A recent speech by the US Ambassador Raul H. Yzaguirre to the Dominican Republic sounds rather scathing when recounted. Citing a study that ranked the Dominican Republic last in the Latin American world for literacy, arithmetic and science, he went on to attack energy infrastructure and corruption. But even in this darkest condemnation of the nation, Yzaguirre found time to pay tribute to not only the work that the current president is doing to overturn these things, but to the natural and cultural beauty of the nation.
The question as a traveller is whether the underlying social conditions of a place should keep you away from it. If anything, it could be argued that we have a responsibility to visit such places: Tourism is said to account for over $2 billion (USD) in annual receipts in the Dominican Republic. Over 2 million people arrive to stay in the island’s 70,000 hotel rooms, served by 160,000 Dominicans. If you removed all that, you’d remove the major catalyst for change. Even beyond the monetary gain, international interests can always inject new ideas and standards (even if there’s always a danger that something of the original culture will be lost).
Of course, people shouldn’t be guilt-tripped into visiting a place. But travel writing tends to leave this social background unacknowledged, rushing straight to the most positive aspects of a place. One of the reasons I can turn convention on its head is because it’s safe to say that the Dominican Republic’s positives far outweigh and outshine its supposed negatives. If you never travel there (I am happy to say, I have done), it will be your loss that is the greater, rather than the fledgling economy itself.
A Space Where The Caribbean Can Breathe
‘A land of contrasts’ is a rather clichéd phrase to kick things off on. Frankly, it’s a rather liberally applied idea in world geography, and tourism especially. So I hesitate to wheel it out in the case of the Dominican Republic, where it is true regardless. But as the second largest nation in the Caribbean, on the island (Hispaniola) where the European colonisation of the new world began, these contrasts exist because the culture has had the time and space to breathe.
About 25% of the tourists who travel to the Dominican Republic are from the United States and Canada, and there’s a sense that you can rediscover the Americas on the island’s beautiful beaches and relatively unspoilt and expansive interior. The country’s most important museum, the Columbus Lighthouse can be found in the capital, Santo Domingo. Centuries in the making, this remarkable building was established to celebrate 500 years since Columbus’ landfall. It’s half a mile long, constructed in the shape of a cross with the lighthouse motif completed by lasers that shoot skyward in the night. You’ll find exhibits on countries throughout the Americas, as well as the entombed remains of Columbus himself.
The Columbus Lighthouse is simply a must see for the people of the Americas, and for anyone with even the vaguest appreciation of human history and achievement. The historical, colonial past of the nation can be found throughout Santo Domingo. You will also find the Catedral Santa Maria La Menor, the Alcazar de Colon, the Monasterio de San Francisco and the Fortaleza Ozama. These buildings have the distinction of being the oldest Cathedral, Castle, Monastery and Fortress on the western side of the Atlantic, strengthening the historical importance of the nation.
A Beautiful Landscape
The ancient history of the island is told through the land, and what a story that is. Caribbean beaches are often famed for their beauty, and the white sands of the Dominican Republic are no exception (and by extension, perhaps unexceptional). But the hills, cliffs, forests and plains of Hispaniola give the island a broader range and feel. There’s also areas of outstanding beauty like Lake Enriquillo, a saltwalter lake with crocodiles, flamingos and plenty of other wildlife.
Again I fall back on the clichés. The Dominican Republic is a place with ‘something for everybody’, at any pace of life. Watch the world roll by on the beach, saunter around the many historical buildings, or the fantastic countryside. Or let your hair down in the fantastic resorts. Whatever you do, make sure you go there someday!
Steph Wood is a guest blogger working on projects for Tropical Sky Ireland, a travel company in the Irish Market offering Dominican Republic Holidays as well as trips to many other top destinations
Image by woodibabalou
