Never Pet a Dominican Dog!

Never, never, pet another Dominican dog.  That’s what Matt tells me.  Well I agree….I shouldn’t ever, ever, ever pet another one.  And here’s why.

First, some of my observations about Dominican dogs.  They will break your heart.  There are Dominican beach dogs, street dogs and village dogs.  By far, the beach dogs are the best off.  They wander the beach where there are plenty of bars and restaurants, and many people offer them the leftovers from their plate.  They generally get plenty to eat, but they are very particular.  They want protein, and maybe some pasta, but NEVER potatoes!  They won’t eat them.  The street dogs aren’t quite as well off, but they can generally find something to eat.  Dominicans seem to be very generous.  If all they have for breakfast is a small baguette of bread and there is a hungry dog around, they share with the dog.  Village dogs don’t seem to do as well, there are just too many of them.  I need to stay out of the villages.

There seems to be a very good program to attempt to care for homeless dogs.  They have clinics every six weeks or so that they will provide spaying free of charge.  Dominicans don’t neuter the males, but they don’t usually object to spaying the females.  Once the dogs are spayed they are eligible for a monthly oral treatment that takes care of fleas, ticks and parasites.  Volunteers in each neighborhood are responsible for treating the dogs in their area.  Dogs have a tattoo in their ear identifying them and the volunteers also have photos.  So that’s a very good thing.

When you offer food to a Dominican dog, it doesn’t matter if they haven’t eaten in a week, they will very gently take the food from you, they never snap or gobble it.  They also love to have attention, any show of affection will seem to spark some hope that they will have someone to care for them.  So that is why you should never pet a Dominican dog!

Here is Scruffy Puppy.  As Juan says, “ella is muy contenta”.  She is always very happy and after I petted her once while I was out walking Hermann, we seem to be friends for life.  She actually seems to have a home with a Dominican family that lives just at the end of the drive way to our condo.  She’ll wait till she sees me walking Herm and then she’ll come bounding toward us.  She loves to have her tummy scratched, so she’ll always roll on her back for a good scratching.  I’ll oblige and then start to walk away, so she’ll run in front of me and throw herself in the driveway in front of me and roll on her back.  She’ll usually do that about 4 or 5 times until I finally just step over her and head for home.  When that happens she’ll very dramatically continue to lay on her back and follow me all the way home with her eyes.  She is very well behaved and although she starts to follow me when I head out to the main road, someone at her home will call her and she stops and goes home.

Now this is my Angel.  One time about two weeks ago I was out scratching Scruffy Puppy, and I saw this skinny, pitiful white dog lurking near us.  I called her and she timidly came up to me and I scratched her head.  She has a delicate, beautiful face - almost deer-like.  That one scratch was all it took, she seemed to be mine after that one scratch.  The next day Matt and I were walking to the market which is about 45 minutes from the condo and most of it along the busy main road.  She immediately started following us.  I tried and tried to shoo her away, but she wouldn’t stop following us.  She went to the market with us but it was very crowded and she was terrified.  She disappeared eventually.  Matt and I caught a guagua to Sosua beach after the market and came home late in the day.  She was back at the condo waiting for us.  This started a pattern, she would always follow us until we got to where we were going and then she’d disappear and be waiting for us back at the condo.  This did not make Matt very happy. 

Angel appeared to have recently had a litter of puppies, but I assumed she lost them since she never had puppies with her.  This past Friday we hosted a happy hour at our pool.  Some of the friends we had over were much more familiar with dogs than me, and I soon learned that, no, she hadn’t recently had puppies – she was about to have a litter, and probably very soon.   Well the very next day I got out for my early morning beach walk and she was not acting right.  She still went with us, but it was hard for her  She seemed to be very fretful and restless.  When we got back from our walk she immediately crawled under the floor of the gazebo and wouldn’t come out.  Matt and I had to leave and when we came back she was still under the gazebo.  The gardener at our condo said she needed to move from there, she needed a place “mas sacado” (drier) to have her puppies.  So they pulled her out and she immediately headed to a neighborhood near us.  About two or three hours later she came back, after having her puppies, and found me at the pool.  I petted her and then she left.  A bit later I was at the beach and she came out to the beach, barked at me and than ran off.   About 30 minutes later she did this again.  That time I followed her.  She seemed to want me to know where she was and that all was ok. Matt and I had always noticed a house near us that appeared to be vacant, and that’s where she went.   She squeezed through the iron gate of this house and waited for me to follow.  Obviously I couldn’t, so she gave up and ran into a thick stand of shrubs at the edge of the property.  I thought she had chosen a good spot to have these pups .  Even though Matt said I needed to leave her alone, I went back to leave her some food at the gate.  Well, when I came back there was a car in front of the house and a vicious Doberman in the yard.  I knew this didn’t bode well for the puppies. 

