My Destiny - Paradise

I wasn't sure if I would actually make it to Las Terrenas today. I woke up very early, mostly because I went to be very early last night. My bedroom was cool, but as soon as I stepped out into the living room, I could feel the heat. I opened the door and stepped out on to the balcony and could feel the fresh coolness of the morning as the sun beat directly into my apartment. I knew if I didn't leave I would regret it. Remnants of last night - ashtrays, cups and bottles were strewn around the pool. Today being Sunday only promised more drinking and loudness from my hotel mates. I sent a desperate e-mail to Playa Colibri yesterday telling them I was in Boca Chica and wanted to return to Las Terrenas. I asked them if they had anything available. This morning when I got up I had not received a response and figured I wouldn't until later in the day - once they got to checking their e-mail. I decided to chance it and just come, knowing that it was low season, that they had plenty of rooms and that if they were full, there are lots of other places nearby. I went downstairs and told the guy in the office I was checking out and needed a taxi to the bus station. He told me I had to pay $20 penalty for canceling my reservation. I thought this sucked, but it wasn't the hotel's fault that they were located in the gates of hell. I was willing to pay anything to get out. The taxi showed up a little before 9. The driver was friendly and spoke a lot. I understood about 70 per cent of what he said. He told me he was not married and had two daughters with another one due this week. He told me his mother's youngest son had 11 kids and no job. I was thinking that the Catholic Church should be made to support all of these kids who are born into families that can't support them. Birth control would make such a difference in a country like this. Those 11 kids who are probably being raised by their mothers while their father is running around impregnating more women, will end up being lured into crime, drugs or prostitution, since there are so few other options here for people with no money. I got to the bus station at 9:30, and fortunately, thanks to my blog from last year, I remembered to ask for a ticket to Sanchez. The girl behind the window was surly and took her time taking my money and giving me my ticket and change. I went upstairs to the cafeteria to get something to eat, since I had only had a few nuts and some cheese at my hotel. I asked for two empanadas. The woman at the register asked me "two?" kind of incredulously. I said yes. She asked, "anything else?" again seeming somewhat surprised that I was only getting two empanadas. I kind of smiled and said, "no", thinking it was a bit of an odd interaction, but maybe I was just imagining it. I found my bus which had a sign in Spanish and English. The sign said "Destino" and then the translation, which should have been destination, was "destiny". I thought, 'yes, Las Terrenas is my destiny.' I was the second person to board the bus and could not wait. I was prepared with a jacket, knowing it would be very cold, and it was, but it felt so good! Finally, at 10 a.m., we pulled away and began our journey. The driver had some radio station that was playing easy listening songs in English, like the Stylistics, Rick Astley, etc. I was humming along since I knew most of the songs. Then he turned the radio off, and I thought we would ride in silence. Instead, he put some merengue DVD on and I could see and hear a music video. I was so happy to be on my way to Las Terrenas, I didn't care. I sort of dozed off and then woke up to see a movie with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. They were cops and it involved a lot of cussing, police chases and blowing up of things. I dozed off again and woke up and looked at my watch and it was 11:30! I couldn't believe I had slept for almost an hour. I wonder how loudly I was snoring... We took the new highway which takes half as long to get to Sanchez as the old one. I woke up as we were winding down a mountain pass and a few cows wandered across the highway. When we arrived at Sanchez, a lot of people got off but a few stayed on because there was another stop. Outside the bus a crowd of men gathered looking kind of like the pictures you see of desperate people trying to grab food from a UN food convoy. I knew what they were waiting for ... me! Everyone else I suppose was just walking or getting met by friends or family, but I was a source of income for these guys. They asked me if I needed a taxi or motorbike. I had done the motorbike thing last year and even though it was an adventure, this year I had an extra bag with my laptop and preferred to go in relative comfort. I told them I wanted a taxi. One guy grabbed my bag and brought it to the taxi. The first time this ever happened to me was in Indonesia when a small kid grabbed my bag and then insisted I pay him. I was furious because I could have carried the bag myself. Today I willingly let the guy grab my bag and willingly gave him 50 pesos (about $1.50). We then stood at the taxi with my bag in the back and had a discussion between me, the taxi driver and two motorbike drivers. One had apparently just finished a cracker or something because he had crumbs on his lips that flew at me when he spoke. He was the most aggressive of the three. They asked me if I knew how much the taxi was. I told them 400 pesos, thinking that the taxi was 400 pesos and the motorbike was 200. They said, no, the moto was 400 and the taxi was 1500. 1500?!! Wow, I really felt like they were trying to rip me off. I considered taking the moto, but said I had a big bag. The younger and less aggressive moto driver who didn't have crumbs on his lips told me it was no problem. I asked him to show me his bike, and he pointed to it. Then the taxi driver pounded on the seat and told me to get in - dust flying up from the seat as he hit it. I thought he was going to negotiate the price with me. He was a portly older guy named "el chivo" (the goat). I told him I did not remember paying that much last year. He told me times were tough since tourism is down. I remembered that we are having a global economic crisis. I started to soften. And then it hit me. I did pay 1500 last year for a taxi and 400 for the moto. There was no cheating going on, just a little competition over the small crumbs I was going to throw in someone's direction. El Chivo told me that prices were up, gasoline was more expensive, and tourism was way down. He tried to get me to commit to having him pick me up next Saturday when I return to Sanchez. He asked me if I wanted a nice clean girl. I told him I would call him next Saturday and was not interested in a girl. I didn't tell him why I left Boca Chica. 

The streets of Las Terrenas were very quiet, as the streets of Santo Domingo were. Both of my drivers pointed this out and told me it was because today was mother's day. Most people were at home or had gone somewhere, many to return to spend the day with their mothers. As soon as we hit the road that runs along the beach I felt a sense of calm and relief come over me. The ocean was beautiful and the air felt fantastic. The beach road was dry and had only one big puddle, whereas last year it was nearly a river. Playa Colibri had a room for me, no problem. Everything is pretty much the same, but two things are better. There is air-conditioning in the bedroom (if I need it) and the restaurant is open. I went into town to go to the supermarket, fortunately, I took a moto-taxi, because when we got to the Plaza Rosada where the French supermarket is, it was obvious it was closed. I told the driver there was no point in me stopping. He drove a bit to find another supermarket, but everything in town was closed. I told him to just take me back and paid him for the round trip (100 pesos). I then went to the restaurant and had a delicious piece of grilled fish with a side of steamed vegetables, went for a swim and had a nice walk on the beach. I'm looking forward to my week in paradise, which I will appreciate even more after having experienced a little bit of hell.