Upon arrival in DR I was itching to get to the sea. So straight after work on my first friday some of us took a taxi over to catch the last bus to Las Terreanas, a mostly French area on a northern peninsula of the island. However we missed the bus, then one of our number was almost mugged for her bag. After we pushed the guy away he attempted to high 5 me, and I must admit I was so stunned I almost reciprocated by reflex. How random is that? It was like he was trying to laugh off a bag snatching as some form of misunderstood horseplay. Anwyay after waiting by the (painfully out of place) 'China Town', which seems to be even less impressive than the London version, our taxi back to the other interns apartment eventually showed. Various interns and staff are spread acroos two nice aprtmetns ont he edge of La Zona Colonial (the Tourist and Nightlife Centre of Santo Domingo) We had take out Sushi , someof which was fried, which in my understanding would invalidate it as sushi, but it tasted good, particularly the ones with Plaintain (a characteristically Caribbean addiition), that and plenty of Brugal, along with choice selections from my CD collection (Roots Manuva, Buju Banton, Massive Attack) on the balcony made for a nice way to kill time before going back to catch the 8AM coach out of town.
A four hour journey* over a new, faster (road) to Las Terranas was made more than worthwhile in the first instance by the stunning views from the edge of the potentially treacherous mountain road out across miles of green countryside and coastline. with the sun reflecting off the sea int he distance, and then by the real thing; the bluest sea I have ever been priveleged to witness. I was itching to jump in and every moment seemed tortously extended as we found a 'Casa' (a cheap motel style accomodation which is basically a block of really well appointed chalets, in this case about 50 yards from the beach, with sea views) and ambled our way collectively to the beach (3 of us, one joined later and the remainder had gone to a more expensive resort at 'La Playa Bonita' down the coast). There I really felt like I was in the Caribbean, wading and swimming in the temperate waters, dozing in the sunshine and enjoying the cheap seafood. Also becasue more people spoke French and in particular there were a few Haitian guys who coul dspeak pretty decent English too, it was a bit easier to communciate. It seems quite weird travelling across this whole country of latino people in small settlements by the side of the road with a few shops and houses, to this bustling resort consisting mainly of French settlers, but that's history for you I guess.
In the early evening we made our way over to the others' hotel for dinner by MotoConcho: a motor bike taxi which is dirt cheap and, in this instance, bereft of even the most rudimentary suspension. We flew (2 passengers to a bike) over the 20 minute journey through barely lit country back roads to their palatial abode, where we enjoyed more great food. Including (unethical as it is) relaly fantastic Tuna Tartar. Then we made our way back to Los Terranas and the evening took a turn for the worse.It was pretty unsettling not being able to move for Old white dudes leching after young Dominican women selling sex. That was scratching the surface of the sleaze going on. Suffice to say I've had nicer evenings. The club we ended up at did have great potential though, basically a dancefloor with an open terrace at the back leading out to another wooden dance floor literally on the beach, a couple of feet from the moonlit Carribean. The follwoign afternoon we had to wave our lovely little casa goodbye and I barely had time to enjoy the sea one more time then buy a painting from one of the Haitian# merchants before it was time to jump on the bus again (the evening prior I had made a fool of myself browsing original works in one of the small galleries that are dotted aroudn the area and attempting to buy a fantastic painting for 250 pesos that was actually going for 250 US Dollars. maybe next lifetime :)) back to bustling Santo Domingo. On the way back it rained quite a lot but there was no storm. Boring eh?
The other main news is I have a proper place. A cheap little room with one of the agencies main landladies. She doesn't speak English so I really need to sort my Spanish out. It's OK as another Intern stays there too so I do have some company and the neighborhood seems well appointed. It's good to feel more settled, everything is unpacked now and I can walk to work. I've had a chance to see a bit more of the city too as we had a day off for Ramadan (cheers UN!). No pictures though. I will be sure to take a camera next time and capture some images of La Zona Colonial, which is markedly different in appearance to other neighbourhoods, dating back as much of it does to the Spanish ruled colonial period. I went with my new housemate to the oldest cathedral in the 'new world' (European Cultural Genocide started here folks!). This is still used today and is a pretty big deal given that 90% plus of the population is Catholic. the other highlights in the area are shops selling the Amber that the island is so rich in and little Cigar factories/shops/slash musems. A lot of stuff was clsoed as it was late in the day so the area will cetianly merit a return visit. I'm hoping to go to the Botancial Gardens this weekend too, which are a bit of a national treasure by all accounts. Anyway that's me for now. More pictures next time I promise.
Peace
*This sentence doesn't really do the journey justive. No A/C? Check!. Crazily overloaded bus with lugagge in aisle? Check! Extra makeshift seats shoved across aisle for extra passengers? Check. Payment passed to front hand to hand? Check. Random guys jumping on at toll booths in the middle of nowhere to try and sell what appeared to be crackers? Of course :0 The coaches have it all. But for 280 Pesos (about 7 quid) to travel half way across the country you can't really knock it.
#I'm using the words Dominican and Haitian to msotly distinguish between how people identify themselves. Most people are mixed race and as I understand it there is lots of migration and are lots of interrelations and family connections cross border but it does seem evident that darker skinned people, many of whom are Haitain immigrants, don't seem to have an equal status socially here. They are not visible in the richer neighbourhoods or amongst the university students. The guys in Las Terranas had thick Haitian accents and seemed to be merchants who travelled down to sell their work.
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