I knew I would be returning to the DR as much as often as I could after my first visit in 2005 when meeting my sponsored child in Santiago. Three visits later, I am wrapping up the best vacation/adventure to date. This time, I brought with me four girls from my dorm in college.
We arrived in Santo Domingo on the 19th and took a cab to Caribe Tours and then onto a four hour bus ride to Sosua. We had reservations as Casa Valeria but when we arrived at 9:30, they had given away our reservation. Then, we found out everywhere in Sosua was booked for the night. We tried calling tons of places, going door to door at different hotels but everywhere was 100% booked. We started weighing our options. The ground inside Casa Valeria seemed like it was going to be the best bet. However, with some help from some great DR1ers, we found the last available apartment at $225 per night at Sosua by the Sea. We flinched but payed up and checked in. That night, we went looking for some late night pizza and met up with a guy named Ramon who said he worked at Casa Marina. He was great; all night we went to different bars and he kept us company and laughing. He wasn't looking for anything, just some fun. We ended the night at Spanky's and went to bed.
The next morning, we were to meet our car rental from Adventure Rent A Car but at 10, they never showed. We called and said they were on their way but at 10:45, we called again and they claimed we had no reservation. After getting angry, they then said they had the reservation for the 19th and tried to drop off the car the day before but we weren't there. We angrily told them we had the reservation confirmation email and needed the car now. Finally, after a few more calls and yelling, they arrived at 12:30 with a muddy but fairly new Honda CRV and we were off (Not before getting turned around by some crappy directions in Sosua).
This was my first time driving in the Dominican and many people had told me not to attempt it but we went for it and it turned out to be great. We headed east towards Rio San Juan and after about an hour's drive, we arrived at Playa Magente, Los Gringos. From the minute we arrived, I knew we had found the right place (thanks to the great recommendation from a DR1er). Patrick and Steve at Los Gringos are the best. They weren't phased at all that we were the youngest to stay at Los Gringos without parents, ever.
That night, after relaxing on the beach with some Presidentes and going for a walk along the miles of deserted beach, we followed Patrick and Steve into Rio San Juan for some pizza, Presidente and dancing. We first went to a French bar because Patrick wanted to say hello to the owner and then headed off to a local bar. It was a blast. We headed back to Los Gringos around 1am, trying to keep up with Patrick at 80+ MPH!
The next few days we relaxed on the beach, drove to La Entrada (a beautiful secluded beach on the way to Nagua) and hung out in Cabarete for the day. It took us forever to get back from Cabarete because of the construction. All of a sudden, at around 5ish, the two lanes of traffic become four and everyone jams up. That was probably the most testing of my developing Dominican road skills. That and the potholes that come out of nowhere at night.
We returned our car tonight and are leaving tomorrow morning for Caribe Tours in Rio San Juan and flying out of Santo Domingo. I can't wait for my next trip back to the DR and I will be definitely staying at Los Gringos.
Unfortunately, I didn't get to visit my sponsored child. The dates and times didn't work out and I was really bummed. I will be hopefully come back in November or December so I will definitely get to see him now. He will be 12 soon and he's doing great.
Thanks to everyone on DR1 for the recommendations, helpful trips and hints along the way. Until next time -
Noah
PS - During our many nights out dancing, I found a new favorite song and band. El Prodigio - Rebeca :-)
Five 19 year olds explore the North Coast...
