I'm presently on my honeymoon, so the regular Legwork and Life is on hold because I am doing no Legwork towards my career and this is hardly a normal mode of Life. Instead, I'm chronicling my adventures here in Punta Cana, since the Dominican Republic is hardly the same experience as my life in the United States.
When we flew in, we noted we were flying right into an enormous storm front. So now today, we've woken up to a thunderstorm. A very emphatic one. The weather forecast says it'll be storming pretty much for the next week. I'm hoping maybe it'll clear up a bit, not because of the beach, but because I was kind of hoping to go see some of the native culture. It might be difficult to do that in the rain.
Another observation that strikes me. When we flew in, before the rain set in, I noted that the forest area was really not very palm-tree-y. Here at the resort, though, they mostly specialize in that. The native forest (jungle?) doesn't look very easy to walk through, with great creeping vines, thick foliage, etc, but I'd still like to try. I mean, palm trees are nice, but if I'm going to be here, I really want to see more than the tourist experience... The rain might make that hard, though.
I've brought out Google Translate, an app for my tablet, so I can read signage while walking. It's fancy: you can just point the camera at the sign and it'll translate the Spanish to English for you. So I tried it out on the Emergency Exit sign, and it did a lovely job. It uses character recognition to get the letters and spaces, then puts them through a regular Google Translate search. Then it uses the returned words, in English, and transposes them over the picture on your device. It's a neat bit of programming.
I'm likely to be in this resort room a lot, given the intensity of the rain. So a cool thing about these rooms. They have hybrid electrical outlets. They're simultaneously able to power standard US plugs, and power the European standard plugs, which are wider apart and often don't have a ground prong. I'll get a picture to demonstrate.
I just did a bit of homework. Apparently in this country and several around it, the standard electrical outlets are the same as the ones in the US, meaning I needn't have packed my converter in the picture there. Oops. At least it made for a cool reference picture.
(A couple days later) The rain looks to be continuing, and there's a tropical depression brewing. Its projected path is away from here, though, so other than being poured on, there shouldn't be any ill effects for this place. Hope Panama will be okay, though, it's right in the projected path. : /
I'm finding the birds (actually frogs) at night to be hard to get used to. They're noisy little things, tree frogs rather than the ground variety I'm used to, and nearly impossible to locate. It's kind of astonishing how loud they are, given the size, but I ought to know better. The little fluffball sparrows near my apartment at home are at least as loud, and only slightly bigger.
The sound of the rain helps. It's kind of odd. The soundproofing in the room is excellent on the balcony side, and terrible on the entryway side. I can always hear the rain from the entryway, and almost never from the balcony. I would almost thank the tropical depression, except that I can't kill my monitor tan if it's super cloudy and raining all the time.
Chris and I did go for a walk along the beach while it was raining, though. We just chose minimal clothes we didn't mind getting soaked, and went off. We were going to swim, too, but the beach guards insisted we not. The stated reason was because of the rain, but I presume it wasn't just that. The guide in the hotel room has a system of flags denoting reasons like "jellyfish" and "riptides." I didn't see a flag out there, but I didn't know to look for one at the time, either.
I came here with the intent to learn some Spanish and visit some of the local culture, but looking around this place and speaking to the hotel staff, I get the feeling that's not really an option. I get better responses to saying "thank you" than I do to saying "gracias." I've literally said "gracias" and been flatly ignored. It's a little disheartening.
I recognize that for a place like this, the local culture is not really the point, that you're expected to just spend lots of money and be pampered. But the English of many of these folks isn't great either, so I feel a little frustrated.
Speaking of the culture of this place... it's a cross between beach culture, American drinker culture, and party culture. I have never seen so much free alcohol in my life. There are literally four big bottles of alcohol sitting in our room. If I emptied them, room service would bring me more, free of charge. The minifridge is stocked with beer and things you mix with booze. (And bottled water, thankfully, because you don't drink the tap water here.)
The result of mixing all those cultures is... odd. There's little to no traces of local culture involved, beyond the special events (not even sure about those) and the main language of the staff. It makes me feel rather out of place.
I think, to be fair, I would probably feel out of place in most any culture in this country, including any actual native cultures. Asperger Syndrome (autism) has been compared to permanent culture shock. I believe there was an entire website called Wrong Planet Syndrome, which was a gathering point for people on the spectrum. The idea being that people with autism were kind of like space aliens, in our reactions and understanding of culture and society.
I certainly feel like a space alien here. I barely drink, except with lots of company or at special occasions. Chris isn't drinking because he doesn't really like it that much. And we haven't gone out of our way to meet the other guests here at the hotel, which I'm guessing is what you're supposed to do, given my observations.
Mostly, Chris and I have visited the various facilities, including at least half the restaurants by now, and checked out some of the live entertainment. The former I'll probably write about in more depth later, but the latter I can summarize briefly: loud, group-oriented, and way too enthusiastic for me.
They vary up the entertainment each day, with major events at 9:30pm every night. Tonight's was billed as "Dominican Folklore," but turned out to be dancing. With somewhat scantily clad ladies, because of course. Tomorrow's is a Michael Jackson tribute/impersonator. Another is a magic show.
During the day there are also various smaller events, like a cooking lesson, beanbag toss, and card games. These are accompanied by loud music, which has thus far kept me far away from them. They're optional, all of it is, so I don't really feel like I'm hurting anyone's feelings by skittering by with my Pokemon GO out.
