And now the rest of the story...
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| Yolas at the government dock at Luperon |
First thing next morning, Opti alerts bringing Jon out of the cabin alerted as well. Popa, a local, is hanging on the side the F40; his smile toning down my alert if not Jon and Opti's. Popa manages the makeshift moorings of his own design (55gal. drums filled with concrete) scattered around the anchorage as well as any other service that you want. We declined but later took one at $2/day gringo bucks. Our logic was the mooring integrity will always be in question but it's not hurricane season in arguably the best hurricane hole in the Caribbean. And buying into a local's reasonable service might facilitate security
(or the opposite!). Security has held knock on wood however that might not have been the case 2 years ago, mooring or not. That's another story we can share over a cerveza when you come visit us. As Popa was leaving in his Yola, a panga-like fishing boat, we yelled, "What about clearing in"? "No problema! I bring the Navy in my boat." And sure enough he did. Four guys, only one in an Army uniform, boarded our boat and crawled around everywhere. Jon followed noticing a snub nose in one waistband adjusting his alert/attitude accordingly. They conducted a thorough search of both cabins, even looking under berths and lifting floorboards. They found no weapons which would have certainly been confiscated one way or another. But Richard, the head honcho admired one of our LED tactical flashlight; besides that and $20 US we were given permission to "resume" clearing in? After another cup of coffee, we headed to the government dock and Luperon to find out what the "resume clearing in" was all about!
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| Grande Bohemia at JRs |
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Customs, Immigrations and Agriculture.
The rest of clearing in! |
Before we actually made it to town
we had to visit 3 more government offices: immigrations (2 to
urists
cards for $20), customs ($63), and agriculture ($20 for Opti). First stop, lunch and cerveza.
Most beer sold are grande bottles of Bohemia or Presidente and they are huge. We each ordered a bottle, not knowing. Several glasses later we learned our lesson. This grande bottle is still a bargain at less than $2 US. All in all our lunch, 2 beers, chicken and rice with beans, and pasta for Jon was less than $10 US. This is typical of the prices all over Luperon!
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| All for less than $2 US |
Next, off to the grocery store to pick up the necessities: wine and junk food! Three bottles and snacks... Less than $15. There is a local bakery with fresh breads, pastries and cookies, great local produce stands and
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| The local bakery |
a small seafood market, all with similar low prices. Jon's happy because he was able to score a bundle of very decent, fresh DR cigars for $20 US. Even bought a book by cruising legend Bruce Van Sant for simply buying him a beer. What's not to like about this place?
Services are also a bargain. We had our dodger restitched and patched for $30 US. Locals offered to polish and wax our hull and deck for next to nothing. This is a great place to get things done. We decided to take advantage of this bad weather window, stick around, and get some much needed cosmetic work done on Toi et Moi and continue our exploration of the island.
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| The beach at La Isabel |
Last week we took a trip to La Isabel, sometimes called El Castilla. This little town is the second oldest European settlement in the Americas, founded in 1493, by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage. It is also home to the oldest church in the Americas and a beautiful beach, surrounded by mountains.
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| A DR traffic jam |
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| The Monument in Santiago |
Friday we headed to Santiago, the 2nd largest city in the DR. Home oflarge, two story supermarkets and hardware, DIY- type stores that rival Home Depot. They even have an Ikea! It is an hour and a half ride from Luperon but it was good to see a different side of the country. Did some major provisioning at DR prices.
I will be heading to Florida next week so we will stay put for the month, enjoying the country and the people, both cruisers and locals, who have made this beautiful island their base.
