This post used to contain pictures, but due to new storage limitations from WordPress, I had to fix the problem and decided to create a new blog that works as an archive for all the posts from my two years in California. This full post can be found here.

This day has been amazing, awesome, great, fantastic, and all the other positive adjectives. It started with me waking up with an uncountable amount of mosquito bites (I hope they don’t have any stupid diseases), then packing everything and trying to communicating with the receptionist again. After a while and talking to another guy on the phone I gave up and asked her if I could get a taxi somehow. She called someone and a guy named Jose picked me up. He spoke English very well and explained to me that the receptionist lady tried telling me that she would need to go to the bank to get the money out for me. So she tagged a long and gave me 6500 Dominican pesos. I paid 10100 for the whole stay, so that was fair I guess. We dropped her off and then we decided that I needed a tour of things. So this super nice guy drove me around all day to all these amazing places.

First we went to a beach called Macao Beach. It was incredibly beautiful, but much seaweed. The waves there were huge and a lot of people actually surfed. We only went there very quickly so I could see it and take some photos. That is a very common beach to take wedding photos.

Back on the road and I got to drive for a bit, that was fun and thrilling. People here drive like a-holes but I managed to survive. Jose told me that the police here doesn’t care about how people are driving so tickets are never handed out. The school buses here aren’t used as school buses, but as hotel employee shuttles and they drive even worse than the average Dominican. I also learned a lot of about the four different palm trees that exists here. There is the national palm tree that is called the Cana. The second one is the banana palm, the third the coconut, and the fourth one, the super skinny and tall one. Everything on that palm tree is used for something. The trunk is used to build houses here, the green ”spine” on the top is used for something I actually forgot now. I know that the heart of that can be eaten. And the leaves are used for building roofs. That is sustainability.

We stopped for lunch next and we had real Dominican food. It was good, but way overpriced. I had a fried whole fish, shrimp, djuka and platano frito. Djuka is a potato-like thing that taste kinda like potato. It was deep fried and looked like thick French fries. Platano Frito is a banana-like fruit if I don’t  misremember completely. It was all very good. We also had a typical Dominican Republic drink called Mamajuana. It is called Dominican Viagra (I am not 100% sure why, but I have a guess) and consists of rum and sweet red wine (and sometimes honey), all poured over a special type of leaf. It was good.

A cute marketplace right next to my hotel where I am definitely going.

Our next stop was Cap Cana, an incredibly fancy place. First we went to Playa Juanillo which was the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. That was exactly like Google’s pictures of the Caribbean. Blinding white sand, turquoise water, tall palm trees lining all the beach. I was breathless. I went in the water quickly and Jose took some pictures (so I won’t have to take selfies all the time).

The next stop was Hoyo Azul, a freshwater pond in the middle of the rainforest. When I got there I once again had a jaw-dropping view. That water was so intense blue and clear it was ridiculous. I jumped in and the water was cool which was welcomed in today’s heat, around 85F (the water at Juanillo Beach was 80F).

 We saw a green snake! Rainforest trail.Before the amazingness.  The amazingness.The cool amazingness.

I found a new feature on my phone. The panorama feature has four sub features. One that takes twice as big pictures and one that takes circle pictures. I had to take like 20 pictures to make this one. It actually turned out pretty okay compared to reality.

Our last stop was at an excursion place where I booked a day trip to Saona Island. I chose Tuesday, but after checking the weather today I think I should reschedule to Thursday. According to Google there will be a chance of rain and storm every day until Wednesday. I will call tomorrow and reschedule to Thursday. That island is supposed to be very beautiful and that trip is best when it’s good weather. We are taking a catamaran out to the island and then also to a natural pond out in nowhere (in the ocean). The water is only waist high, super clear, and there are a lot of starfish. I am excited for it.

And then to my new hotel. It is humungous and several different parts. I am staying at the “all adults” place, and then there is one right next door where kids are allowed. I love this hotel, people here speak English, it’s huge, it’s pretty and the room is really good. They have cute Christmas decorations so it feels like Christmas (kinda). When I was checking in at 4pm I was served fruit punch and then got help with my suitcase to my room. I got my bracelet which tells everyone I have all-inclusive. I have to admit that I like it. It does not feel weird eating alone because there are a lot of other people doing that too. And the rest of the day I will just be alone at the beach anyway.

 The room is pretty sweet. I just wish I had gotten a king size bed instead of two queen. View from my room. I can see both the ocean and pool.So many things in the bathroom! The beach right outside my hotel is so pretty! The hotel night-time. All the palm trees has lights on them. The hotel lobby.A christmas tree!

Right after I checked in, I went to the beach for a little while, the sun was down, but it was still nice. Then I went up, took a shower and went to eat the buffet dinner. The food was good, but I have to think about how much I am eating, I was hoping this trip would get me skinny again. I had a glass of wine with the food, and then went back to the beach. I lay on one of the sunbeds closest to the ocean, right under a palm tree, watching the stars, listening to the waves rolling in, and watching the occasional shooting star in only shorts and t-shirt. I don’t have a word to describe it. It was everything I love about life.

I am planning on going up early tomorrow morning and spend as much time by the beach as I can. I hope that the weather will be nice and that I will be able to get some color. So far none, maybe a little bit in my face, because I do have this aftersun tiredness going on. Or maybe I am just exhausted from being out and about all day. Tomorrow anyway will be a day all about relaxing. I look forward to it.