About 3:00 a.m. I had to take Hermann out (he’s had too many handouts himself) and there was Angel waiting for me….with no puppies.  I’m going to take her to get her spayed and get her on the program for monthly flea/tick/parasite treatments.  Not letting her go through this again.

So that’s why you shouldn’t ever pet a Dominican dog.  They will very quickly work their way into your heart…..and maybe break it.  And whatever you do - Don't Name Them!

Our First Cabarete Christmas

Had a wonderful holiday!  We started out at Nancy and Arvid's for a traditional Christmas eve dinner.....traditional except we all had on flip flops and check out the palm trees outside the patio door.  After dinner, we went over to David and Louise's condo for dessert.  There were about 15 of us there....and it was a wonderful time.  Always hard to be away from family and old friends at the holidays, but all these new friends make it much easier.

Today we spent our Christmas on the beach.....surrounded with our beach dogs.  Hermann always goes with us, and the two "security" dogs at the condo as well.  I've managed to pick up the sweetest little Dominican dog who waits outside the condo for me each day and she loves the beach as well.  Matt was talking to a lady on the beach today while I was walking.  I was headed back and Matt said she looked up and saw me coming with these four dogs following me and she turned and decided to go the other way.  I guess we look a little intimidating....especially the two chow security dogs.

Pat and Angie, along with their daughter and granddaughter, joined us at the beach....and brought their little dog Oreo.  So great day for us and the dogs.

For our actual Christmas dinner today we had spaghetti;  Not very traditional, but simple.  BTW, looks like Matt's second batch of fudge turned out great!

We were able to get the magic jack work well enough to get calls through to most of our kids and Matt's mom.  I wasn't able to talk with Ryan though.....he tried to call and we missed him.  I tried to call back but he has his phone turned off as they are in Grand Cayman this week.  Haven't been able to personally tell him "happy 30th birthday" yet!

Christmas Eve Cabellaro Ride

Well this morning is my turn to post since Syd has taken off with Hurricane for a Horseback ride to the mountains.  The girls staying in the condo, Tonye and Jane, upstairs went also. 

I got Syd off and then went to the grocery store, I had planned on taking the Gau Gau but Ken and his wife (in one of the other condo's) caught me at the corner and gave me a ride there and back since they needed to pick up a few things for their very Dominican Christmas dinner tonight.  Syd and I are invited and will stop by for a few minutes but then we will be off to Nancy and Arvid's for a traditional Christmas dinner, more on that later.  Quite a windy and raining day yesterday so no beach but it was nice to stay in and watch football.  Syd and I won our Fantasy Football championship game and the grand prize.  I also made my first batch of fudge.  It came out fairly well but a little soft.  I'm going to make another batch when Syd gets back.  I didn't have Vanilla but got some this morning.  Wishing everyone a very very Merry Christmas.  

Christmas Cabarete Style!

Before I talk about our Christmas plans, I have a few photos that have been sitting on the camera for a while I want to share. 




On this past Tuesday we went to Puerto Plata. Felt like being in a somewhat big city after Cabarete and Sosua. We do want to go back sometime as there is an old fort there that looks very cool, plus I'm sure a lot of other things worth exploring. But for this trip my favorite site was the LaSirena store (picture a super Walmart) where I could buy some of the things I've been missing and the beach malecon. Here's a pic from the malecon.

 

 We have tried and tried to get a good sunrise pic from "our" beach but most mornings there is a big cloud bank off the mountains to the east.  Well, one day this past week we noticed clear skies so scooted out to the beach to take this pic.  That is the palm tree that we sit under during our beach days.



Matt also took a pic of Herm and I watching the sunrise....good beach dog.

