TravelStream™ news feed for member jeremyj on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/jeremyj en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 16 Sep 2008 01:05:30 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jeremyj/1/1221368640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jeremyj/1/1221368640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jeremyj/1/1221368640/tpod.html Tue, 16 Sep 2008 01:05:30 -0400 A Sense of Place...

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Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

I'm back in Santo Domingo and here for a couple of days before heading out to Costa Rica. It's so good to be back in Santo Domingo though! No mosquitoes and the culture is definitely more evident. I went to my favorite little cafeteria for lunch and the local bakery for Tres leches and helado. I'll definitely miss my new friends I've made in DR!
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Samaná Peninsula, Dominican Republic

I've decided to spend 3-4 days in Las Terrenas before returning to Santo Domingo. I've noticed it's a heavily developed area in Dominican Republic with many expats from France, Italy and Germany. In fact, when I held a conversation with a local Dominican women she assumed I was French! Major restaurants and buildings in the area seem to be owned by many French people so she just assumed.

Although the beaches are beautiful here I find myself missing Santo Domingo. The overdevelopment and tourist aspect of some of these beach towns really make it hard to meet and hang out with the local people. Also, it's off season so the towns are much more quiet than normal. Overall it's nice to have peaceful calm surroundings. I met an architect, Jessica, originally from Santo Domingo working in Las Terrenas on a few new homes and office buildings. She didn't seem to like Las Terrenas and spent much of time working and staying at home. Me thinks she's a city girl! The beach town vibe is very laid back and probably makes it harder for her to make friends.

I also had the chance to see a performance showcasing Dominican folk dancing. It was definitely a treat and lasted well over a hour. Unfortunately I lost many of the pictures and videos from that night but salvaged a few! I'm preparing for my trip back to Santo Domingo and ultimately Costa Rica for my next country.
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Sosua, Dominican Republic

After spending some time in Cabarete and avoiding some major storms, I spent a day in Sosua before heading to Las Terrenas. I had the chance to speak to the locals and walk around the quiet town and enjoy tasty Dominican food. It's very quiet time of the year here and with the rain it makes it more difficult to interact with others. Although Playa Sosua is nice, I think I enjoyed Cabarete much more.
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Cabarete, Dominican Republic

I think I can officially say I have "roughed" it. After taking Spanish classes in Santo Domingo and meeting other backpackers, I had heard from a few that I should venture up North and see a more tranquil Dominican Republic. So on Monday, despite the forecasts of rain and a potential hurricane I took a 4 hour bus and headed north to Cabarete / Sosua.

The drive was pleasant, clean, cheap and efficient and getting to Cabarete was not as difficult as I thought. I did have to admit that I had started to feel comfortable in Santo Domingo. I knew a great local place to grab cheap Dominican meals, a tiny bakery around the corner that served some delicious dulce de leche type desserts and a mean tres leches cake. And I has also had the chance to make several new friends and become familiar with people in Zona Colonial.

So it wasn't such a surprise that my trip up north brought up so much dread and angst, especially considering I had no idea what to expect. But as I checked into a cheap budget hotel just as the sun set, I started to somewhat relax on the prospect that this wouldn't be so bad. Wrong move on my part. After grabbing dinner, I finally started to settle down in my room in a cheap budget hotel that I had heard about word of mouth. It's at that moment I realized the "situation" I was in.

The walls were peeling and had mildew, the floors were dirty and there were bugs everywhere. Ants were crawling across the floor and spiders were nesting in the bathroom. I even spotted a lizard that jumped out of my bed when I sat down. I'm all for nature, but expect it when camping not necessarily in my own bed I'm paying for. I went to the front desk and asked the new front desk guy if I could change rooms [he could not since he had no access] or give me something to get rid of them. He comes out with a can of Fresh Cotton air freshner spray. Hahaha I tried in my best Spanish to describe what the situation was and that air freshner would not work, but in the end he didn't have an alternative and I was stuck. I didn't want to fork over more money to sleep in an expense hotel I hadn't vetted and I would scope out new hotels in the morning. In the end, I slept in a silk pouch liner (so lucky to have!) on top of the bed while constantly turning on and off the A/C during the night as the temperature went from very cold to extremely hot. In morning I explored Cabarete looking for alternative lodging and I ultimately ended up in a hostel outside of the town which was cheaper and cleaner, despite the lack of AC and hot water (I find myself getting used to cold showers..)! Overall, the experience was an interesting one and definitely makes me a bit more savvy when it comes to booking the next place to sleep.

