General Chit Chat

They are doing it right and getting their homework done.

Bob K

Again good to hear, I hope they post their experiences, good and bad...

Cabarate - beautiful but a little on the boring side I would say. We checked out the shops, overpaid for some jewelry on the beach, walked the beautiful beach, had a beer at the Lazy Dog and then we were pretty much done.  I think if we were there to surf or kite board it would be awesome but other than that it sort of felt like going to the beach at a resort.
It was missing the local colour I think, which is the most fun thing about Sosua, and likely much of the DR.

The best part of our day yesterday was meeting Lindsay at Strength for the Journey. You were right Bob, what a great lady. For those of you that don't know she runs a place for kids to go learn and do art, it is completely non profit and helps the local kids stay off the streets. Last night they were having movie night, we stopped by and dropped off a bag of school supplies we brought from Canada and they were so happy and appreciative it warmed our hearts.  It is definitely a place we see ourselves getting involved with when we move.

Today off to see the Monkeys at Monkey Jungle and do a little zip lining..what a way to spend Christmas Eve!

I like Cabarete for dinner at night sometimes on the beach or at Bliss

I knew you would be impressed by Lindsey

Bob K

Great update, thanks for the  info!!   Enjoy the monkeys............   Tell us all about it when you can!!!

All I can say about Monkey Jungle is WOW. It was a riot.  Toby and I had never been zip lining before and they have 7 ranging from slow and easy to fairly fast plus a 60 foot drop at the end into a cave, which sounds way scarier than it was.

The monkeys were totally adorable but again the best part was learning about the staff. The zip guides live on the grounds and donate all of their time and expertise so that all the fees can go to free dental and I think some medical for poor Dominican and Haitens. They even go around and pick people up and bring them out for the work. What a crew. It is really amazing the wonderful things people are doing down here for people. We had a riot and knowing it went to a great cause made it that much better.
Off to find some Christmas Eve chow! So sad we are only down to a few days..

Thanks for the report! Great info for everyone. Glad you enjoyed the day!

Glad you enjoyed the Jungle.  I knew you would.  It is a great place for sure.

Bob K

Merry Christmas everyone!
A quick update, we noticed quite a few locals out on the streets having drinks on our way to dinner last night. It looked very merry as they were all sitting and chatting on the corners.  That being said, we had a feeling the younger crowd may get a little rowdy as the night went on so we played it smart and grabbed a taxi back. To get to our condo we have to walk down a few small unlit streets so we thought it best to be safe.
We had a nice dinner at Tipico Alberto, met up unexpectedly with a few friends we met diving last week and had a couple drinks at the Jolly Roger, what a great little hang out.
Today, thanks to Ray over at the Britannia we are scheduled for a full turkey dinner, so we plan to spend the morning with breakfast and sipping mimosas by the pool...yep I could get used to this.
Hope all of you are enjoying your Caribbean Christmas!

Yes Christmas eve can get very rowdy here.  Christmas morning is quiet due to hangovers....but later things crank back up again....

That is why after a quick run to the market this morning we are holed up for the day.

Ray has a very good dinner planned. I was talking to him yesterday. Enjoy your meal.

Bob K

Went on a Jeep Safari which included, some touristy stuff like Dominican coffee, 7 of the 27 waterfalls and cigar making. It was quite fun but I think the most interesting (besides the mamajuana) was seeing the country side and how many people live. It was beautiful and eye opening all at the same time.

I have a new question, in the spirit of speaking of the bad with the good. How often do you really see cockroaches and how often do you fumigate?  I know I have already brought this up before (more than once) but I am curious if what I am experiencing is typical with due diligence.
Thanks all, today was super long so early night tonight and then probably the beach tomorrow, our last full day here.

Cockroaches won't hurt you and they love the tropical weather, including here in Florida...lol.    The key is to keep your house spotless and to spray every other week. 

Have ya'll seen any "trouble" as you move around the island doing the touristy stuff?

I know they won't hurt and they are common here but they still give me the heebie jeebies...lol

We haven't run in to any trouble so far but we were with a tour group today.

We all have cockroaches, just a fact of life.  I fumigate every 3 months.

Glad you had a good time on your tour today

Yes we have roaches and other bugs as a regular thing. This is the tropics after all.  We have our house fumigated every 4-5 months and really have no problems.  It is rare to see a roach around here but it doss happen

Enjoy your beach day tomorrow and have a safe flight home.  See you soon I hope

Bob K

Thanks all for you answers, I do understand that they are a part of the tropics but I thought it was like Bob said and that you only saw them occasionally if due diligence is done.  We killed two in our kitchen tonight, they may or may not be the same ones that we saw throughout the week and failed to kill but I thought it seemed a little extreme from what I remembered this blog saying before.

Thanks Bob, we will definitely be back, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Sheri and Toby

Reality is they are there, you just may not see them.  Yes to due dilligence, cleaning, spraying etc.....  No one likes them, we just try to manage the situation....

WE look forward to your return.  You will do well here.

As to the roaches....yes three huge ones (the size of a small SUV) last night.  Funny exterminator is scheduled for Tuesday already.  Guess we had it timed right

Have a great flight home

Bob K

Hahaha Bob I can relate, sometimes they are huge..... but never seen one the size of an SUV.....

These guys were carrying luggage!

Bob K

Moving in were they?????

I hope not but Tuesday they will be moving out!

Bob K

Ha ha ha ha...nice. Well I do feel a little better about the bug situation. The beauty here is worth the small (or SUV size) issue.  Also it turns out I was not paying close enough attention to the dates ( a hazard here I suspect) and we aren't actually leaving until Monday! So one more day at the beach!
Sheri

Enjoy that day!!!!

If you have to screw up your flights you did it the right way

Looked for you on the beach today but did not find you.

Enjoy your extra day!

Bob K

  Harris Roach tablets are your answer here is the product. http://www.amazon.com/Harris-Roach-Tabl … ch+tablets

Enjoy.

Looks like a great product but it is not safe for pets of kids and a good proportion of us here have one or both of those.

So fumigator time

Bob K

Hey All,
Bob - we were near the Angelica, it was funny because we ran into a couple of guys from our jeep tour from the day before.
Spent the day around the condo today due to the rain, got in some pool time though.
As for the cuckarachas, I do have pets and wouldn't want to harm them, that being said I will do some extra research and see if I can add to the fumigation to ensure seeing them the least possible, maybe one of those plug in bug repellers or I have been reading a bit about borax being a good option. I'll figure it out, not too worried.
Thanks again for all your advice everyone, home tomorrow.

You sure your flight is tomorrow???

Safe travels.

Bob K

Tablets could be dangerous for pets and kids, but you would not put them in an area where they could get to it. The tabs are usually placed in cabinets either in the kitchen or bathrooms that way the roaches feed on them and go back to the nest infected eventually eliminating the rest of the crew. They work well, but must be placed out of reach and out of site. I fumigate as well, but these little gems extend my fumigation time 

Thanks Massage, I will definitely look into them. Knowing me, I will have one of everything on the go...lol

Flying out this afternoon, sad but really excited to get back to our puppy. Enjoy your Caribbean lives you lucky sons of guns!  Will keep everyone posted on our moving experience etc..

Sheri

Ok enough rain now.  You can turn the faucet off.  We have had probably 6 inches of rain or more in the last three days, and other than yesterday afternoon almost no sun.  IN fact it was a cold shower Thursday night as no hot water (we have solar hot water).  AND it has been cold, I mean freezing at night.  We have watched TV the last two nights wrapped in blankets.  Temp yesterday morning 18.  Worst part MOTS (more of the same sh*t) today.

Sooooo you on the south coast please send us some sun

Bob K

If the active ingredient in a roach tablet is Boric Acid, they are perhaps not good the children and pets to eat, but they are not poisonous, and they are highly effective, more so, in my experience than foggers and sprays, and a lot cheaper.

I have seen at least four types of roach here in Miami, and the tablets seem to eliminate all of them.

You can mix Boric Acid powder with flour or breadcrumbs and that will work as well.

They give the roaches gas, and roaches, that are unable to fart, simply explode, they say.

I have not examined deceased insects to verify this, but it seems to be a likely story.

They tend to die out of sight.

Bob I spent last two days in Puerto Plata,  had a meeting this morning then we hit the road. RAIN almost the whole way. Raining hard right now in La Romana........  Yikes.  And it was COLD in POP...........but great for dancing. Managed to dance  5 hours last night!

Oh no!! Make it stop before we arrive on the 15th! That is not what we are moving to DR for. 

Dont worry the heat is coming back...........

Still raining here and some very heavy. Probably in excess of 10 inches in the last 48 hours.  Some serious flooding as well.  More heavy rain tonight.

Tomorrow maybe a bit better then back to normal for Monday... fingers crossed.

And  you are right cold.  Last night 18 here on the hill.

BObK

I hope we are talking 18 Celsius Bob!!!