Our neighbor Pat asked us if we wanted bananas.  Well...Matt thinks it's required to start each day with a banana (he gets that from his dad) so he quickly said yes and went over to Pat's to get a bunch.  Well I was expecting a bunch like you'd get from the grocery store, but this is what Matt came home with.  The good news is that Pat has about a dozen more trees all ready to produce over the next couple of months.  Not likely we'll run out of bananas!

 

 

 

 

Yesterday was our progressive Christmas party.  Here's a pic of Louise, Greg and Robyn coming to pick us up.  Notice little white dog......more on my favorite Dominican dogs at a later date.  Our first stop is Lynn's house.

 

 

 

 

 

 

David wanted to stop at a comida for some water.  These little stores are about on every block.  You can usually by ice cold beer, water, bread, or a couple of eggs.  And I do mean a couple, they just sell them individually.

I've mentioned before how isolated Lynn is.  On the way to her house we walked by some beautiful houses, a small hotel, and some areas like the one on the left.  This is an abandoned hotel that has been taken over by Haitian squaters.  Just thought these beautiful kids were an excellent example on how much need there is on this island.

We usually run into a couple of cows, calves and even bulls on every walk.  Surprisingly these were fenced.











Now this is Lynn's beautiful house.  Beautiful from the front, from the inside and from the back patio.  It's a very unexpected oasis from some of the poverty we passed.  Lynn has lived all over the world and spent a lot of time in Africa.  She has an amazing collection of African art and collectibles, like the hair combs on the wall above the t.v.



















The next four pics of are all of us gathered on Lynn's porch.  The last one is from the second stop of our progressive happy hour - our place!  We held it at our beautiful pool.







 



 

Aliens Among Us?

I met a couple recently who asked me if we'd been to the penis museum?  Well no actually we hadn't....but tell me more.  Evidently there is an older German guy living in Sosua who spent 20 years (1990-2010) building this huge castle.  He believes that aliens have burrowed into the ground and are now living among us.  So he has filled his castle with artwork of aliens, space ships and penises.  Now not sure how the penises snuck in there, but believe me they did.  So we organize a group to tour this castle.  Caught a ride with Jim who had already been once before (and felt once was definitely enough) but he was going to Sosua to get his car worked on and offered us a ride as long as we find our own way back home.  So six of us climb into the Rodeo with Jim (which was very roomy because the night before there were 9 of us his Rodeo!) and he drops us off at the castle. 

This is a view of the castle (the white building) from the road.  Once we're inside the German guy greeted us and led us through the castle.  There were about four levels and then a couple of "crypts" in the basement.  The electricity was turned off, so we took flashlights into the crypt.  He told us all his stories about the aliens and the Haitians who did the artwork.  He also had a very ominous painting of the twin towers that was done in 1998, that appeared to predict the attack.  He told us a story that the painting was inspired by a muslim who had worked for him and actually flew one of the planes that hit the tower.... because he had "a problem with homosexuality". 

From the top turret the view off to the ocean in Sosua was absolutely amazing. 

 

Well, everyday we say we've seen something we thought we'd never see....and this was definitely the something for today. 



Our Cabarete Friends

I've been wanting to post pics of some of the very cool people we've met down here.  Here are a few.

Robyn is on the left.  She's Canadian and has been coming to Cabarete for about 10 years.  She owned a condo but evidently had a very bad experience with real estate in the DR so she's renting a condo this year in a complex near ours and will be here until March or April.  She's a retired principal and a grandmother. Her husband is still working back in Canada but I hear we'll get the opportunity to meet him soon.  Then there is Angie and Pat, the couple who own the house near our condo.  Angie was in Montana visiting family when we first arrived but just returned this past week.  Then there is David and Louise.  Canadians as well who have been coming here for some time and bought a condo about 10 years ago.  David is a retired parole officer and Louise is an RN.  They usually stay in the DR from November through April and then back to Canada and Louise will work through the summer.  They live on a island in Canada only connected to the mainland via a ferry.  David tells about going into town to pick up the mail, and it sounds like a nearly all day trip.  But I've seen pictures of there place and it's beautiful and very serene.  They seem to have a great life with winters here and then the quiet beauty of that island in the summer.  They are our unofficial social directors and tour guides.  Louise is expecting a new grand baby very soon so they are cutting their stay short this year and will return to Canada in March.  We will hate to see them leave, but can't compete with a grandbaby!

