HB: You are right! Lots of changes in SFM. I was able to find the Hotel Macoris (used to eat lunch there often); the head waiter remembered me and we reminisced over a couple of Presidentes.
El Jefe: I work in Champaign and live in a small farm town nearby.
Sarah: No rose colored glasses here, though my frame of reference may be different than yours. I lived in the DR from 1964 through 1968, so I was there "cuando la revolución" and witnessed some truly ugly times. I've made several return trips since but none in the past 20 years.
My trip was certainly not the typical tourist vacation, as we pretty much avoided those sites. We hung out exclusively with Spanish-speaking Dominicans. Visited friends in places such as Las Charcas de Maria Nova (no electrity or running water) and Pedro Corto (I still chuckle at the name).
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