The Dominican Republic is part of a Caribbean island called Hispaniola. Christopher Columbus stopped here on December 5, 1492. Hispaniola is made up of two countries, Haiti and Dominican Republic. Spanish is the local language and there are lots of sugar cane fields as well as beautiful, sandy beaches with warm aqua colored water.
We stayed in a resort area called Punta Cana. It is on the tip of the island with one portion of Punta Cana on the Caribbean Sea and the other portion on the Atlantic Ocean. We did a lovely day trip to the capital, Santo Domingo. We spent the majority of the day exploring a historic area called Zona Colonial.
Zona Colonial is filled with narrow, cobblestone streets and beautiful Spanish Colonial architecture. We visited churches and a house where Christopher Columbus's son, Diego Colon lived. The Zona Colonial is located along the Ozama River, which then reaches to the Caribbean Sea.
As part of our all day tour, we had a lovely lunch at a local restaurant. The food served in the Dominican Republic includes a lot of beans, rice, fresh fruit, chicken and fish. It was delicious! Our guide was extremely knowledgeable with the history of the country and current events. We learned a lot!
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| Punta Cana airport |
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| Punta Cana airport -notice the thatched roof! |
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| Punta Cana beach |
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| Gate to Zona Colonia |
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| Typical street of Zona Colonia |
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| A lighthouse in Santo Domingo |
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| The Dominican Republic flag |
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| Fort |
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| Street in Zona Colonia |
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| Presidential Palace in Santo Domingo |
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| House of Diego Colon |
