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TEN-DAY TAINO TOUR
South Coast
- All tours
start out in Santo Domingo, the "first city" of the Americas,
founded in 1498.
- For the
first four nights you will be lodged in the Capital
- then you'll
spend two nights in Baní
- two nights
in Santiago
- and the
last night at a Caribbean beach resort.
--Day 1.
Settle into your hotel. Evening tour of the Zona Colonial, designated
by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. This ancient walled city guarding
the mouth of the Ozama River where it meets the Caribbean Sea had
a thriving population of Taínos when the Spaniards arrived. A city
of "firsts," you will see the Columbus Plaza, with its magnificent
gothic cathedral and statue of Columbus; the church complex built
by the friars of the Order of St. Dominic (Dominicans) where the
first university in the New World used to be (in front of the Dominican
church is a small park where the Cacica Anacaona was hanged in 1502);
the forbidding Ozama Fortress where Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo
wrote his History of the Indies in which he denounced Taínos as
a primitive people; the "Calle de las Damas," a street paved by
Taínos so that elite Spanish ladies could take their accustomed
afternoon stroll; the Alcazar, a combination home and palace built
for Christopher Columbus' son Diego and his blue-blooded wife doña
María de Toledo; the Casa del Cordón, oldest stone house built by
Europeans in the Americas; the ruins of the Franciscan Monastery
where Cacique Enriquillo was educated, and much, much more. Dine
at El Conuco restaurant, famous for its "comida típica," a buffet
of Dominican foods served in a colorful country atmosphere to the
lively rhythm of merengue.
--Day 2.
After breakfast, we'll see the fabulous Taíno artifacts in the Museum
of Dominican Man, then drive through mountain foothills where the
highway is lined with charming country houses and coconut vendors
to the ceramics workshop of the Guillén brothers in Yamasá. The
Guilléns are world famous for the quality of their replicas of Taíno
artifacts. You'll be able to buy directly from the artists at less
than 1/3rd what they sell for in gift shops. Lunch in Yamasá, then
we're off to Peravilla to see where the Ozama River tumbles down
out of the mountains on its way to Santo Domingo and a plateau that
appears to have been a Taíno cimarrón community, where Taínos fled
and established a hidden town after the arrival of the Spaniards.
Note that this part of the tour requires hiking up and down a steep
incline, so wear your running shoes. Afterwards, we'll visit a cocoa
plantation to see how chocolate grows and to enjoy horseback riding
before going back to the city, stopping for a buffet dinner at the
Hotel Lina Barceló before returning to your hotel.
--Day 3.
After breakfast, we tour the Museo Pre-Hispanico, a private museum
of Taíno artifacts collected by Manuel García-Arévalo, and a variety
of shops and galleries that specialize in Neo-Taíno art and artisanry.
Lunch at Anacaona Restaurant in front of the Cathedral, followed
by a trip to the Botanical Gardens, which are listed among the top
10 in the world. We'll take the trolley tour and then spend an hour
in the section devoted to plants and trees that are indigenous to
the island. The balance of the afternoon and early evening are free
so you can rest and prepare for a gala night that begins with dinner
at the Mesón de la Cava, inside a natural cave, and dancing at one
of Santo Domingo's best "discotecas."
--Day 4.
Free day. Sleep in and then do whatever you please. Two optional
trips will be offered, at no additional charge: swimming at Boca
Chica, the beautiful white-sand-and-turquoise-waters beach that
is the favorite of the Capital's residents (leaves at 11:00am, returns
at 5:00pm), and a shopping trip to the colorful Mercado Modelo (leaves
at 11:am, returns at 2:00pm). Breakfast is provided on this day
if you wake up early enough, but not lunch or dinner.
--Day 5.
Pack your bags. After breakfast, we're off to San Cristóbal to see
the fabulous Cueva Pomiers, a cave with hundreds of Taíno drawings
and stone sculptures. This cave appears to have been dedicated to
rituals of courtship and fertility. Afterwards, we'll have lunch
and swim in the fresh-mountain water of La Toma. On our way to Baní
in the afternoon, we'll visit the Casa de Caoba that belonged to
the country's "President" Trujillo (an infamous dictator) a partially
restored 17th-century sugarcane plantation and mill, and the ruins
of a 16th-century plantation that belonged Diego Caballero. Dinner
and overnight in Baní.
