Excerpts from Explore the Dominican Republic(Fourth Edition)

Dating in its modern form from around the end of WWI, the merengue is the Dominican RepublicÍs contribution to Latin Music. Popular in part because it is easier to dance to than salsa, the merengue has taken over many of the New York City dance clubs. It consists of three segments: a brief introduction (often deleted in practice) followed by two main sections „ one of 16 bars and another African-derived segment consisting of two-bar phrases repeated over and over with slight variations.

Informative

To make long distance calls both within the country and abroad, you should visit a Codetel branch office. Dialing is now direct and computerized. Enter a booth and dial ñ1.î After you give the number, you will be connected to your party. When you finish your call, youÍll go up to the desk and pay after the printer, connected to a computer, prints out your number along with the cost.

Comprehensive

The layout is pretty simple. A main road stretches all the way from Sanchez to Limon via Portillo. As you enter Las Terrenas, a side road leads off L to Punta Bonita, several km away. Pickup trucks terminate at the end of the village; the road straight ahead continues to Portillo. A branched loop road heads off to the L; the bulk of the guesthouses are down here along the beach and on the way. A few others are towards Portillo. As you head towards Portillo, the beach becomes more and more beautiful and less frequented.

Descriptive

The main road doubles as the main street. Here you can still find authentic slices of Dominican life „ from clucking chickens to the man on his donkey transporting clanking metal milk cans tied to the sides. You might see children eating in front of the evangelical church or dogs frolicking in the dust.

Filled With Tips!

If you are staying in this area and have wheels, head up past the RiÙ hotels and continue N along the coast. YouÍll find km after km of deserted beaches. Exercise caution: the waves can be large with strong undertow.

"Ecotouristic"

This trip is laced with anecdotes about local life. You see the crab holes and perhaps a local lad or two toting the sticks used to harvest them. The crabs here dine on a poisonous local fruit (the baga) so that no one save the locals (who have developed an immunity) can dine on them without developing a stomach ache. While the calabash tree provides gourds suitable for numerous utilitarian uses, the breadfruit provides a good source of nutrition. The first is native to the Caribbean, the second a South Pacific transplant.

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This page last updated:Sat, Aug 15, 1998