Sosúa

Four weeks in the Dominican Republic and we hadn’t yet stepped foot on the beach. So this past weekend we reserved our tickets and hopped on the bus to Sosua, near Puerto Plato on the north coast of the island. Roughly five hours later, we unwittingly found ourselves in the middle of the commercial sex capital of the Dominican Republic. Lonely Planet warned us that there was a large expat community in the town and that prostitution there was practiced openly, but that statement could have just as easily applied to Vegas or Bangkok, neither of which is especially off-putting. Sosua, however, proved to be in a class of its own. The town of 47,000 inhabitants is overrun with Americans, Brits, Canadians, Germans, and Scandinavians, practically all of whom are there for one purpose (well two, if you count the beach): procurement of sexual services at an affordable price. While certain bars and other establishments serve as the center of economic activity, scantily-clad women selling their wares can be found around every corner and in any place where the moneyed and unattached congregate.

The sex trade there is so commonplace that prostitution goes well beyond the customary pay-per service arrangements in local parks after dusk or at seedy motels on the edge of town. In Sosua, professionals were commissioned for services both behind closed doors and in the glaring light of day. In addition to traditional sex-worker duties, the women of Sosua also played the role of rented girlfriend. It was very common for visiting and resident men to be seen sharing a meal or a drink with their new temporary girlfriends alongside a group of friends on vacation or a young family grabbing a bite to eat after a day at the beach. It also wasn’t uncommon for a gentleman to have, for all intents a purposes, one seemingly committed relationship at breakfast and an entirely different one by dinnertime. Any visitor to Sosua quickly learns that something as trivial as a shared language or other means of communication is nothing to stand in the way of true love. What matters is that each man is wholly committed to the woman at his side, even if that commitment is only to last for a span of a few hours.

Overall, we had a really good time in Sosua: the beach was clean, the water was crystal clear, the food was good, and the drinks were beyond cheap. It was also very possible to spend an evening out in town and forget that rampant prostitution was on display all around you. However, witnessing innumerable instances the overt objectification of women wherever you go begins to wear on one’s sense of decency and acceptable behavior. So while it was definitely good to once again get out of the city, our next adventure will be somewhere that doesn’t make us feel that we need a shower upon exit.

Jarabacoa

In our first trip outside of the capital, we hung out with a few friends in Jarabacoa for some lounging, hiking and wholesome boardgame fun. Although Jarabacoa is only a couple hours away, it was a great break from the heat and traffic of Santo Domingo.

Puerto Rico

On the way to the Dominican Republic, we made a pit stop in San Juan. It was weird seeing the same street signs that we have in the US, except that they were in Spanish. The whole time, we kept forgetting that we were still in the US.