The light just went off in the entire neighbourhood here in Zona Colonial in Santo Domingo. That happens almost every night, so we're used to it. Earlier today I returned to the capital, after two days in a small house in the countryside about a hours drive out of town. Out there we didn't have any electricity, except what the generator provided. For two days I have been eaten skinny by mosquitos, slept in a hammock and lived on whatever Mother Earth provides - voluntarily ! Here's the story.
Berit and Willie had a dream - well, actually two dreams. Willie wanted his own land, grow his own food and raise animals - and Berit wanted a life, away from the 70-hours-per-week-rat race, where materialism and speed were not the main factors, but where the two of them could build a family and a little business. So they moved to the Caribbean, to the Dominican Republic and bought 22,000 m2 of land filled with coconut palms, avocado trees, lime trees, bushes and a lot of other good stuff. Now there's also four dogs, two horses (soon to be three) and a guard - plus the occasional rat, a million mosquitos (of which I've killed 999,999 - the last one kept bugging me till the end...!) and some Haitians running past once in a while. See www.beritjeanette.com for good reading, when you need a little escape.
Having arrived in the Dominican Republic on Sunday, I spent Monday walking around Santo Domingo with Berit and enjoyed the sunset from their rooftop terrace. Life is beautiful. Tuesday, I took the bus to the east coast to try out a few days of so-called all-inclusive resort life. White sandy beaches and beautiful blue ocean, with a first-class view from the my terrace....and fat Americans and middle-class Dominicans, loud music for those coming here to drink free coconut punch all night, every night for two weeks and a noticeable ambience of low-class, charter-vacation-to-Lloret-de-Mar. Am I being judgmental...? Perhaps I just didn't pay enough for my all-inclusive ? Life was still beautiful, though. Thursday, going back to Santo Domingo, I had two funny experiences in the bus; first, a preacher stood up and blessed the entire bus, made a long sermon, blessed us again, asked the audience some quiz-like questions about the bible, blessed us again, asked us to come to church on Sunday and donate some money - and blessed us again. Next, they put on the new James Bond movie, and I thought the piracy business here in country was quite cool - until I heard James speak to Q in German, with Spanish subtitles. Besides that, they hadn't really calculated the trip correctly, so half-way into the movie, we were back in Santo Domingo...
A quick repack and then we went straight to Berit and Willie's land of dreams. And you could hear my jaw drop to the cement floor, as we arrived ! Oh, it was primitive - especially coming straight from Lloret de Mar. But we had a great time there, though; what beats lying in the hammock at night with a freshly opened coconut drink, watching the stars to the sound of thunder and lightning (and the buzz of that last mosquito !), with a candle light and burning coconut leaves (to chase away that damned mosquito !), while chatting and being served great, fresh (it doesn't get any fresher that this) food ? What beats swimming in the Caribbean with good friends and two dogs, while the locals turn their stereos louder and louder to lure us into their beach restaurants - where we then get served the best fish I've tasted in a very long time ? Forget about the rat, the lack of electricity and running water; those obstacles will be overcome soon. Forget about the mosquitos (unless the one that's left finds a partner, it will die within a week) and the humid heat; I can see why Berit and Willie wants this so much !
The verdict
It's all very exciting and so completely different from everything we know in our safe, cocooned normal life in the Western world, that no matter what your expectation were before coming, you can't help being taken aback. Both by the hardship (yes, honestly; I had to flee that damned last mosquito, back to the civilization in Santo Domingo) - but also by what Berit and Willie are building out there, with their bare hands !
So, the verdict on Hotel Haven - the first-ever such review, before it becomes world famous; this zero-star, all-inclusive soon-to-be-cabana resort is so pure an experience that you will love it just for that. The host couple provides an excellent service and are very knowledgeable about all the facets of their kind of ecological tourism, from how much a coconut palm produces per year to riding the horses and cooking simple, but excellent meals. If you are a high-powered CEO, do this to de-stress in a cold-turkey-away-from-your-laptop kinda' way; if you are a backpacker or all-inclusive resort traveller, combine a four-day stay here with all the rest of the attractions this island offers. You will not regret the experience, you have my word !
Thank you, Berit and Willie !
Next
Back in Santo Domingo, I am now sitting on the terrace of Berit and Willie's nice apartment. The electricity is still out - but the little corner shop downstairs unfortunately has a generator somewhere in the back, so that doesn't stop them from blaring out loud music all night long. The cousins of that damned mosquito are all here, although not as numerous as out in the country side. I've rented a car - and tomorrow I'm driving north, up to the Samana Peninsula and the north coast, where there should be more bounty beaches and beautiful nature (can you get enough), plus the historical sites of the first European settlers in the Americas (besides the Vikings, of course !) and cute little villages. I'll drive back through the mountains, planned arrival in Santo Domingo on Sunday, the day before my flight back to Denmark. I better enjoy the last week of the Caribbean, before it's back to colder (aaaahhhhh....) climates - and see if I can get my mosquito kill tally over 2 million !
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