 

Arvid and Nancy are Canadian as well.  He worked for the Canadian government for an agency similar to our OSHA.  Nancy is usually the unoffical photographer, always snapping pics.  So nice to have one with her in it for a change!

 

Now this is Lynn. She's probably one of the most amazing women I've ever met, but if I told her that to her face I would get a scolding.  She's a teacher from England but has spent most of her life volunteering.  I know she's worked in Africa and the southern portion of the DR...but there are also a lot of other places she's been that I've got to admit I have no idea where they are located.  I'd like to sit down with her in front of a world map so she could show me   When it ws time to retire she moved back to England but found it was difficult to afford a comfortable retirement there.  So back to the DR she came.  She bought a beautiful little house....but boy is it remote.  She's actually not too far from our condo but you pass through some horrible roads to get to her house.  She doesn't have a car but instead drives a scooter and there is really not many places she won't go on that scooter....if she can get it out her roads.  The recent rains caused the roads to flood so badly for over a week that she couldn't get the scooter out so instead she walked about 1/2 a mile through standing water, mud, pastures and under barbed wire fences to get to the gaugau.  She's had hip replacements and knee replacements and nothing seems to slow her down.  She has an incredible spirit.  Plus she's so busy....she volunteers a couple of days a week, she also oversees clean up at some condos, and she has a lot of groups she belongs to.  I don't really understand all she does, but I just know she is a hoot.  And she knows everyone.  She told me last night that there was a time she didn't much like Americans, but she'd come to like so many here that she's reconsidered her opinion.  Lucky for us because Matt and I treasure this lady.

 

 

 

And here is a pic of Sosua beach.....our favorite beach in the DR so far!  It's a quiet bay lined with shacks selling food, drinks, beer, artwork, you name it.  And then there are vendors selling fruit, concho salad, shrimp, candy, nut, shoes.  And the sand is so soft - Matt calls it ashtray sand!  Just a fun place to hang out for the day.

Who We're Meeting

This has been a very quiet week for us....I got sick.  I believe it was just Sunday that I bragged we'd been here two weeks and no issues....and then it hit me.  If we were in Mexico it would be Montezumas Revenge, but not sure what to call it in the DR.  Maybe the Cabarete ChaCha?   Will after two days staying close to the apartment, I'm finally all better!

We have met so many really interesting, kind and enjoyable people while here!  I'd like to eventually talk a little about each of them, so for today, here's Pat...and of course Oreo.  Pat lives in a house very near our condo and we met him on the beach.  He is one of the few Americans we've met here.  He has lived here three years and is here year round.  In his past life he was a teacher in Wyoming and also owned a bar.  His wife had been visiting family in Wyoming for the past month, but she just returned home on Monday.  Pat gave us the run down of what to do, where to go and invited us to our first social event - happy hour on Cabarete beach -- which is where we met so many of our other new friends.  He's one of  the few we've met who actually owns a car and he never rides the gaugaus - probably because dogs are frowned upon on the gaugaus and Pat never goes anywhere without Oreo.  At the beach for happy hour Oreo just roams around, sometimes she gets out of sight and Pat has to hunt for her.  Pat will (hopefully) soon he a TV star - he was filmed for an episode of Househunters International a few months ago.  I have always heard how staged that show is, that they only feature people who have already bought their homes and then HHI restages the hunt.  Pat had already been in his home over two years when the showed was filmed.  They had to actually clear all their things out of the house before filming.  No word when the show will air, but I think a watch party would be fun!  Pat has been great to give us rides to town....and back home after happy hour.  This is very nice as the gaugaus quit running about 6:30. 

Here's a pic of Matt and I on the beach in Cabarete at night.  Not a good pic, but I love the background.  It shows a peek of what it's like there in the evening.  With all the lights hungs out and the cozy furniture arranged in the sand.  It is so much fun!

Last night was the peak of the meteorite shower and we were determined we would see it.  We sprayed ourselves with Off! and grabbed the beach chairs and Herm (and a cocktail for me) and headed for the beach where we met Pat.  By about 9 a cloud cover had rolled in over the horizon and it was decided we'd need to wait for it to clear before we could get a good view.  I was getting sleepy and chilly and the effects of the cocktail were working on me so I gave up.  Matt and Pat waited it out and he said it was a nice show;.