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Only in Buenos Aires, can you take a stroll and see a vintage car show, Christmas Carolers at the British Embassy, Hare Krsna Celebrations in the Park, streets covered in purple Jakaranda tree flowers. Then follow that up with a quick sail on the river and dinner at the port…

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Santiago. You won’t come here on vacation. Maybe you’ll visit the airport, but that’s about it. After being in one place a while you start to see the details of what makes the place tick. I’m not saying that happened here, in fact I saw very little of Santiago. What I did see was the inside of the casino, a Wild West restauraunt (?), an old fort, the bus station, the edge of Hurricane Tomas and an exceptional monument to the Restoration of Independence. The most interesting piece of Santiago is the history…

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There are two main kinds of tourists that come here, the all-inclusive type that are happy to let the hotel take care of them, and the more adventurous culture seekers who want to get a feel for the country. It just so happens we’re in the latter group (although there is nothing wrong with hitting up the all-inclusives from time to time).

So where does the adventure-seeker go to find unspoiled nature and culture-a-plenty in the Dominican Republic? Samaná.

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Where’s the Beach?

So when one chooses to visit the Dominican you can usually guess what they’re looking for, and that’s a beach. And by god do they have beaches. Unforetunately the beaches in and around Santo Domingo ain’t world class, although they could be nice if taken care of. I bet you didn’t know you had to take care of the beaches, eh? They don’t stay pristine for long, especially beside a capital city. I personally saw one could-have-been decent beach, but it was impassable due to about 3 feet of plastic piled up along it’s length. But it’s not easy, and it costs money, something the average person doesn’t have an abundance of here. The problem doesn’t fall on one beach or one country, it’s going to be the next global cause.

So what’s a beach lovin’ person in Santo Domingo to do? Well you have options, first option is Boca Chica.

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After 35 days in the Dominican (and 5 of those on the beach) you get a good idea how things work. Or don’t work.

Santo Domingo

This is where it all began, for us at least. Santo Domingo (not unlike any other capital city) can be both a great and not so great place to spend time. I found it’s all in perspective. The

chaos may drive you crazy one day, but after awhile you get used to it. Then you almost miss it…

The city itself has all you want in a capital; the President’s Palace, good eating, nightlife, historic district and of course the coast.

It all started off pretty good. Business class to Santo Domingo, pickup at the airport in a black Hummer, out for dinner and drinks in a Porsche, navigating through chaos-times-two (being that the power was out). Grey goose and cranberry, squid pasta, you get the idea. All the while in awe of the humid, hot climate. That part took a few days to get used to. Keep in mind Buenos Aires is not a desert, and it goes over 30 almost every day for 3 months, not to mention the scorchers in Rio and Panama. I thought I had this humidity thing dialed in, but like always there came a time about 2 days into the project where I realized that it’s no longer a pleasant warmth, it’s more of a steamy blanket trying to slowly kill you!

This was a popular stop for Chris Colombus on his trips across the sea, as a matter of fact his tomb is here, well one of the 3 countries to lay claim to his remains at least.

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