Yesterday we spent a wonderful day going inland. Tomorrow we plan to leave the Marina and start our trip to Puerto Rico. We hope to arrive by Wed. It is great fun to be traveling with two other boats. You get to make better informed decision about the weather and have a broader view of what to do.
Today we get to get things ready for our next crossing. This is said to be the most difficult and dangerous one of this trip. We have our fingers crossed that we have read the weather correctly and are making the right decision.

The following is the narrative of yesterday's adventure. Hope you enjoy it.
I am sitting in the cockpit watching the waves crash over the seawall that is protecting us. It is high tide and the thunderous sound and the 20' high spray let me know how violent the sea is right now. The sea wall prevents me from seeing the actual ocean but I know I am happy to be safe in the harbor.

The three days we have spent in the Dominican Republic or Republic Dominican as all the official papers list the county have been amazing. The roads and drivers are absolutely fearless (crazy) with semi trucks, motor scooters, motorcycles, mini vans, ancient looking trucks full of anything you can imagine, cars, and even an occasional burrow being ridden along the side. Truly a diversified mix of people. Our minivan is designed to hold 7 adults but with the addition of benches stuffed between the seats we have 9 of us on this ride to the countryside. All of the seat belts gleam with there newness since they have never been touched on this vehicle.

The countryside is filled with lush vegetation. Every shade of green that you can imagine covers the hillside. Mangos, bananas, avocados, grapefruit, oranges, coconuts and limes fill the forest and you just reach up and pick one. You can just pick the leave off a mandarine tree and rub it in your hands to get the sweet smell of citrus.

Horses, cattle, and burrows graze along side the road. Two cowboys on horseback push their herd of horses to the nearby stables. A burrow plods along with his owner on his back along with a high pile of assorted items heading for market. We weave in and out of traffic on this two lane road. Double yellow no passing lines mean nothing here. From the back I hear "oh my God, is he going to make it around this truck?" escaping form Janice's mouth. We did make it safely, but it certainly adds a new level of excitement to our ride that we would rather not be sharing.

Our fist stop is at a local chocolate factory. The women in charge of the factory speaks no English so our guide who speaks fair English is interpreting for us. It amazes me that they can talk so fast and for such a long time and the translation is a ten word sentence. I think we may be missing something. She shows us some of the products that are made in the factory and then we done very good looking hairnets to actual go into the processing area. The room is quite small, 10'x20' with 5 small machines that take the cocoa nuts from their raw form to finished form of cocoa butter, cocoa powder, or chocolate bars. The hot cocoa is being prepared as she explains the process. We are then treated to some of the best hot chocolate that has ever passed through these lips. What a treat.

We are now uncomfortably packed into the van. The wives are now taking turns sitting on their appropriate husbands laps to make for a little more room. The husbands do not seem to mind at all and we are off to our next adventure.

Damajaqua Cascades or 27 waterfalls is our next adventure. When we talked about this yesterday, I thought we were just going to do this hike up the hillside to see 27 waterfalls. Little did I know that we were going to hike up to the top and then cascade, jump, or hike down the waterfalls. My first clue was when they said take nothing with you or in your pockets because you will loose everything. My next clue was to get a life jacket and a helmet. The helmet they gave me was ready to fall off. Francois looked at me and said" It is a little big, maybe you go back and they have a little girls helmet that will fit you better." "Thanks a lot Francois" I answered and went to get a smaller helmet.

Two guides joined us as we started our hike up the mountain. "Only 45 dominican minutes" Richard our local told us. Dominican Minutes are the same as island time. 45 minutes may be 1 hour, maybe two hours, no problem man. We hike up the trails and vast array of staircases they have built to help us to the top. We are passed by a couple of younger looking groups. They were using American minutes and not Dominican minutes. Two cows were next to us on the trail with their two calfs. Soon the owner came out and started milking one of the cows as the dejected hungry calf looked on.

Hot, tired, sweaty, and probably stinky too we reached the top. The guides takes into a grotto filled with water. The water feels so cold that it immediately takes our breath away. Soon we are used to the temperature and it feels really good after the hike up. Down, down, down we go. Sliding on our butts into the deep pools below. We are in natures theme park. The rocks are not quite so forgiving as my elbow smacks into one. Boy is that gonna hurt tonight once this adrenalin wears off.

What a wild area surrounded by the lush rain forest. Palm trees with large fronds shade the river. Steep rock walls rise straight up to the sunlight above. Francois had a go pro camera and Janice has given her camera to on of the guides who is busily snapping pictures. There are a lot so smile to go with the pure terror as we jump 25 feet into the pools below. Not everyone takes this leap of faith, some choose to slide down which results in the loss of a few bathing suits. We are all laughing and now shivering from being in the water that long. Ted feels like he has been water boarded for the last 90 minutes. Smiling, tired and happy we walk back to the starting point. Our guide offers us other options that we could do but we are all tired and decide it is time for lunch.

We find a local restaurant along side the road that specializes in seafood. We are having a difficult time ordering since our Spanish is poor. Mine particularly since it is nonexistent. She finally picks out a fish and I nod, ask for lemon and away she goes. I at least know how to order a beer even if I have no idea what I just ordered. The world is full of surprises. We were planning on a rapid meal but this will not be the case. Time for more beer. Soon French fries start arriving and we dig in. