Adventure Time

The past two weekends have been incredibly breathtaking. Last weekend, a visit to the island/national park right of the shore of La Romana: Isla Catalina. This weekend was a trip in the opposite direction, in the northern part of the country known for its mountainous terrain.

Isla Catalina

To get to this island, we essentially took a large party boat filled with other tourists from around the globe: Germany, France, U.S., the Dominican, etc. As we set out, the guides cranked up the music, and the other interns and I learned some new songs and dance moves (though we unfortunately lack that natural Dominican rhythm. I'm convinced you have to be born here in order to move like that!). After thoroughly embarrassing ourselves and entertaining the other tourists as we struggled to shimmy on a moving boat, we arrived just off the shore of Isla Catalina.


Here, we would be snorkeling for 45 minutes. The water was perfectly turquoise, and it was certainly a needed break from the heat. We jumped right in and then were surprised by what we saw all around us: jellyfish. Hundreds and hundreds of them! Small and clear, I tried to avoid them as much as possible at first. What the heck? Did the guides know the jellyfish were here? Were they dangerous? An assortment of fish swam beneath us, but all I could think about were avoiding those stingers!

Eventually, I found that they weren't poisonous (mainly because I had to swim through them, as I didn't have any other option). I then found myself enjoying it. I was swimming through hundreds of jellyfish, a coral reef below me, in the middle of the Caribbean. A dream I had never had, but a reality that I will remember forever! We spent the rest of the day on the beach, the softest white sand beneath our toes. A relaxing time if there ever was one.

The North

This weekend was a different sort of experience. The four other interns and I made our way up to Puerto Plata on Thursday, as this was a national holiday in the country, leaving the familiar South to head into the mountainous North of the DR. The drive was quite a ways, several hours from Santo Domingo, and we spent the day just walking around Puerto Plata, relaxing on the small beach by our hotel. The next day, we went to the place I've been waiting for since I left for the Dominican Republic: Los 27 Charcos. 27 Waterfalls!

Puerto Plata

The 27 Waterfalls

A natural rock slide

27 Waterfalls is located in the mountains near Puerto Plata. We took a guagua for most of the way, and then walked down a gravel road until another bus, this one full of our dearly missed English speakers, picked us up. Then, after we were armed with helmets, life vests, and old shoes, we started up the mountain. 20 minutes of climbing later, we
arrived!

The first few jumps off the waterfalls were small. You had to get warmed up, I suppose. But the place was beautiful. Rock rose up around us as we made our way down the river. Trees hung overhead as our hilarious guides joked with us in Spanish. And then we came upon our first, and the tallest, large waterfall. I wanted to be the first to jump, and the other interns let me take the risk! I climbed along a rocky ledge, aided by the guide, and then gazed down 25 ft. below me to the bottom. Under me, blue water. Beside me, large rocks. Don't jump too far! Jump straight in the middle! Surprisingly, I had no fear; just excitement. 3. 2. 1. ... Success! I plunged through the air, straight as a pencil, and landed safe and sound in the cool water below me. I came up laughing. The other interns followed suit!

We jumped off several more, and others we slid down, as the water shaped the rock into a perfect slide. Eventually, we reached the end, sliding down a rather long slope and plopping into the pool below us. This was one of my favorite parts. The area was beautiful. A wide and tall ledge loomed to our right, a large pocket carved into its side where we could sit and drink in the scenery. Large vines hung from the shrubbery above, and tree roots dangled like braids. We saw fish, shrimp, and crabs; dragonflies, butterflies, and all other kinds of insects. This place was beautiful, and I was so lucky to be able to experience it.

Jarabacoa

Jarabacoa is by far my favorite place that I have been able to visit in the DR. It's like a Dominican Colorado. It's the greenest place I've ever been in my life, with mountains looming on every side, and the feel of it is a tad different than most other Dominican cities. It's cleaner, for one; there are actually trash cans on the sidewalks for people to throw away their trash. There are less cat calls, which is always nice, and the air is cooler due to its high altitude. We also just happened to be there for the Festival de Flores (Flower Festival), which happens only once a year! There is a parade decorated with hundreds of flowers, complete with people dressed in bright colors and a Dominican marching band. At the actual festival, there are vendors selling flowers, jewelry, paintings, etc., and live music.

White Water Rafting

I can't decide if this was my favorite part of the trip or not, but it's definitely up there. Saturday morning, we set out for Rancho Baiguate, an adventure business in Jarabacoa that does everything from eco-walks to what we decided to do: rafting! We rode down the Yaque del Norte river, the longest in the Caribbean, to take on class 4 rapids with 5 girls and a tour guide. The Yaque river was...incredible. Everywhere here seems to be beautiful, but this river is almost indescribably beautiful. I saw more butterflies here than I have ever seen in one place in my life. Along the river, there would be 25 bright yellow butterflies swarming together in a bunch! They always flew past us, partnered with more dragonflies, guiding us further down the water's path. Mountains and trees surrounded us on every side as we weaved through the river. Rocks jutted up from the water, large and small, and the river itself was both very deep or very shallow depending on where you were along the path.

The rapids were fun! The first rapid that we came upon that was moderately difficult actually ended up halfway submerging our boat! No one fell out (yet), but we had to jump up and down to dislodge it from the rocks. There was one rapid that spun us around so fast I thought we would all fly out! We went through several, and then took a break on the shoreline for a snack. This is where I got to do another jump.

No one wanted to do this one with me, but I was excited. A large rock jutted up from the water, and I had to climb to the top, 30 or so feet up. I had seen the guide jump off (via back flip, which I would not be attempting), and asked if it was safe for me as well. Absolutely. You didn't have to tell me twice! This is the highest I had ever attempted before. I leapt, falling into the open air, whistling into the water. Despite the water that rushed up my nose, it was so worth it! A rush of adrenaline and laughter accompanied me the whole way.

After, we continued our way down the river. We came up on a particularly rocky and hard-to-navigate section of the river. "Down! Bajo!" the river guide demanded. Whoops! We lost one. There went Rebecca, over the side of the boat and into the river, practically in slow motion as we watched and tried to help. Thankfully, the river guide grabbed her life jacket and pulled her in before she got too far from the boat. Safe and sound, the rest of the way was fairly easy, and we took in the scenery around us. This day was an adventure for sure!

Salto de Jimenoa Uno

This morning, we set out at 9 a.m. to go find Salto de Jimenoa Uno, the largest waterfall in the area and the same one used in the Jurassic Park movie! We were told by a few locals that we might want to visit Salto de Jimenoa Dos because the trek was easier, but we were up for the challenge. In fact, we even convinced our taxi driver to come with us and be our guide (which is pretty cool that he agreed to come, seeing as he had a job to do. Go Dominicans!) The trail began high up in the mountains, and by foot we started down to the site, which we could see far off in the distance, already beautiful but nothing compared to up close. The descent was only slightly treacherous...we practically slid down 2,000+ ft. of rock. The path back up would be much harder.

When we got to the bottom, the trees broke and before us lay a wide expanse of massive rocks, the waterfall the perfect backdrop. A stream ran through the boulders, and we found a path that led to the small, rocky beach surrounding the giant falls. This place looked like it should have dinosaurs. I could almost see a pterodactyl sweep over above us. 

We took off our shoes and made our way into the water. It was icy cold, the coldest water we've had since arriving in the DR.  All around us was not so much greenery this time, but rocks. The massive stones were painted a myriad of different colors: purples, sand, browns, and golds. Trees gripped the rocks above the cliffs, and the sky was open above us. We stared for quite some time, awestruck.

I climbed a few of the boulders, feeling rather adventurous as I had no harness (sorry Mom and Dad), but the rocks had pretty good grips if you knew where to put your feet. Standing on the top, I could see in every direction of this place. The waterfall and the cliff, the stream that wandered into the distance, and the landscape of large boulders that crept around the unknowable corner. It was unlike any place I have seen before or am likely to see again.

Hesitant to leave, we started our way back up. I could now understand why the guides were reluctant to recommend the trek. It was almost completely vertical (or so it seemed)! We took several breaks, gulping down water and letting our hearts slow. By the time we reached our starting point, all 6 of us were drenched in sweat.

I think these have been the most venturesome days I've ever had!