The
Dominican Republic is part of the Hispaniola island of the Greater Antilles in
the Caribbean, in size, it is the second biggest, preceded by Cuba, and followed
by Haiti. The Dominican Republic is where I was born, I grew up in Santo
Domingo its capital city. The country has many historical and cultural places
to visit, as well as touristic ones. There's a bit of everything available, we
have dunes, beaches, cathedrals, the highest peak in the Caribbean and
sometimes, we even get some snow too.
The Sand
Dunes of Baní, in the province of Peravia, is one of the natural resources of
the Dominican Republic. The place looks just like an African desert and could
be even prettier, as the fine sand merges with desert trees and flowers. Photographers
have chosen this place countless time, because of its exotic beauty. In the
horizon, you can see the waves of the Caribbean Sea caressing the shore softly,
the sandy dunes are full of endemic species of the Dominican Republic, amongst
them are found birds, reptiles and plants. It's quite a sight, almost hypnotizing
seeing such a wonder in the Caribbean.
Another
Caribbean wonder located in the Dominican Republic is Constanza, a town in La
Vega province. Constanza is known for its low, chilly temperature, as it's
located on high ground, at 4,000 feet. Average temperatures during the year
range between 41 °F (5 °C) and 68 °F (20 °C), something that's unusual in the
Caribbean. The lowest temperature ever on this place, was –1 °C, recorded on February 6, 1958. Years ago, it was common to see snow
falling on winter, but due to temperature increasing, it's rarely seen but the
temperature varies between 21 to 24 °C at day, and 8 to 12 °C at night. Fog is
quite common too.
Valle Nuevo
has freezing temperatures almost every season. Sometimes the ground freezes and
the grass creates beautiful sculptures as it freezes. Constanza is known for
cultivating berries, peaches, apples and garlic, as well as flowers, being
known for its beautiful roses.
These two
contrasting places, hot and cold, are two of the Dominican wonders. There's
also Isla Saona (Saona Island), here you can visit several caves formerly used
as refuges by the native inhabitants. The Island offers us kilometers of
solitary beaches , with thousand of coconuts trees, white sand and crystal
waters. It is the perfect place to go
and rest, its sunsets are impressive and its landscapes are worthy of a
picture.
In Saona
Island, the “Natural Swimming Pool” that has this name due to its depth is not
more than one meter height, we can find marine species such as starfish, coral
reeves and many kind of fishes.
These are
just three places to visit in the Dominican Republic, there are even more
beautiful places to visit such as Samaná, where we get to see the Hunchback
Whales courting each other gracefully; we also have the Botanical Garden in
Santo Domingo, where we can feel in touch with nature, personally, my favorite
area of the Botanical Garden, is the 'Jardín Japonés' or Japanese Garden.
Shades of pink cover the whole area while cherry blossom trees greet you. It's
quite a sight that's located in the city, so if you want to enjoy something
different without going far, that's one of the options. The Dominican Republic
has many beautiful, almost indescribable places, so if you want to see for
yourself, don't forget to bring your camera! Words won't be enough!
