Christmas Vacation in the Dominican Republic

[slim 1,514]

That was about $ 7.00 in real money.

It doesn't seem like real money until you convert it, does it? When you're spending all those "funny colored papers" it seems like Monopoly money or something. Doesn't really hurt until the Greenbacks are calculated.

Had a neat day today though. Took a submarine ride to 127 feet down and past an old wreck. Neat experenice.

Awesome!

[Turboguy 6]

Well the sticker shock gets to you a bit. We have eaten most of our meals at home. Whey you pick up a small whole chicken in the supermarket and look at the price and it says $ 25.00 even though that is only $ 12.50 in real money it does make you pause for a second. A little lean cuisine personal pizza is $ 10.00 The last meal we ate out a 6 oz burger and fries were $ 20.00. in a very ordinary restaurant.

When you go to the grocery store and have two little plastic bags of groceries and the tab went over $ 100.00 it does make you think.

[slim 1,514]

I would think about going somewhere else!

How can the locals afford to eat? (If you don't see where I'm going with this.... where/what do they eat? Maybe you could eat the same things or at the same places.)

[Turboguy 6]

I would think about going somewhere else!

How can the locals afford to eat? (If you don't see where I'm going with this.... where/what do they eat? Maybe you could eat the same things or at the same places.)

Our grocery shopping has been in the supermarkets the locals visit. We have even looked for the cheapest markets to shop in but they are mostly about the same. We avoid the "convenience store" type places.

During our first 6 weeks here we only ate in a restaurant one time and that was in a food court at the mall. In the last few days we did hit one restaurant for a Lobster dinner for her surf and turf for me and the burger joint I talked about so we are now up to 3 restaurant meals. I don't really care and am not complaining just trying to give some insight into life here.

We also have not done much high speed tourist stuff but we are going out today and riding jet skis

[slim 1,514]

Sounds like you guys are having fun. That's really cool! You're lucky to be somewhere that you can enjoy each other's company... that's priceless. (Although I'm sure when you convert it to "real money" it's going to be quite pricey! - maybe better to not convert it!)

It's amazing to me the food is so expensive. I would probably drop under two bills if I moved there. (Elena might make me move now!)

Edited July 31, 2007 by slim

[Turboguy 6]

We got curious how much people made who live both here in Barbados and in Granada since the food and housing is so high. We did a little internet search and found the per capita income in Barbados is $ 7,000 and in Grenada $ 2700.00 We then found a forum for the students who came from America to study here with three pages of discussion where they are trying to figure out how the natives afford the grocery prices here.

[Turboguy 6]

How can the locals afford to eat? (If you don't see where I'm going with this.... where/what do they eat? Maybe you could eat the same things or at the same places.)

Sure, eat what they eat. I am not sure which grossed me out the worst in the supermarket. The package with about 50 chicken feet (tallons might be the right word) all lined up in a row in the package or the package of beef toungues.

They buy a lot of their stuff at the outdoor market on Saturday morning and it is a wonder they are not all in the hospital by sunday night.

[dmhweb 0]

How can the locals afford to eat? (If you don't see where I'm going with this.... where/what do they eat? Maybe you could eat the same things or at the same places.)

Sure, eat what they eat. I am not sure which grossed me out the worst in the supermarket. The package with about 50 chicken feet (tallons might be the right word) all lined up in a row in the package or the package of beef toungues.

They buy a lot of their stuff at the outdoor market on Saturday morning and it is a wonder they are not all in the hospital by sunday night.

LOL

Reminds me of the open air meat market in Khabarovsk...

Check out the butcher with the broad axe.

[russ 1]

They buy a lot of their stuff at the outdoor market on Saturday morning and it is a wonder they are not all in the hospital by sunday night.

I've seen such markets in every Russian city I've been to. They are open every day.

If you spend any time on a farm or at a butcher shop in the states, you would see worse

Just imagine how all that tasty salami in Russia is made...

[slim 1,514]

Sure, eat what they eat. I am not sure which grossed me out the worst in the supermarket. The package with about 50 chicken feet (tallons might be the right word) all lined up in a row in the package or the package of beef toungues.

They buy a lot of their stuff at the outdoor market on Saturday morning and it is a wonder they are not all in the hospital by sunday night.

Sounds a lot like Korea..... and Russia, and just about every other country in the world. The only reason stuff in the U.S. looks cleaner is because it "looks" cleaner. It's still a cut-up dead animal, it's just packaged. (and refrigerated!)

I don't know about eating chicken talons or beef tongues daily, but you could probably find something at the markets that is edible and significantly cheaper than what you're eating now.

Edited: Where's the seafood???? (All that rice and you can't throw a piece of fish in there without breaking the bank?)

Edited August 2, 2007 by slim

[CityCat 0]

Edited: Where's the seafood???? (All that rice and you can't throw a piece of fish in there without breaking the bank?)

Seafood is regional - transportation is not really Russia's best service (as you know, we don't have roads there - just destinations) so fresh SEAfood stays by the SEA shores, like Vladivostok or the Caucasus. Fish and other fresh water creatures can be bought at such open markets the same way as meat, but it will be the catch of the day of some guy who wants to make a couple of rubles. There are alternatives though:

- the catch of the day of the fish farm (alive, of course, the gutting is part of the fun)

- or the catch of the day of the super pricey supermarkets and you can get anything you want, alive or gutted, shelled or soft, you name it, but the price...

This is the situation with my home-town at least.

[CityCat 0]

Edited: Where's the seafood???? (All that rice and you can't throw a piece of fish in there without breaking the bank?)

Seafood is regional - transportation is not really Russia's best service (as you know, we don't have roads there - just destinations) so fresh SEAfood stays by the SEA shores, like Vladivostok or the Caucasus. Fish and other fresh water creatures can be bought at such open markets the same way as meat, but it will be the catch of the day of some guy who wants to make a couple of rubles. There are alternatives though:

- the catch of the day of the fish farm (alive, of course, the gutting is part of the fun)

- or the catch of the day of the super pricey supermarkets and you can get anything you want, alive or gutted, shelled or soft, you name it, but the price...

This is the situation with my home-town at least.

Well, this post would be more relevant in the food thread, wouldn't it?

[slim 1,514]

I don't know. All I know is I'm hungry!

[natarussia 0]

For what it's worth ...

We went to the Domincan Republic and stayed at an all-inclusive resort. We stayed at the Coral by Hiton and we had a wonderful time. The meals were included in the price, rooms were air conditioned, right on the beach, included bar drinks, jacuzzi, balcony looking over the ocean. It was just great. We only needed our passports (mine US, hers Russian) and do the money conversion in the airport. It was the only place that was regulated.

The official name (if you want to do a search for it) is Hamaca Coral by Hilton, Boca Chica ... it is about 45 minutes from Santo Domingo. The average nightly rate is about $110 if you book direct. If you want my travel agent's name, you can PM me and I'll give it to you. She is Russian and she claimed to know what Russians expect when on a vacation ... she was right.

Take care,

Dwayne and Natalia