I have gone out for a few walks, both with Chris and without. The temperature has varied from 75 (just right) to 82 (uncomfortable), but with the sea breeze/winds from the tropical depression, it's generally been pleasant. I've done a circuit of the outside of the hotel, as well as gone a good ways down the beach. While I imagine it'd be even prettier in full sunlight, I've enjoyed the night air and gentler rains as well.
Plans for the next few days involve going to check out two nearby museums. Apparently they have a Dominican Republic Culture museum, as well as a Chocolate museum. I'm a little dubious of the authenticity of either place, but I'll take whatever introduction to this country I can get. Plus, hey, chocolate. I fully expect there to be tourist traps- I mean, gift shops- at the end of both museums, so I can also try to get souvenirs.
Hopefully in a couple more days the stormy weather will clear up, too. I already managed to crisp my shoulders a bit, but the rest of me could use more sun. I'm very pale for the lack of sun in life normally, and it'd amuse me to go through this winter with a nice, deep tan.
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| Top: US 2 prong. Mid: European 2 prong. Low: US 3 prong. Right: The one outlet to rule them all. |
(A couple days later) The rain looks to be continuing, and there's a tropical depression brewing. Its projected path is away from here, though, so other than being poured on, there shouldn't be any ill effects for this place. Hope Panama will be okay, though, it's right in the projected path. : /
I'm finding the birds (actually frogs) at night to be hard to get used to. They're noisy little things, tree frogs rather than the ground variety I'm used to, and nearly impossible to locate. It's kind of astonishing how loud they are, given the size, but I ought to know better. The little fluffball sparrows near my apartment at home are at least as loud, and only slightly bigger.
The sound of the rain helps. It's kind of odd. The soundproofing in the room is excellent on the balcony side, and terrible on the entryway side. I can always hear the rain from the entryway, and almost never from the balcony. I would almost thank the tropical depression, except that I can't kill my monitor tan if it's super cloudy and raining all the time.
Chris and I did go for a walk along the beach while it was raining, though. We just chose minimal clothes we didn't mind getting soaked, and went off. We were going to swim, too, but the beach guards insisted we not. The stated reason was because of the rain, but I presume it wasn't just that. The guide in the hotel room has a system of flags denoting reasons like "jellyfish" and "riptides." I didn't see a flag out there, but I didn't know to look for one at the time, either.
I came here with the intent to learn some Spanish and visit some of the local culture, but looking around this place and speaking to the hotel staff, I get the feeling that's not really an option. I get better responses to saying "thank you" than I do to saying "gracias." I've literally said "gracias" and been flatly ignored. It's a little disheartening.
I recognize that for a place like this, the local culture is not really the point, that you're expected to just spend lots of money and be pampered. But the English of many of these folks isn't great either, so I feel a little frustrated.
Speaking of the culture of this place... it's a cross between beach culture, American drinker culture, and party culture. I have never seen so much free alcohol in my life. There are literally four big bottles of alcohol sitting in our room. If I emptied them, room service would bring me more, free of charge. The minifridge is stocked with beer and things you mix with booze. (And bottled water, thankfully, because you don't drink the tap water here.)
The result of mixing all those cultures is... odd. There's little to no traces of local culture involved, beyond the special events (not even sure about those) and the main language of the staff. It makes me feel rather out of place.
I think, to be fair, I would probably feel out of place in most any culture in this country, including any actual native cultures. Asperger Syndrome (autism) has been compared to permanent culture shock. I believe there was an entire website called Wrong Planet Syndrome, which was a gathering point for people on the spectrum. The idea being that people with autism were kind of like space aliens, in our reactions and understanding of culture and society.
I certainly feel like a space alien here. I barely drink, except with lots of company or at special occasions. Chris isn't drinking because he doesn't really like it that much. And we haven't gone out of our way to meet the other guests here at the hotel, which I'm guessing is what you're supposed to do, given my observations.
Mostly, Chris and I have visited the various facilities, including at least half the restaurants by now, and checked out some of the live entertainment. The former I'll probably write about in more depth later, but the latter I can summarize briefly: loud, group-oriented, and way too enthusiastic for me.
They vary up the entertainment each day, with major events at 9:30pm every night. Tonight's was billed as "Dominican Folklore," but turned out to be dancing. With somewhat scantily clad ladies, because of course. Tomorrow's is a Michael Jackson tribute/impersonator. Another is a magic show.
During the day there are also various smaller events, like a cooking lesson, beanbag toss, and card games. These are accompanied by loud music, which has thus far kept me far away from them. They're optional, all of it is, so I don't really feel like I'm hurting anyone's feelings by skittering by with my Pokemon GO out.
I have gone out for a few walks, both with Chris and without. The temperature has varied from 75 (just right) to 82 (uncomfortable), but with the sea breeze/winds from the tropical depression, it's generally been pleasant. I've done a circuit of the outside of the hotel, as well as gone a good ways down the beach. While I imagine it'd be even prettier in full sunlight, I've enjoyed the night air and gentler rains as well.
Plans for the next few days involve going to check out two nearby museums. Apparently they have a Dominican Republic Culture museum, as well as a Chocolate museum. I'm a little dubious of the authenticity of either place, but I'll take whatever introduction to this country I can get. Plus, hey, chocolate. I fully expect there to be tourist traps- I mean, gift shops- at the end of both museums, so I can also try to get souvenirs.
Hopefully in a couple more days the stormy weather will clear up, too. I already managed to crisp my shoulders a bit, but the rest of me could use more sun. I'm very pale for the lack of sun in life normally, and it'd amuse me to go through this winter with a nice, deep tan.
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