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Postcard: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Kristin Jatkowski,
Grand Central Magazine

Noted for its white beaches and clear blue waters, Isla Saona is a tourist hot spot in the Dominican Republic. Photograph by Kristin Jatkowski
(Click here for more images.)

The weather here has been changing. It's been in the mid 70s to low 80s since I arrived, but the temperature seems to be climbing towards the high 80s and low 90s over the past two weeks.

In addition to the heat, we've also been seeing quite a bit of rain. The rainy season runs from about April to September. The weather usually cools off while it is raining, but as soon as it stops you can feel the humidity on the rise.

I always have bottled water with me to help fight off the effects of the heat. Bottled water is plentiful here – no one, not even Dominicans drink tap water. The heat never lasts long but it is always intense and seems to hit right as we are about to start walking home from school.

I haven't traveled the past two weekends, so I've been able to spend some time exploring the city of Santo Domingo. Some of the most interesting sites lie in the Zona Colonial, which is the historic district. History is at your fingertips. The Zona Colonial is the oldest city in the Americans and contains many "firsts” – the first cathedral, the first monastery and the first university in the "New World."

The city of Santo Domingo was founded as a settlement called La Isabela in 1493 by Christopher Columbus. A house built for Columbus' son Diego still sits in the Zona Colonial today. Tour guides are abundant through out the Zona Colonial. Although you can get around by yourself, sometimes it is helpful to have someone familiar with the area explain the sites to you.

On the weekends, the Zona Colonial is home to an open air market where visitors can purchase a variety of items characteristic of the Dominican Republic, including dominoes (a popular game at colmados), colorful Dominican artwork-usually brightly colored with raised symbols, and mamajuana – a strong and bitter drink made from honey, rum, and red wine and herbs and roots from the DR.

The Dominican Republic is also famous for its Larimer and amber jewelry. It is important to be careful buying these items off the street – if the price seems too good to be true, it is most likely a fake. Of course there are always other souvenir items such as key chains and coffee mugs. No one expects you to pay full price for anything in the market. Bargaining is part of the game for venders and buyers.

Santo Domingo is home to Catedral Primada de América, the oldest cathedral in the Americas. Construction on it was finished in 1544. Photograph by Kristin Jatkowski
(Click here for more images.)

Although the purpose of the Zona Colonial is to preserve parts of the country's past, it is clear the present has come to Santo Domingo as well. The Zona Colonial is filled with tourists, souvenir shops, hotels and restaurants, including Pizza Hut and a Hard Rock Café Santo Domingo. The Zona Colonial is also known for its lively nightlife.

Although we haven't taken any big trips as of late, this past Saturday we were able to return to the beach. We traveled east about two hours to La Romana. Once we arrived, we boarded a huge catamaran and were joined by European, Canadian and Argentinean tourists for our trip out to Isla Saona.

The beach at Isla Saona was easily the most beautiful beach we have been to since we got here. The sand was the finest and the whitest out of any beach we've been to. When you add hundreds of palm trees and clear blue ocean, it can't get any better. When we arrived we enjoyed a lunch of comida típica – food typical of the Dominican Republic, including rice and beans, cabbage salad, cold cooked vegetables, fried chicken and pork. We also had an exciting surprise-spaghetti dinner!

After a few hours relaxing on the beach, we boarded a large speed boat and headed for a natural pool – a large sandbar with the same clear blue water. On the way, we spotted many starfish on the ocean floor. Our tour guides quickly hopped out of the boat and dove down in the water. A few moments later, they came back holding starfish for all to see up close.

After some time in the natural pool, it was time to head back to our car and back to Santo Domingo for another week of teaching.