No point going to the Dominican Republic without getting into the water for a snorkel. We recently spent five nights at Playa de Arena Blanca beach in Punta Cana, on the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic, with longtime friend Henry and his family.
When they signed up for a boat tour, we said, “Count us in!”
We queued up on the beach with some of the crew while the captain brought the double-hulled catamaran closer to shore and sent a water taxi to ferry us to the boat.
A staged photo. Thanks, Dimitri!
The captain wore a black tee shirt with the words, “Pain is weakness leaving the body,” a motto that will inspire me for the rest of my life.
The place our captain chose for a swim did not have as much sargassum as the water closer to shore, but it wasn’t seaweed-free. Seaweed, smeeweed, we said, and jumped in.
I don’t have any photos of us in goggles and a spout, which is just as well because the way those things push our lips around, nobody needs to see that. Really.
Punta Cana, at a tropical 18.58 degrees north of the equator, had the kind of swimming we loved so much in Belize and Nicaragua, and on Guam and Hawaii. Eye-popping blue and bathtub-warm.
At one point, over the pounding music and the roar of the engines, I got an earful from Dimitri about discrimination towards Haitians by Dominicans. For a few moments, I thought he was talking about Asians, because that is how he pronounced Haitians. “They think ‘Asians” this,” and “They think ‘Asians” that. Eventually, I realized he was talking about his experience, about coming to this side of the island seeking work and being underestimated and underpaid.
A California girl, through and through, Kelly loves sunshine and swimming.
PARASAILING: SOMETHING WE DID NOT SAY, “YES” TO
Bob and I said, “No thanks,” to parasailing. You can throw that into a bucket with bungee jumping, ziplining, and skydiving.
But it was fun to watch our very brave friends get dragged through the air. Have to admit.
Later, Henry described the main tether, how it appeared to be anchored in plexiglass on the tow boat, and I saw Kelly squeeze her eyes shut.
There’s a metaphor here I can’t quite nail down: The family that hangs together, stays together? One for all, all for one? Hang in there? Hanging by a thread?
Triumph!
Not sure what Henry was saying after their flight. Could have been something like, “You can mark that off our bucket list!”
It didn’t take a boat and a parachute to delight this man. Henry’s excitement was chronic. During our week together, I saw his face light up when he said, “There’s coffee in the kitchen,” or after hauling off the kitchen trash, or while guiding me to the Pharmacia to get my weepy eye back on track.
Henry’s enthusiasm signalled victory for all, every win a shared triumph.
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