It is our last day in the Dominican Republic before we move on to Puerto Rico! Our time in the DR has been filled with new friends, beautiful sites and a lot of relaxing. We spent our last week in the DR in Cap Cana trying to fit in some last minute sites that we wanted to see before leaving. Trying being the key word! We made our way over to the Hard Rock Casino since it was the only one that was open in the area. We were the only ones in the casino and sitting amongst all of the plexiglass definitely took away a lot of the fun. Bill asked the dealer if he felt like a lab rat all day and that entertained all the pit. Since we were the only ones there, we had a dealer, a pit boss, a manager and a guy hovering around with anti-bacterial spray and a rag and another dealer at the next table looking downtrodden because we didn’t pick her table. The dealer said it usually livened up at night but we told him we could not come at night due to the 5pm curfew. He explained that the curfew “didn’t really matter too much” and if we took a cab to the casino (instead of driving the rental car), we could come to and from the casino after curfew. So now, the Stupid seems to only lurk about in rental cars after 5pm. Next, we tried to find somewhere for lunch so we drove through Punta Cana and were not impressed. Of all the cities and towns we have been in over the past 6 months, Punta Cana had the least personality. There were very few local businesses and it was definitely designed for you to stay in your resort all day and all night. So, if you do an all-inclusive resort in Punta Cana…..you can say you have been to Punta Cana but you can not say you have been to the Dominican Republic! The next day, we ventured over toward La Romana to see if Altos de Chavon was open. Altos de Chavon is an exact replica of an Italian town that was built in the 1970s and it is supposed to be really cool. Unfortunately, it had not reopened yet so we had to miss that DR highlight. Since we could not see Altos de Chavon, we spent a few hours in Bayahibe which was a beautiful beach town. After lunch, we decided to take a few roads less traveled in our Covid carrying rental car. At one point, we had to give up because the road was so less traveled that it became a sand trap and we did not want to hike our way back to the nearest town for a motorcycle to drag us out. It was a fun adventure that could only be had in a Volkswagon Crossfox (a little larger than a Smart Car but drove about as well!). Many things were closed on Thursday due to yet another Dominican Holiday….Lady of Altogracia Day. This particular holiday is evidently based on a painting of the Virgin Mary that was brought back from Spain to a small town named Higuey and is now a major thing in the Catholic Church here. That’s all I’ve got on that one….not sure why it was considered Federal Holiday worthy but it must be a really great painting! On our way back to Cap Cana, we passed by fields and fields of sugar cane. Since we have been in the DR, we have often wondered why so many men walk the streets with a machete in hand. In this part of the DR, it is to cut the sugar cane. I am not sure how the dozen men and one ox we saw were going to cut the thousands of acres of sugar cane but they were giving it a heck of a try! We also passed by the equivalent of the Dominican chain gang…they were cutting the brush on the highway using….you guessed it….machetes! Bill pointed out that the local sheriff deputies must be very brave guys. At least in the States, the prisoners don’t stand much of a shot with a weed whacker but a machete is different story!
We will leave the DR early in the morning after the navy brings the golden despacho and I fill out the same pink custom form for the ninth time. We will day sail over to Mona Island where we will anchor for a few hours before continuing our final leg overnight to Puerto Rico. I have been researching our next stops and sites and we are looking forward to discovering another wonderful country! Next post will hopefully be from Puerto Rico!
1 Comment
Rebecca Smith
1/24/2021 07:16:14 pm
Hey! I'm so sorry you did not get to Altos de Chavon! I was planning on emailing you telling you to go but I guess it doesn't matter!!! When you get back to the DR, definitely make the stop. I spent 6 weeks one time at Casa De Campo. Good times! Miss you and love reading about your adventures!!
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AuthorSally Miller Archives
May 2024
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