--Day 6.
After an early breakfast, we head out to the unforgettable Lago
Enriquillo, a vast salt lake and nature preserve in an incredible
mountain and desert setting. Along the way, we'll make a stop to
photograph an awe-inspiring statue of Cacique Enriquillo along the
main highway. At the preserve, we'll see Las Caritas, carved guardian
"faces" high up on a cliff wall that the Taínos sculpted to protect
this cimarrón ("runaway") area, and we'll enjoy a nature tour with
local specialists of the crocodile, iguana, and flamingo breeding/feeding
grounds. We'll have lunch at one of the area's artesian-stream-fed
ponds-in the desert!-and, if time permits, a refreshing dip before
heading back to the hotel and dinner in Baní.
--Day 7.
After breakfast, we head to Concepción de la Vega to see the shrine
of Santo Cerro, site of the very first major battle between American
Indians and Europeans (and where the legend of the island's patroness,
the Virgin de las Mercedes, arose). We'll have lunch at a restaurant
with a breathtaking view of the entire Cibao Valley. We'll also
visit the ruins of La Vega Vieja, where Spaniards built a European
city to supervise the gold mining, a city built overtop of the principal
"yucayeque" that belonged to Cacique Guarionex, one of the five
supreme caciques on the island in 1492. Then we head to Santiago,
the Dominican Republic's second city, where we'll tour the Heroes'
Monument, then check into the Hotel Gran Almirante. After dinner
at the hotel, we'll have a private tour of the delightful Museo
Folklórico de Tomás Morel, a museum that chronicles the popular
culture of the Cibao region, and a Show Folklórico, followed by
dancing to lively meringue and bachata music.
--Day 8.
After breakfast, we head up into the mountains toward the Dominican/Haitian
border, a region where thousands of Taínos fled to escape Spanish
domination. We'll visit a casabe factory (casabe is the bread that
Taínos made from bitter yucca) in the small town of Cacique, where
the people still make casabe in much the same way that their Taíno
ancestors did. We'll have lunch in a local restaurant, then we'll
go to Río Chaquey, a site that was sacred to the Taínos, to see
first hand the most famous petroglyphs on the island. We'll wade
knee-deep up a crystal-clear river for ten minutes to get to the
petroglyphs, which are carved into huge basalt boulders; later we
can all swim in natural pools (charcos) like the Taínos did. All
of this is in an incredible natural mountain environment abounding
with native trees and plants. Then it's on to Dajabón to see where
the Dominican Republic and the Republic of Haiti meet, and where
you can buy Haitian baskets, wood and tin carvings, and paintings.
Dinner will be back at the hotel. Free evening to enjoy the hotel's
casino or whatever else you fancy in Santiago, but don't stay out
too late because we're heading out early in the morning!
--Day 9.
After an early breakfast, we'll board the bus and head east to the
Cueva de las Maravillas (Cave of the Marvels), one of the most important
caves in the Caribbean, with more than 400 Taíno drawings, some
of which look as if they were painted yesterday. The Dominican government
has just spent millions of dollars and two years lighting up this
cave and making it accessible to the public. Cueva de las Maravillas
appears to have been devoted to childbearing and to the training
of caciques and behiques. We eat lunch in La Romana, then we visit
lovely Altos de Chavón, an artists' village that is a recreation
of a 15th-century Italian villa, and its fabulous Regional Archaeological
Museum of Altos de Chavón, which has some of the area's best Taíno
artifacts. Next stop, Next stop, Cumayasa Beach Resort on the Caribbean
Sea, where you can enjoy all you want to eat and drink, an evening
show, the pool, beach, and water sports, until it's time to go to
airport on the following day.
--Day 10.
Return to the airport and home, happy and content, maybe with a
little tan and with lots more knowledge and experience of the Dominican
Republic and the Taínos. ? TWO-WEEK TAINO TOUR (includes visits
to both Samaná and Lago Enriquillo, plus Cotui)
10 days and 9 nights
$ 1,960 per person in doble rom, in single room 20% more
Children 5 to 12 years 50% off
SAS
Travel and Tours
Tel (809) 788-9116, Fax (809) 596-2987
Email, agencydr@yahoo.com
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