We docked today in the Dominican Republic. For everyone who has forgotten their history or is vague on geography, the country shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti. This is the Spanish speaking eastern side of the island. If you visit the island, the dock is is Puerto Plata which looks to be on the very northeastern end of the island. I think I have been here once before – the area near the single ship dock is decked out in fancy walkways and shops catering to tourists. Those shops are all the usual suspects one expects to find – generic pretty much for any of the Caribbean Islands.
If you want to learn details of the island and its history without being here – I refer to the usual WIKI link. If you are one to wander on your own – well there is a small but excellent museum within 10 minutes walk of leaving the port. It is less than 50 meters from the Amber Museum (which was closed). I found a link to it (Spanish only) after getting back to the Ship. But the “La Confluencia Galería Etnográfica” is well worth the visit.
The exits are clear and start with the first arrivals of humanity in the western hemisphere followed by all the waves of people following on. The signage is in both Spanish & English. The exhibits are well thought out and there are docents available to walk you through the museum if you are so inclined.
(click to embiggen and read)
I found the clear tracing of history, the addition of population after population (the original Taino followed by the Spanish followed by the importation of sugar cane with the subsequent requirement of cheap labor -> slave trade, complicated by religious differences, Spanish vs French conflicts all extremely interesting.
The city itself seems to be both tourism and commercial shipping oriented. The reported population is about 160,000 of the 11 million total of the Dominican Republic. Walking first along the outer road between city and beach , it was noticeable for being clean. There are few traffic lights, but a lot of painted pedestrian crossings. Mopeds galore, few wearing helmets. I also noticed that just about all the streets seemed to be one way. No signage, so you obviously have to know your way around.
This is a relatively short day in port. If I get back here – I will figure out how to get out to the tram in order to go up for a wider view. But 0700-1430 is just short enough that I wanted to limit at least some of my wandering. Plus, it was pretty warm out for a transplant to Northern California….
