Life In The Dominican Republic: Freedom in the DR vs the USA

I remember talking to a Brazilian student about his experiences in the United States. He told me that even though the U.S. is known as the land of the free, he really didn't feel that free when he was in the country. 

For example, he said that when he had a party at his apartment the police eventually came to investigate a noise complaint that one of his neighbors had issued. 

This conversation recently creeped into my mind and made me think about how freedom is different between the U.S. and the Dominican Republic. 

One of the most common complaints I see from an expat/tourist facebook group called "Everything Las Terrenas" is how people say their local neighbor's music is too loud and goes on for too long into the night. 

Many group members ask why the police don't do anything about it or if there are some legal measures that can be taken to stop the noise. In most cases there are none. 

Outside of noise there are many other cases where freedom differs between the Dominican Republic and the United States. 

Prostitution is legal in the Dominican Republic. Even though many brothels have been eradicated and the role of the "pimp" is illegal, sex workers do not need to worry about having to keep an eye out for the police. 

On the contrary, sex workers in the U.S. not only have to be vigilant against  possible abusive johns, but also law enforcement trying to bust their business. 

This can create a very dark situation for a group of mostly women who have no one to turn to legally speaking if they do find themselves in a precarious position. 

From my observation I would say that in the Dominican Republic there are less worries of the government enforcing every single regulation that is in the book. 

A great example of this is how many Dominicans drive. As an American, I see a lot of road behavior that I know in the U.S. would definitely get people pulled over by the police. But here getting pulled over for bad driving is not on anyone's mind. 

There are positives and negatives of living in a culture where regulations are not so heavily enforced. However, having lived in the US for most of my life I do understand and appreciate how rules are enforced. 

When there is a clear system it becomes easier for people to operate, grow and build within their community. Historically speaking Dominican Republic has dealt with a lot of political corruption which has halted the advancement of the nation. 

Even though the United States is not a perfect example and day by day becoming worse I think because regulations are enforced in many areas as it relates to everyday life and business it allows people to be "free" within the system and grow their business or personal projects without having to go through as many hoops and obstacles as in the Dominican Republic.  

So even though people call the U.S the land of the free in actuality you may be able to enjoy less regulations if you decide to live in the Dominican Republic. However if you are trying to start a business, buy property or do anything very official you may need to keep your head on a swivel as it relates to people trying to pull a fast one on you here in the Dominican Republic. 

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Scammer in Las Terrenas | Reaction to Comments

Nearly two weeks ago I reacted to a video made by a Youtuber named Free Island Girl, whose real name is Kelly. In that video she allegedly exposed Nicole, a Youtuber that also goes by the name Luna Soleil, of scamming people in Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic by charging extra for re-location services and other things. After making a video reaction about the situation some viewers questioned my research, motives and reason for talking about race. 

Research

I admit that I did not do any research prior to making my latest reaction video. I understand that does open the door to possibly making false claims about someone in a disparaging way. 

However, I never claimed my video was a news story or an official report. It's called a reaction video for a reason. I'm just reacting to what I'm hearing and forming my own opinions and ideas based off of that. 

Obviously there are many disadvantages to making reaction videos, but the advantage or the reason why I think people like it is because of the authenticity and emotion that comes with reacting to something either live or relatively close to the moment something happened. 

Also as it specifically relates to this video regarding Kelly and Nicole, I mentioned that I recommended a potential client to Nicole. After I made the reaction video that person I recommended contacted me and told me that he had set up over the phone consultation meetings three times with Nicole, but she cancelled all three times and still tried to charge him $50 for the consultation fee. 

I am not saying Nicole doesn't have any happy or satisfied customers, but that tidbit of feedback from one of my viewers does align with what I was saying in the video. 

Getting into a woman's issue 

Some people directly or indirectly commented that I shouldn't be reacting or getting involved with an issue between two women on Youtube.  To be honest I am befuddled how in the 21st century people would care about gender in this way. 

Now I could understand if the issue in question was about tampons or some female care products that I know nothing about, then in that case I could see how gender would come into question. 

However, the issue was simply related to allegedly bad business practices. I feel like anyone, male, female or anything in between, should be comfortable voicing their opinion on a large or small business who is possibly conducting bad business. 

Also I know many people who are just finding my channel have not watched my past videos. But just to be clear I have reacted to disputes amongst Youtubers when both the people were males , female and male and now female and female. 

I don't decide to make reaction videos based off of gender, rather if  I am interested in the content and I feel like I have something valuable to add to the conversation. 

Talking About Race 

I understand that travel videos can bring in a wide audience of people from different nationalities, ethnicities and races and as someone who makes travel videos  I have to be conscience of that fact.

However, I am an African-American man, proud of my blackness and I will never avoid talking about black issues on my channel. 

I understand that some people might not like that, but if that topic naturally comes to me then of course I will discuss it because it's something that is important to me. 

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Life in the Dominican Republic: Las Terrenas to Santiago

There are many ways to travel from Las Terrenas to Santiago, but in this post I will be sharing the steps I took to make this journey. 

Step 1

Determine the time you need to leave from your accommodations on your travel day. For me I needed to catch a bus that was supposed to leave at 8:15. So I decided to contact a proper taxi the night before and I told him my address and the time I wanted to leave which was 7:50 am. 

In my opinion it's always better to tell your taxi that you want to leave a little bit earlier than needed. Fortunately in my case the chofer was only 3 minutes late, but it's better not to risk it. 

Step 2 

When I arrived at the bus station I paid my taxi driver 400 pesos. Then I turned around and asked the bus conductor how much it would cost for the bus ride. He said 400 pesos. It ended up being 500 pesos because I had luggage I had to put on the bus. 

The amount of time from Las Terrenas to Santiago was about three and a half hours. We stopped several times to pick up new passengers, fill the wheels with air and one bathroom stop when we were a little bit passed a city called Vega. 

Step 3 

The most difficult part of this journey for me was once I arrived in Santiago. I needed to find a taxi, but at the bus stop there wasn't just a line of taxis waiting. Fortunately after 5 minutes I waved a taxi down.

 A funny side bit is I think the taxi was supposed to be for someone else, but I didn't realize that until I was already in the car and the taxi guy didn't seem to care so we just kept it moving to my final destination. 

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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.  

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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. 

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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. 

Life in the Dominican Republic: Santiago vs Sosua

I've been in Las Terrenas for almost 4 and a half months and it has been pretty great! I have enjoyed the beautiful beaches, building new relationships and just the overall relaxing vibe of this quaint beach town. I remember when I just arrived to Las Terrenas after exiting Santo Domingo prematurely because I had an  unpleasant experience there. 

This town has been like a retreat from the hustle and bustle of the big city. But now I feel like I'm ready to leave Las Terrenas and experience a new part of the Dominican Republic by either going to Sosua or Santiago.  

Sosua

Sosua is a beach town in the Puerto Plata province of the Dominican Republic. From what I have seen online this northern town is somewhat similar to Las Terrenas in the sense that it is a beach town and relatively small. However that is where all the similarities end. 

People have told me many different things about Sosua like that it is dangerous, crawling with hookers and many low life individuals. The way it is painted on social media makes it seem like a very seedy place. 

But recently I joined a Sosua facebook group where people post about businesses, social activities and other normal aspects of life in Sosua. I'm interested to know if this beach town is as wild as people say it is or relatively normal as it is depicted in the facebook group. 

Santiago

Santiago de los Caballeros, commonly known as Santiago is the second largest city in the Dominican Republic and the fourth largest city in the Caribbean by population. To be honest I don't know that much about Santiago other than what some people have told me about it.

 I believe it's very similar to Santo Domingo, but possibly there are some more cultured areas and less Americanized. But I find that hard to believe to be honest. The nightlife seems to be pretty alive from the videos I have seen on Youtube.  

Right now I'm trying to decide which of these two cities I should go to next. If you have any opinions or preferences on this topic please feel free to share in the comments section! Thanks!