Eat, drink and shop in the Dominican Republic

By Katrina Pederson
[contributor]

The Dominican Republic is world renowned for its white sand beaches and the Caribbean lifestyle.

After a day of traveling, you arrive and hop out from the plane to warm air accompanied with a cooling breeze. The Dominican Republic is the perfect travel destination, but unless you and friends can afford an all inclusive hotel, then I would advise you to vacation elsewhere. The treasure of the Dominican lies at the resorts where people from all over the world come…Literally. To work at the hotels in the Dominican Republic you must know at least 4-5 languages from English to German.

This country is a hot spot for some Americans and Canadians, but mostly Europeans. While vacationing in the Dominican, the best things to do are shop, drink, and explore.

Tips for the shopping in the Dominican:

Do not go to the outlet store as good as it looks and with all the brand names you could imagine from Guess to Billabong and even La Senza. These stores charge more than they would at home and may even be knockoffs. The local markets are the ideal place to buy your souvenirs since you can bargain with the owners for a cheaper price. You’ll hear all shop owners yelling, “cheapy cheapy looky looky” which means, “come into my store to buy my products even though you’ll find the same stuff in every other store, but Hey, we’re friends”. The best buys in the Dominican Republic would be their alcohol, tribal and market place paintings, but most importantly their local brew of “Mama Juana”. This drink combination consists of red wine, rum, honey and tree bark that can only be found in the Dominican Republic. This drink which is usually served as a shot is believed to be an aphrodisiac while also having medicinal value. Just make sure you’re around good company when you decide to take the plunge with this drink.

With many expeditions available the top 3 would be the Catamarans, Dr. Fish spa boat and the Punta Cana Boogies.

If you want to drink, party all while sailing the islands coast than the catamarans are your perfect expedition. The tour company has many different boats that cater to the romantic sunset cruises, family friendly days, or booze cruises. The Catamaran tours also different tours for different languages since there are many people all around the world that visit the Dominican. During the Catamaran tour you will have the chance to snorkel with fish and explore the vast amount of coral. If you are looking for a day to relax and pamper yourself before you come home to the reality of school, work and Vancouver rain, than the Dr. Fish spa is the perfect expedition. During the duration of the tour you will take part in Pilates, massage beds, personal massage and have dioxins exit your body through a foot bath.

Additionally you will lie on floating mattresses in the blue ocean water and swim with stingrays. To end this expedition you will place your feet in a bucket as fish eat the dead particles off your toes. These fish were specially imported from Turkey and will suck on your feet even if they are full.  The Punta Cana Boogies are a fun expedition although their dune buggies are not of the best quality. They will show you a typical classroom, allow you the change to swim in a fresh water cave and show you how to make spices and cigars.

The Dominican Republic holds much amazement in the island that it is hard to describe in words.

Pictures don’t do justice to this island –– but much like anything else in life, nothing is picture perfect.

Some negatives include animal cruelty, hospitality from the hotels, and not being able to explore the other parts of the Dominican Republic. If you are planning on going to the Dominican you must be aware of what expeditions you go on.

Many of the Dolphin and zoo expeditions are not recommended by the World Society for the Protection of Animals Canada (WSPA). Additionally, many of the resorts try to make you attend an “information meeting” which is also known as a time share presentation. This is less than ideal when you’re on vacation and tends to piss off many vacationers. The Dominican Republic is not the safest or most accessible island to travel around. Traveling to the capital of the Dominican, Santo Domingo, takes 4 hours bus ride there and back. This historical landmark of Christopher Columbus finding the new world would be an ideal trip to take, but who would want to make the trip only to stay for a couple of hours.

As my trip drews to an end, the positives of the islands outweighed the negatives.

The Dominican Republic is filled with luscious fruit, bright blue skies and the most beautiful beaches. This island is a must for people looking to unwind in the hot sun and live a carefree lifestyle.