Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

We took a long trip by almost everything but an animal, last week and arrived in the old city. Walked for miles thru areas not recommended, and sweated profusely.




Then we walked through the entire district called the Colonial Zonas to check our ALL the hotels/that Bruce Van Zant recommended or at least talked about. He has longer legs than I and I am sure many other tricks. I was exhausted and a bitch/bastard, by the end of the afternoon....we finally chose his ending recomendation in the book which was the..the Hotel Nadar....my first choice.

A walk down CONDE offers beauty and crap/ architecture and hookers, pizza ? and much imported garbage. However, one 'cannot' loose the sense of History here and it stays with you. Old world architecture, city layout and the influx of outsiders keep this city alive. Restaurants offer what the locals cannot afford to keep up as this is truely a poor country. The locals however add a MOST pleasurable atmosphere. They are lovely people, both physically and in spirit.
We should be as nice.

Problem was that by the time we got back to Hotel Nadar, the rooms were full. OK, we then chose the $100 US/night room nearby. It was very nice..but the TV did not work..the internet did not work...and my Espaniol did not work.... the fire in my eyes DID! We got a new room (better) and then slept the night.

After a very nice breakfast(extra$), we were quite full and ambled on one block North to the NaDAR Hotel.

He wanted $80 I again said no, $70. ....he nodded OK! Very nice rooms, included breakfast and I would recommend this place to anyone, anytime.








Hotel Nadar









Outside Santo Domingo, on the south coast, the river dumps tons of plastic and other garbage on the beaches. The Cruise ship docks nearby and one would think the government and industry would care.
The resorts are place miles away, with white sandy beaches...supposedly.

Many good restaurants were available within walking distance. Van Zant's book has been accurate about more than weather and has been a good guide overall.


Downtown areas are poor, dirty, dusty third world environments. I felt comfortable having grown up in NYC, which is a melting pot for the poorer of the immigrant populations as well as the overly rich, but it was an eye opener for Dorothy. There is much to be done here that might never be done. Looking "Back" historically, it is beautiful. Looking "forward" makes you think.


As a cruiser, we see some of the reasons, and am not blaming anyone. We, are doing something here and there, as people to make a difference, one on one. Nothing maybe considering the scale of things, but hopefully life still allows a 'ripple' effect.