Bring Ziplock bags - quart size and gallon size. They come in very handy due to the humid and sometimes rainy weather. I also use them for cameras, film amd whatever else I don’t want sand in.

Fresh Lobster on Cabarete Beach

Lobster - Get Your Lobster Here!!

They are live today heres the details

LIVE WEBCAST & CHAT!!!!!!!

July 17th, 2008 - NOON to 2pm

THURSDAY FAMILY YARD PARTY at JAH B’S

and 5:30pm to 7:30pm

THURSDAY SUNSET ON THE CLIFFS at LTU VILLAS & PUB!

www.realnegril.com

Greetings from the Dominican Republic

 

For this March of 2008 trip, we flew in to the Santiago airport and found that before entering - you will have to buy a tourist entrance card for $10.00 per person.

 

Be sure and purchase this card prior to getting into the immigration line or you will have to exit immigrations and purchase the card. Then you will be at the back of the line once again.

 

Unfortunately, there are few signs to let you know about the tourist card requirement.

 

We stayed in Puerto Plata and arranged with a driver to take us to our destination.  This hour and a half drive on the Tourista highway takes you through many small communities nestled in the mountains and offers several outstanding views of the mountain ranges.

 

Our driver, Joseph was very professional and handled the mountain pass with no problem. Driving this route could be very treacherous for someone who did not know the area and it seemed for worse than even Jamaican roads. If you decide to rent a car and venture out yourself, be wary of the Motorconchos (motorcycles). They pass you on the left, right, and seem to have a death wish!!

 

We finally arrived at our destination for the week in Puerto Plata at the Iberostar Costa Dorada. Nestled on the north coast, this all inclusive resort is very large and has several restraunts to choose from.

The food was not top quality but there were many choices. It was kind of your standard faire buffet stlye food you could find stateside - nothing spectacular.

 

The Iberostar Costa Dorada is also close to other popular north cost destinations such as Cabarete and Sousua.

 

So far so good at this resort. It is very large and seems to have all the amenities of your standard large scale all inclusive resort.

 

One thing that is very good here is the spa. The prices are very reasonable in comparison to other resort areas and they offer a wide variety of services. My masseuse Leo (odd name for a girl) did a aromatic one hour massage for $60.00 USD. Go to any half way decent resort and you will pay at least $100.00 for the same service.

 

We were set up for a garden view room but we were upgraded to a complimentary poolside ground floor room (bonus!! :o) the rooms were a little small but clean and very usable so no problem there. The towel game was in full effect here but if you place your stuff by 8:00 am you had no problem.

 

The ocean left a lot to be desired. We like the turquoise blue water that you get in most places in the Caribbean but because Puerto Plata lies on the north cost you get the Atlantic tides and it churns the water. It was kind of disappointing but what can you do. Try Punta Cana for better water quality if you have to have turquoise blue water.

 

This resort seems to cater to many european customers and south american customers. You get a very diverse crowd at this hotel.

 

We also wanted to check out the investment opportunities in the area and met with a couple of real estate agents for a tour of different available properties. We focused on apartment style developments in pre construction phases along with completed projects.     

 

We had been talking with a married couple that work for Re-Max in Sousua. Arthur and Sally Byrd are a couple of part time ex-patriated New Jersey folks that really know the lay of the land down here and if you are looking for real estate down here I cannot recommend anyone more than Arthur and Sally. http://www.coralbayrealestate.com/ Real estate in the carribean comes with many twists and turns and no one can explain and guide you better than these two wonderful people.

Cancun report

Well - its about 1:00am and I can’t sleep. I really don’t want to leave in a few hours. Its been a great trip this time. Sitting here watching the waves hit the shore is hypnotizing.

And I can feel the temperature going up.

With a clear sky above it looks like Saturday will be a hot one. That’s so unfair - it seems like the last day of vacation is always the best weather. Oh well - only 25 more days till the Dominican Republic trip.

Cancun report

Well - its about 1:00am and I can’t sleep. I really don’t want to leave in a few hours. Its been a great trip this time. Sitting here watching the waves hit the shore is hypnotizing.

And I can feel the temperature going up.

With a clear sky above it looks like Saturday will be a hot one. That’s so unfair - it seems like the last day of vacation is always the best weather. Oh well - only 25 more days till the Dominican Republic trip.

Greetings from Cancun. The weather has not been the best this week. It started out in the 80’s and sunny but turned to unseasonably cold and cloudy weather.

A day trip to Isla Muerjes went very well. I recommend you take the 45 minute ferry ride and visit the island at least once if you visit Cancun.

Isla Muerjes has a definite small island feel that is a contrast from Cancun.

We rented a golf cart and explored the island. It is a great, safe way to see the island. We also stopped and snorkeled for a while. It wasn’t bad but the reefs left me wanting more.

The shopping was your standard fare items. Nothing spectacular but one of the places we stopped at to eat had outstanding food. It was on a corner near the main beach. A statue locks in the corner it is on and it has a Texas theme. Can’t remember the name but they also had a upper balcony. Shouldn’t be too hard to find. Great atmosphere there.

They had some of the best Conch Fritters I have ever had and the deep fried Grouper was also excellent.

Thinking about swimming with the dolphins tomorrow. Or maybe the jungle rope slide!! Decisions decisions decisions!!!

But the weather is supposed to improve tomorrow so we shall see.

2 days till wheels up!! The days before vacation are way too long! But the bags are packed and we are ready to fly!!

I hope this signals and end to the US / Cuba pissing match.  Its gone on way to long and I cant wait to vacation there. Cuba and the US used to have such a great relationship and hopefully will again very soon. I feel that Cuba would benefit from US tourisim dollars and I will be more than happy to spend my money there once everybody kisses and makes nice.  Who’s with me???

HAVANA — An ailing Fidel Castro resigned as Cuba’s president Tuesday after nearly a half-century in power, saying he was retiring and will not accept a new term when the new parliament meets Sunday.

“I will not aspire to nor accept _ I repeat, I will not aspire to nor accept _ the post of President of the Council of State and Commander in Chief,” read a letter signed by Castro published early Tuesday in the online edition of the Communist Party daily Granma.

The announcement effectively ends the rule of the 81-year-old Castro after almost 50 years, positioning his 76-year-old brother Raul for permanent succession to the presidency. Fidel Castro temporarily ceded his powers to his brother on July 31, 2006, when he announced that he had undergone intestinal surgery.

So here’s the idea. I plan to do a daily update from Cancun Mexico. Kind of a travel log from the cell phone. this one is equipped with Wi-Fi and so is the hotel. So stay tuned and hopefully this experiment goes well!!