This vendor is operating a machine that grinds up and extracts the juice from sugarcane.

An artist capturing the old world charm of this historic city.

Remnants of the small navy that served during WW II, now museum pieces.

A medieval fort that has withstood the centuries and remains in excellent shape.

Inside this cathedral.

Inside this cathedral.

A beautiful old cathedral from the 1500s that has been restored.

This woman was doing laundry in the middle of a business section in the capital city, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. I thought the next time I was feeling discouraged I'd remember what some people have to endure just to put food on their table. We recognize our incredible blessings everywhere we go.

We took a local bus to Santo Domingo, the capital city of the DR and the oldest city in the Caribbean, about 30 minutes from Boca Chica. It was founded by Christopher Columbus in the late 1400's and he is buried here. We only visited the old city because of its historic buildings. In general we found the streets where business is conducted dirty and crowded but it was Monday so this was the garbage that had accumulated over the weekend.

Attractive architecture in Boca Chica with statues adorning the top.

There was a considerable amount of art work for sale in Boca Chica, some of it quite attractive. However, there is little room to store treasures on a sailboat so we usually just enjoy the view and keep moving. Pity!

Boca Chica is a typical seaside resort town with lots of restaurants and bars on the beach and novelty/souvenir stores that cater to tourists. We were advised not to walk along the beach after 5 p.m. as it was considered unsafe.

One afternoon our friends were returning from town around 6 p.m. It was still light out and just outside the marina Kathy stopped to let a young man pass by on a bicycle. As he rode by he whipped a necklace off Kathy's neck and raced off. The necklace had exceptional sentimental value to Kathy who was incredibly saddened by its loss.

We arrived on Saturday night, May 26, 2007 in Boca Chica, a tourist resort. We were too late to check into the country but on Sunday morning, May 27, all the officials arrived by boat to complete the process. One man, Ramoni, accompanied the officials as an interpreter. He indicated what the fees were and there would be no additional mandatory fees. Ramoni also said that if we felt inclined and wanted to tip the officials that would be greatly appreciated as the salaries in the DR were very low. As for a tip for Ramoni, he said a visit to his restaurant, located on the marina property, would be the best tip we could offer him.

We left Ile-a-Vache on May 24 and had anchored in Aquillas Bay, Dominican Republic, for a few hours as our cruising information advised we travel between the mainland and Isla Beata at night because of the strong current. We set our alarm for 12:30 a.m. and were ready to sail by 1. This passage was relatively calm and comfortable and we had no difficulty getting through. The next night we anchored at Calderra, DR. In the morning we came alongside Shearwater of Dee to give them an additional jerry can of diesel as they were concerned about running low before we got to Boca Chica. The trip to Boca Chica took 12 � hours and thankfully we arrived just before sunset. We had a chuckle because there were fireworks being set off near the marina as we were entering and we commented with Shearwater of Dee about the awesome welcome we were receiving. Our Garmin charts of the Boca Chica harbour were pretty poor, and we had to do a fuel filter change just as we were entering the harbour (with a freighter closing in) so we ended up following Shearwater of Dee through a very unusual entry to the marina and harbour.

Sunday, May 27 is Mother's Day in the DR and before we went to explore the townsite we stopped by Ramoni's restaurant. He gave us a commentary of the food he had available that day and we agreed to treat ourselves at his restaurant around 4 p.m. What a treat. The spread was exceptional and the flavours a treat for the palate. We were so impressed we offered to write a letter of recommendation for Ramoni to post or show to other cruisers. The cost of the meal was $10 U.S. per person.