Final Thoughts After Six Months of Living in Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic

 

One of the beautiful things about traveling is that it is a chance to discover new parts of the world and enrich your knowledge about a variety of cultures. Even though we can learn so much about any country or city on our computers in the comfort of our own homes, there is no substitute for experiencing it for yourself.

During my time in Las Terrenas I have experienced many things that I already knew about Dominican culture before I came here, but how it has impacted me emotionally and mentally over a period of months has put me on a journey of self discovery. The three aspects of life here in Las Terrenas that have stuck out to me the most are related to race, control and dating. 

Race 

In the United States race plays a big part of the way people perceive different situations, circumstances and other cases. For example if there is a mass shooting or a bombing somewhere a common question that will pop up on the radio or social media is what race was the shooter or bomber. As if knowing the race explains why they person did what they did or makes it make sense in some way. 

Also, even in my own everyday speech if I'm telling a story about people I will usually describe their race or ethnicity as if that explains something deeper than just their skin color. 

Since I have been here in Las Terrenas, one of my friends named Yanilsa, has religiously called me out when I do this and always tells me I have a problem with white people. 

For her and also many Dominicans race is genuinely only skin deep. They don't typically associate other characteristics with someones race, because people just see themselves as Dominican. 

I want to be clear I do not have a problem with white people. However because of the culture I grew up in, the media I have been consuming since childhood and just being sensitive to race due to the injustices of many black people in the United States I can see how someone from a different culture like Yanilsa could perceive that I have a problem. 

So this is definitely a part of the Dominican culture that has made me think more about why I think and talk about race in the way that I do. 

Control 

As many content creators have pointed out in their videos one negative or reality of living in the Dominican Republic is that the power can go out at any time for any length of time. As someone who teaches English online, obviously, this can be a problem and disrupt my plans on any particular day. 

In the United States, we expect something like electricity to always be functioning and it usually is which allows for us to meticulously plan out our lives days, weeks and even months in advance. 

This ability to rely on American infrastructure is great, however; it creates a culture where if something out of our control does go wrong it can send people spiraling into anxiety and serious frustration.  

Experiencing the power outages which are sometimes random and sometimes scheduled has helped me accept that at the end of the day I can't play god. There are times that things out of my control happen and I just have to be ok with it and not get too bent out of shape about it. 

Dating 

Before I arrived to this country I watched many videos about dating in the Dominican Republic. In those videos, many content creators make it seem that ALL or MOST Dominican women are easy to get with or looking for some no strings attached casual pleasure. 

In my own experience I have definitely experienced women here in Las Terrenas who were looking for pleasure and nothing more. However, I feel like it is an injustice to use broad strokes when describing the picture of the dating scene here. 

I have also encountered women who are very principled and have no tolerance for games. These women are looking for a level of commitment and foundation of trust before anything flings of passion may commence.  

If you enjoy my content please feel free to support me to help create better and more interesting content: here  .

 

 

Is It Important To Know Spanish in the Dominican Republic?

Recently, someone asked in the comments section of one of my videos if it's important to know Spanish in the Dominican Republic. This is a very good question as Spanish is the national language of this Caribbean country.  In my opinion the answer to this question depends if you are staying here for a short vacation or if you are planning on being here for an extended amount of time. 

If you are coming to the Dominican Republic for a short time and you plan on staying in resort areas such as Punta Cana or near touristic spots such as La Zona Colonial in Santo Domingo then I would say not knowing Spanish will not be such a big barrier or problem. 

In most situations you will be able to find someone who can speak a decent level of English. And even if you can't find someone who speaks an intermediate level of English, people here will try to understand you the best they can because you are a tourist/customer. 

However, if you are planning on being here for an extended amount of time, then knowing at least a  high beginner level of Spanish can go a long way. For example, when I first arrived to Las Terrenas I was able to talk to the caretakers of the apartment building about my intentions on living here in the Dominican Republic. 

Those conversations helped open the door for me finding a cheaper place to live then what I was finding on Airbnb and also helped me discover about a portable internet option that has been a lifesaver in allowing me to work online. 

In general, you should always be open to improving your language skills in whatever country you are staying in, because communication is the key to success. 

If you enjoy my content please feel free to support me to help create better and more interesting content: here .

Do You Need To Be Dominican To Discuss Gentrification In The Dominican Republic?

 

In November of last year I made a video theorizing if gentrification had a role to play in creating what appeared to be such stark differences between Samana and Las Terrenas. Some people were curious about the topic; however, others seemed perturbed that I, an African American, would talk about this Dominican topic. 

In general I don't see anything wrong with someone from another race, ethnicity, nationality or culture expressing how they feel about an issue that maybe outside of their own community. 

Obviously, if someone talks negatively about a place without having ever been there or speaks in a dismissive manner about a group of people then I can see why people would be frustrated. 

However that was not the tone I was aiming for in that video. The purpose of the video was to be more exploratory rather than explanatory.

I talked about the differences I saw between the two cities, theorized why these differences existed and in conclusion offered the opportunity for the audience to write what they know about the topic in the comments section. 

At the end of the day if someone thinks that only Dominicans can talk about Dominican culture and economics or only Spanish speakers can only talk about Spanish speaking countries and so on, then that person should probably stop watching Youtube because that is not the reality of the situation.