Side note: I dont perfectly consider myself to be on 'vacation' now during my sabbatical. I'm just working in a different way here... The most important way it's different is not being paid :)
My last week and a half here has been busy with family and friend visitors and traveling to different parts of the country. My mom and aunt visited me here in Santo Domingo. We had a chance to see some of the caves, visit cultural sites, and dine at some of the local favorite restaurants. They had a chance to meet some of my ever-expanding circle of peeps here, and witness first hand the organized chaos on roads with traffic signals that are mere suggestions.
My friend and I vacationed in the beautiful beaches of the Bavaro/Punta Cana area, east of santo domingo. The beaches were pristine, the winds perfect, and the sun intense. It seems as though I got the forth sunburn of my life on this trip (#1 = snorkeling in elementary school; #2 = white water rafting on the Nile; #3 = jumpin up @ carnival in T&T; and now #4 here in the DR). The DR is making my short list for a number of experiences, it seems. Thankfully, this burn is not even close to being as bad as some of the previous ones. Next person to visit me from the states is in charge of bringing me more sunblock, no doubt (SPF30 & waterproof, please).
My friend and I concluded that the all-inclusive thing is only a “(fill in visited country here)-like” experience and that 4nights is just about all we could tolerate of voluntary imprisonment. We did get off of the plantation one night, but just ended up on another plantation with different tourists. We spent the majority of that night dancing to 80s/90s hip-hop and techo (see Kamila, my robot did come in handy). The only other terribly annoying thing about the all-inclusive experience was, in one word – bracelet. Otherwise, in short duration, it was nice to be pampered in that way.
Well friends, enjoy the few pictures ive uploaded from each trip. Until next time….
jt
