Traveling in the Dominican Republic

We had a great time in the Dominican Republic, and that included several inland trips. It is a stunning country, and there is so much to see!

We went to Santo Domingo via bus. The Dominican bus system is cheap and reliable. Unless there’s a strike. Which there was. Did you know the Dominican word for strike is huelga? Neither did I. You learn something new every day! Seriously, the bus cost about $14 each round trip. Quite a bargain.

Some favorite places in Santo Domingo were the Casa Reales Museum:

The Catedral Primada de las Americas is reportedly the first cathedral built in the new world, and the only gothic cathedral in North America:

Vault Construction at Cathedral – reminds me of a forest.

Beautiful painting at Cathedral. One of many.

Ceiling Detail at Catedral Primada de America

Apparently, it was a Slow Sin Day in Santo Domingo.

Window Detail at Catedral Primada de America

And just some random shots around town:

China Town – Stretched my Spanish Language skills by shopping for random Asian groceries.

We also visited the famous 27 Waterfalls. Handy Andy (ask anyone in Luperon or call him on VHF 68) got us a van and drove us there. The hike was brisk and the falls were running cold. Fun day!

Bridge over one of the canyons we floated through.

Very long suspension bridge leading to the trailhead

We also visited Jarabacoa, for a couple more waterfall hikes, and the excellent company of Suzanne and Brad from Tortuga. We rented a nice and reliable car from Franklin in Luperon for that adventure. Ask at Wendy’s Bar for his contact info or where to find him.

Can you see that these rocks look like bronze?

Our friend and Yoga Teacher, Suzanne at Jimenoa Falls #1

We visited Santiago to provision, and used the services of Nino Estrella (taxi driver, speaks fluent English) for that trip. He let us use his Pricesmart membership, then took us to the excellent Bravo Supermarket there, which is similar to a Whole Foods type store. Prices were actually somewhat better at Bravo, FYI.

Once we moved on to Samana, we toured with Sarah and George from Mirador to Las Galleras and Playa Rincon.

Then we spent an awesome weekend with Cindy and Alan who live in the DR. We met them in Luperon at Wendy’s Bar, of course. They showed us so much hospitality and showed us some of their favorite places off the beaten path. (Off any path, really!)

A cattle drive on the way home from El Valle!

Alan M. found a hardhat, now he’s Bob the Builder.

And last thing before we left, we took the boat over to Las Haitises National Park to see the caves and scenery. Wow! The caves were beautiful, the history amazing, and the forest was full of wonders:

Orange Fungus – I thought these were flowers from further away.

And then we were off, headed to Puerto Rico. Tune in next time for our crossing of the infamous Mona Passage. 🙂