Dominican Republic – Puerto Plata

by Bistra Yakimova on 04/10/2014 with No Comments

Taking into account the knowledge we gathered during the previous days we couldn’t force ourselves to pay 35-50 dollars for a city tour of Puerto Plata. Our self-organized stroll passed normally, pleasantly and without a hitch.

We went to the main road from Sosúa to Puerto Plata. There we had to catch a bus or transporte (the local improved version of taxis – the itinerary is fixed and there is no upper limit to the number of passengers). We saw a transporte and quickly negotiated to hire it only for us for a lower fee about 4 times lower than that of a taxi. There was room for further lowering of the price but we decided not to push our luck. After all, we were about to occupy the whole car, when normally it took 7 to 8 passengers.

self-organized trip to Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic

We had no problem finding our way in the city – the Amber Museum, the central square with the cathedral.

Several local guides surrounded us, how come we are walking around on our own? We were easy prey when they spotted the bracelets from the hotel. We put up a heroic fight and a hundred pictures later it is time to head towards the beach lane and the fortress. The fortress has withstood several complete destructions of the city and now stands proudly by the sea and the meadow behind it is joy to the eye. At the same time it is next to the oil tanks, but what is more beautiful than the mix of history and modern reality.

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When looking towards the shore you can glimpse the statue of Jesus from time to time. This mountaintop is our next stop.

After a bit of haggling and some walking we find the mototaxis at an acceptable price. We whirr to the first station of El Teleferico (a cable car) that is about to take us to Loma Isabel de Torres. In no time we find ourselves in a real tropical forest, hidden above the clouds. The view below is hidden by a white curtain. We wait patiently and we are in luck – it lifts and we are greeted by the view of the whole city and the beach. The best present for my birthday!