds! Then a speedboat (seating 15 - 20 persons) took us over to Paradise Island. Paradise Island is a spit of sand in the middle of the bay. Each tour operator had their own shack with fruit and drinks (more rum) and there was a guided snorkel tour available and snorkel equipment. After Paradise Island the boat cruises through the mangroves, then back on the bus to a nearby village for lunch. It makes for an entire day with about 2 hours at Paradise Island.