Bad experience. Never Again!

[palmsandgarbage]

As i have said already I only wanted to post a single complaint to someone in authority. It seems like I've stired up a hornets nest by posting at this site. If one of you spent as much effort in cleaning up your mess as you do in trying to smear the messanger ,well you know what i mean. please stop sitting at the computer go out side and pick up those orange rinds and pineapple husks you through out yesterday and put them in a composter. Is the 3rd world a mentality or an economical problem? We're only a third world country what do you expect sort of thing?
Maybe you want this board to yourselves and only tell wonderfull stories about your country. Is that what this site is for? or is it for people to tell there expearences about what they saw when in the D.R. or for people considering the D.R.as a vacation destination to obtain information from?
Maybe you have underestemated my resolve in telling as many as I can (now that you've really ****ed me off) how much crap is in that pile you call a country.
I work 7 days a week. I am on the computer for about 10 hrs a day. How many sites are there where I can spred this message about your country? Keep yakin at me and we'll find out

[BeachBoys]

Originally Posted by ricktoronto

See if you can figure out the point.

If you had read your pm you would have gotten my point.

JD

[RamlinMan]

Originally Posted by miguel

Read his/her rambling thread once again. The poster is going out of his or her way to claim that and that is not the case. He/she must of liked something on his/her first trip since HE/SHE went back a second time. Believe it or not, some of the DR1 members, as I, live outside of the DR. Go to the country and see for yourself that it's a great place to vacation but if you are going with the mentality that the streets are made of gold and that you will not see garbage or poor people, then remember that it's a third world country. The DR is rich with beautiful beaches and amazing sites to see. What matters to me the most about the DR is the people. It seems to me that the poorer the person, the nicer that person is. Another reason why you should go is for the simple fact that for every 1 unhappy visitor to the DR, the are, in my humble opinion, thousands of happy ones. If the country is as bad as he/she says it is, then why do million of tourists keep on going back, and back again?. Remember that he/she was one of those tourists that went back, so he/she must of like it a little in order to go back. If I don't like a place, there's no way in hell that I would go back. Or maybe was it that the country was clean and no poor people and no kids crossing the streets, and there was traffic lights, ect., the first time he/she went?. Go see for yourself and socialize with the locals and then you can form your own opinions about the country. If you need a tour guide, let us know. Also, keep a open mind and remember that you are visiting a third world country.

I guess you really do not get it!

One thing though, I cannot find in any of the original posts where this guy said it was his second trip. There is nothing to indicate this. He also never said

Originally Posted by miguel

the DR is the worse country in the world.

What else are you going to make up?

[Joah]

Read post #14 by palmsandgarbage.

Regards,

Joah

[miguel]

Originally Posted by palmsandgarbage

As i have said already I only wanted to post a single complaint to someone in authority. It seems like I've stired up a hornets nest by posting at this site. If one of you spent as much effort in cleaning up your mess as you do in trying to smear the messanger ,well you know what i mean. please stop sitting at the computer go out side and pick up those orange rinds and pineapple husks you through out yesterday and put them in a composter. Is the 3rd world a mentality or an economical problem? We're only a third world country what do you expect sort of thing?
Maybe you want this board to yourselves and only tell wonderfull stories about your country. Is that what this site is for? or is it for people to tell there expearences about what they saw when in the D.R. or for people considering the D.R.as a vacation destination to obtain information from?
Maybe you have underestemated my resolve in telling as many as I can (now that you've really ****ed me off) how much crap is in that pile you call a country.
I work 7 days a week. I am on the computer for about 10 hrs a day. How many sites are there where I can spred this message about your country? Keep yakin at me and we'll find out

You are such a kid. This is getting boring, now you want to harm the country by being a dumm ***. If you don't get your way, you will run to daddy and tell on us, go ahead and do as you please. My yourger kid is 20 and I have no time to babysit. If you needed to tell someone with authority, you went to the wrong site. Do as you want but please, goooooooooooooooooooo away. You are a lost case and it's time for us to stop trying to educate a person that does not wants to be educated.

[miguel]

Originally Posted by RamlinMan

I guess you really do not get it!

One thing though, I cannot find in any of the original posts where this guy said it was his second trip. There is nothing to indicate this. He also never said

What else are you going to make up?

Make up?, go to his/her post, # 14, third paragraph, you know, the one after the second paragraph, and then tell me if I am making it up. Did you see " "" after I wrote about being the worse country in the world?.No.This, "", means that I am quoting the person. He/she claims that is well traveled and when he/she says that he/she will tell everybody he knows about the country's problems and his unhappiness with the country and that the DR will not be on the list of places to go see, does one needs to be Albert Einstein to figure out that this person thinks that the place is the worse?. What else I am going to make up?, hold on, let me get my crystal ball. Now, what else are you going say that I made up?.

[RamlinMan]

Originally Posted by miguel

Make up?, go to his/her post, # 14, third paragraph, you know, the one after the second paragraph, and then tell me if I am making it up. Did you see " "" after I wrote about being the worse country in the world?.No.This, "", means that I am quoting the person. He/she claims that is well traveled and when he/she says that he/she will tell everybody he knows about the country's problems and his unhappiness with the country and that the DR will not be on the list of places to go see, does one needs to be Albert Einstein to figure out that this person thinks that the place is the worse?. What else I am going to make up?, hold on, let me get my crystal ball. Now, what else are you going say that I made up?.