As I explore Cabarete, I still find myself missing Santo Domingo. I really miss my Spanish classes and I've found that they have helped immensely in my day-to-day conversations here. In my Spanish classes, we would often sidetrack the daily lesson and just talk about Dominican culture and what issues were important to the teachers who were usually around my age. Now the issues that I've heard are purely observations and I'm not going to try to interpret them in this blog since I am not Dominican nor have a full grasp of the culture and history.

As one of my new friends from Dominican Republic, Yeury, told me, "The Dominican Republic has many issues and problems (as do all countries), but I love my country. I'm proud to be Dominican. No matter how long you stay here, there are things you will never really understand when it comes to being Dominican."

One of those things that I didn't fully grasp and that I brought to my teacher's attention during class was initial conversations with some of the locals. I would initiate conversations with local Dominicans and at first be met with amiable body language. Then as soon as I spoke in broken Spanish, I was met with distance and and more of a cold behavior. In the end the people were still nice, just not as pleasant as before. I often felt it was more of an odd curiosity than contempt or fear. Julissa, my teacher, started to explain that on the surface I was able to blend in as Dominican by wearing similar clothes and getting rid of the touristy items but when I spoke the other person immediately knew I wasn't Dominican. Julissa told me in a mix of Spanish and English , "Dominicans are naturally nice and very charismatic to one another, but this is Zona Colonial and there is prostitution in this city." Most Dominicans did not want to be associated with the sex trade and avoided talking to tourists or associating with them because of the perception it gave to the community. So when I began to speak and they realized I wasn't Dominican, most were unsure of what my motives were even if I was just asking for directions to the nearest tienda de regalos or mercado. "I know you now and you can tell I'm very charismatic and we get along well! But if someone I don't know that is not Dominican comes up to me I wouldn't be. You have to be careful."

There have been other issues that have come up during class and general conversations that include: government corruption and ineffectiveness, public money being wasted on a new Metro system, obstacles to Dominican social empowerment, middle class struggles and Haitian immigration. The last, Haitian immigration, has struck more of a chord because I have had the opportunity to hear comments from a few people both Dominicans and Haitians. Julissa in class mentioned that she had Haitian friends and has no problem with them, but that there are issues due to the fact that Haiti used to rule Dominican Republic and there was still bad blood from those times. Another Dominican friend thought there were bigger issues to deal with but did admit that immigration was a concern for people since there was this huge influx of very cheap labor into the country and he didn't know how it would affect the country.

One day, while walking down a street, Yeury and I noticed a group of Haitians talking and involved in a serious conversation as they were yelling.
I asked Yeury how he was able to tell if they were Haitian due to the fact that DR was so diverse when it came to looks you'd be hard pressed to just assume alone based on appearances. He told me that it was their French accent when they spoke Spanish. What about if you saw them on the street and they didn't speak? He would assume they were Dominican...

I've noticed that there are far more Haitians in the North Coast than in Santo Domingo and while eating a snack I had the opportunity to talk to one, Remy. Without provocation, Remy told me in English that this country was racist and it made it very difficult for Haitians to work in. He had gone into business for himself as a tour guide and thought life was better that way. "You know...this used to be our country." I couldn't tell if Remy said it with disdain or sorrow, but I didn't want to push the issue...

Thus far, my experiences have been rewarding and fulfilling here in the DR. I've tried to stay true to my original goal and not interact with tourists as much even though my Spanish hasn't reached that level yet. I've even visited a Dominican play about a policeman interrogating various suspects all played by one man (That's all I really understood). I've traveled outside Zona Colonial and found that there are affluent neighborhoods that rival those found in the States. I never thought that I would take a gua gua (public car) and be sandwiched into a passenger seat with 1 other person or try to get into a moving crowded public van as it pulled away from the bus stop. At first it seemed scary, but for many here it's just a way of life. Even now, the initial excitement in Cabarete of getting on a motorbike taxi and zooming into the nearby town at 9PM down dark roads has subsided and now it's just a form of easy transportation.

Right now I'm at a crossroads for my next few days. I don't know if I should explore the North Coast more, head to the East coast or return to Santo Domingo. I'm starting to get comfortable in Cabarete, but with the constant influx of rain and hurricanes I know it can't last for long. Until next time...Hasta Luego!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jeremyj/1/1219715340/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jeremyj/1/1219715340/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jeremyj/1/1219715340/tpod.html Tue, 26 Aug 2008 01:24:21 -0400 A Sense of Place...