If you read my post you would see I was talking about the original message writer, Bruinhunter. Not palmsandgarbage who jumped on the band wagon and made the statement you just quoted.

[miguel]

Originally Posted by RamlinMan

If you read my post you would see I was talking about the original message writer, Bruinhunter. Not palmsandgarbage who jumped on the band wagon and made the statement you just quoted.

I guess that I did not see when you wrote "one thing though, Bruinhunter,.... I missed it, sorry.

[dale7]

It sounds like Bruinhunter had a rough experience in the DR. I have been there several times and this is one of the worst case scenarios I have ever read. This type of experience can happen in the DR but is rare to the extent that he experienced. This is my basic overview of two similar threads with negative experiences.

I would never drive in the DR and there have been numerous postings/warnings about the dangers of driving there, especially for the 1st timer. There is garbage in abundance in certain areas but the DR doesn't have the services at this time to readily take care of the problem, and yes people could litter less and be more responsible. You will notice a difference outside of the tourist areas and Santo Domingo of a lot less litter. I have been in areas of the US which haven't been pretty in my beautiful homestate of Michigan (Detroit, Flint, etc) that have major crime, projects, decrepid buildings, undisposed of garbage, etc. Guatemala was no picnic and I felt very unsafe there in many areas (zones) as a single tourist, and the traffic there is just as bad as the DR, and there are many places that are just utterly filthy but that didn't put me off, I still had an overall good trip. I was shook down in Guatemala a couple of times by the local officials and haven't experienced that in the DR yet, I have bribed to get things down more rapidly but I had results for what I was doing. I guess I am just too positive and focus on the good things in life and don't let a few setbacks ruin my experiences. I work for a construction firm and have an obsession with architecture and if I would have had a couple of shakedowns on my first visit to the DR it would have more than compensated with good feelings when I saw the Colonial Zone, Diego Columbus' house, the Botanical Gardens, the old Catholic Cathedral, and numerous other places of interest. Meeting friendly Dominicans who went out of their way to help me when I was wandering around lost in Santo Domingo, etc that was priceless.

I like the DR and the people there but I didn't let things bother me though I would have been perturbed with what bruinhunter experienced but darn it, I wouldn't have let that ruin my whole trip. He is sharing his experiences as many of us share ours, we are just used to the glowing reports of good times. I didn't like Guatemala that much but I don't run it down and make it a vendetta to try to get everyone from going there. The last two threads have just gotten way out of hand, become personal attacks to the extreme. Some 3rd world countries are safer/cleaner/less shakedowns than the DR and some are much worse. That is just life and complaining all day isn't going to change a person's views. I do hope that all who travel to another country always try to keep a positive attitude, research the country first, etc because then they will be prepared with what to expect. I will keep going to the DR, a little bit of corruption and garbage won't keep me away because the good things always outweigh all negative things there and I don't focus on the negative. It is my favorite country in comparison to Mexico and Guatemala but that is my viewpoint, I like the people better and that is what is important to me, I may be biased just a little with having a son there who I am trying to bring back with me on April 24, I have my fingers crossed. I do think we should be adults to some extent and claims of posting all over the internet is not a very adult thing to do and on previous thread with palmsandgarbage I couldn't understand how that was all he noticed was garbage and dead animals, but people see things differently whether I agree with them or not.
dale7(Howard) DR bound April 18-24, 7th trip I believe to the DR since 2002 and still loving it

[Hlywud]

Originally Posted by Bruinhunter

I just got back from a horror filled trip to the Dominican Republic.

My sister and her fiancé were traveling from Ireland to Bavaro to stay at the Iberostar Dominican resort. She is a travel agent for Thomas Cook in Dublin and the trip was for pleasure and also for research. She goes on a lot of trips to places so that when she sells them, she can give a first hand experience to her prospective clients.

I live in the U.S and had some time to spare so I decided to go to the DR for a few days R&R but primarily to see my sister who I had not seen in almost a year. The plan was to spend a night in Santo Domingo, then drive to Bavaro to pick up my sister and fiancé, then head back to Santo Domingo to do some sight seeing. We would then go back to Bavaro for a more relaxed time before going home.

I flew into Santo Domingo and stayed at the Jaragua Hotel. The trip from the airport to the hotel was the start of a nightmare that lasted for several days. I drove a rental at dusk on the highway from hell where people walk out in front of oncoming traffic at an alarming rate. There were no identifying lanes and it was generally a free for all with no observed speed limit. I passed through what can only be described as a 30-minute construction zone all the way to Santo Domingo. Upon arrival in Santo Domingo, I realized the city was not much better. In fact it can only be described as a slum. I passed through some of the most depressing areas I have ever seen where homes are simply concrete shacks and the roads and traffic were unbelievable. Adults and children alike roamed the streets in oncoming traffic and the number of motorcycles criss crossing in front of traffic was astounding. No signals and no lights on most of the motorcycles. It was a relief to reach the hotel.

The hotel was typical of most Marriott owned properties and from what I can tell; it is the premier hotel in Santo Domingo. It is right on the Malecon with a beautiful view of the ocean. After checking in I decided to wander up the Malecon to see if I could find a restaurant. Instead all I could find were people trying to offer their "services" or generally try to get some money from me. I quickly returned to the safety hotel where I spent the rest of the evening.

The next day I had to drive to Bavaro to pick up my sister. It is and approx three hour drive. I was looking forward to the drive, as I would get to see a good portion of the country. The route was to take me through Boca Chica, San Pedro De Marcoris, La Romana, Higuey then Bavaro.

From Santo Domingo to San Pedro, most of the road was highway. The exception being Boca Chica. The highway passed through a gritty section, which is not unusual with any highway in the world. From Boca to San Pedro the highway was beautiful modern roadway. Upon arrival in San Pedro, I passed through the center of town but quickly realized it was a mistake. It was an unbelievably poor town with no functioning traffic signals and everything was run down. People and traffic merged into one big mess and it took me quite a time to pass through. I was horrified I might hit one of the wandering children walking or cutting through traffic on a motorcycle. I saw many horrifying near accidents with as many as 5 people (Adults and children) on one motorbike. The town limits could not come quickly enough.

Next town up was La Romana and along the way I passed a couple of dead donkeys roadside and many other people with guns strapped to their backs on motorcycles. La Romana was my first run in with guys in Green Uniforms with I could only assume were some sort of Police. My Spanish being limited, I have no idea why I was singled out from traffic. I was stopped turning at a green light while moving with the traffic. The end result was a bizarre interaction with two uniformed individuals that cost me $10 (US) and no ticket. I continued on my although I was shaken a little after being shaken down for money. The rest of the trip was uneventful thankfully, and the scenery was beautiful. The towns did improve a little but Higuey was a bit scary. There was an election going on and I had people stop in front of my car waving banners in my window. It was a bit nerve wracking but I did what everyone else did. I just kept driving through the crowds.

After three hours I reached the Iberostar Domincana on Bavaro beach. It was a beautiful location and had everything onsite. No need to leave the resort. After 6 days, my sister and fiancé was somewhat bored and looking forward to seeing some more of the country.

The trip back to Santo Domingo was just as nerve wracking as the original trip out and it was highlighted by two more run ins with the Men In Green. Another $5 and then just as we crossed the bridge back into Santo Domingo and got off the highway, we had another run in. Again stopped for no apparent reason. The end result was I was threatened with jail and hand cuffs if I did not hand over $100 (US) dollars. My sister was in near tears in the car and the only way this asshole was going to let us go was if we handed over the money. In no way did I ever let him know how much money I was carrying. I had purposefully only carried small denominations after the first experience and hid the rest. But this guy would not let us go without paying up. He was rude and I hope he chokes on the food he buys with the money he extorted from us.

We made it back to the hotel where we spent the rest of the evening. My sister was too distraught to leave the safely of the hotel that evening.

The next morning we decided to go to the Colonial Zone to see the town and do some shopping. It was a beautiful day so we decided to walk the Malecon. What a bad decision. From the moment we left the gate of the hotel, we were harassed for money from everyone. Taxis would stop traffic trying to get our attention, children would try to clean your shoes as you walked, people would try to sell food and God knows what else as we passed. It was almost like we had signs on our backs saying please harass us! After the previous nights ordeal, my sister was still shook up and she demanded we go back to the hotel. We took a cab back to escape the crowd.

After that experience, my sister only wanted to get back to the safety of here resort in Bavaro. She is an experienced traveler and this trip was too much for her. That day we took another trip back to Bavaro and again we were stopped by Men in Green and extorted money from. It was a relief to get back to the safety of the resort. I spent a night in Bavaro where I enjoyed the resort. The beach and weather were beautiful.

In the end I decided not to go back to Santo Domingo as planned. I had seen all I wanted to see and took an early flight back. My sister left on her scheduled flight and never the resort from the time I left.

My experience with the Dominican Republic was one I will never want experience again. It is a third world country and not a worthy vacation destination. The streets are filthy, the police corrupt, and the food bad and EVERYTHING looks like it has been in a state of construction for the past thirty years.

I would never recommend this place to anyone. Most of all, my sister will not be recommending this country to any potential tourists. Save yourself and your money.

Stay at home!

Unless you have been to the DR, don't drive and then the green men always like the mounties get their man (gringo's)

I never read the rest, DR is wonderful once you learn the ropes, stay at home, I will continue to go. Slums my *** you should vist Detroit, Buffalo or Cleveland.
I cetainly would never recommend Ireland, to dam much infighting between Catholics and Protestants.
Your travel agent sister has really been no where this stuff happens all over the world, Tenerife, Madeira, Ibiza, Mallorca, Mallaga, casablanca to mention a few, I have seen, maybe I should go in the business. Been there done that and if she was a professional agent she would have seen it wherever she went also.

So quit bitchin and stay home!