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Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

As I begin my journey, I have discovered one of the best places to start is the first European city in the New World, Santo Domingo. The capital of Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo has a rich and complex history primarily due its occupation by Spain, Haiti and US over the past few hundred years as well as its ethnic variety. In addition to Spanish colonists and enslaved Africans, groups that have settled here over the centuries include Sephardic Jews from Curacao, Canary Islanders, Germans, Italians, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, Lebanese, Syrian, Jewish refugees, Japanese, Hungarians, Chinese and many others. In fact, Chinese immigrants were the second fastest growing immigrant group in the Dominican Republic.

I arrive in Zona Colonial, one of the historical districts in Santo Domingo, by taxi and quickly settle into a very cheap hotel that borders El Conde (a popular street for historical sites and vendors in Santo Domingo). The weather is very reminiscent of Houston, hot and muggy, but with the added benefit of having a coastal breeze since the city is on the coast.

Unfortunately, Dominican Republic does not have any hostels so I resort to using very cheap budget hotels within the city. As I'm checking in, the local behind the desk, Eddie, initially speaks to me in Spanish about my stay. Although I had taken some Spanish classes and did a refresher prior to my arrival, I was only able to make out a few words due to his fast pace and accent. I expected most people to not speak English, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that Eddie was actually taking English classes. We have a short, but interesting conversation..
Eddie:Where are you from?
Me: Texas..Tejas..
Eddie: Eh, are you originally from Dominican Republic? (No) But you look like me...
After a few more confused looks and questions about where my family is from Eddie finally gives up and believes me when I tell him I am not Dominican.

My initial period, I must admit started off being a bit lonely. I've stayed away from the touristy heavy hotels and areas and for the most part DR has more European and Latin tourists than Americans. My conversations with the local people were simple in the beginning, but I was able to at least order and ask for certain things at restaurants and hotels using a mix of broken Spanish and hand gestures.

Although the average Dominican's salary is $300 per month, the typical dress does not differ that much to anything I've seen in the States. The only thing I will comment on is that despite the extreme heat and humidity here, the people all wear suits and jeans during the day with no worries and sweat! This is how you are able to spot many of the tourists because they are the ones who are typically wearing shorts.

For the most part, I've tried to blend in with the people but my ridiculous TEVA sandals and my fanny pack (I only wore it one day! I swear!) have given me away time and time again. I will walk the El Conde and a street vendor will give me a glance and not say anything and then look at my sandals and ask if I am interested in his items. I got rid of the fanny pack (hah!) and sooner or later will grab some cheap flip flops, but the sandals are comfortable and I've been able to walk for hours in them around the city with no pain.

I'll go into more detail later on my social experiences, but I've already made a couple of friends within Santo Domingo. A couple were local Dominicans my age who were interested in the States and have taken me out for drinks and dancing with the locals. I've been able to enjoy live dancing and little mini festivals at night that are separate from the tourist trail due to these helpful new friends. I've gone out to Parque Duarte, a local Dominican area, and enjoyed cerveza with the locals as they recount the drama / funny stories from their week . I am able to pick up bits and pieces of their social lives but I must admit it still is a bit difficult.

I've started to come more out of my "cautious" phase as I've explored the city by walking throughout Gazcue and other neighboring zones. And my initial caution was warranted, due to the stories about scamster tour guides and thefts and muggings targeted at tourists. Eddie, the hotel front desk guy, even gave me a warning that people who are initially nice and initially gregarious to me can not be trusted. "What reason do they have to be so nice and helpful to you in the beginning?" So I've kept his words in mind while still trying to make friends in this beautiful and culturally rich city.

Although I've provided some pictures, I've had to be a bit careful in taking pictures. While most people are courteous and nice, I believe that most do not understand why you would want to take a picture of them and are a bit skeptical. Also, I still have to remember it is a third world country and flashing a digital camera around is a sure way to call attention. Walking throughout the city, I am constantly reminded of the poverty here and it's hard to not feel its impact. You see the local homeless people ask for food or money and considering the prices at the local supermarket and the average monthly salary you wonder how most people are able to survive.


In the next entry, I'll talk a bit more about my conversations with a local bar owner, Francisco, who is from Spain, lived in London and then moved to DR where he has been for the past 4 years. I found his insight into the country and the people very interesting and has changed my view and thoughts about the Dominican culture. And as of Monday, I am taking a week long course in Spanish at the local academy.

I hope my entries should become more frequent and they will probably be just thoughts, random experiences and casual notes. I hope I haven't bored you with this introduction into my trip.

Until then, hasta luego!
J
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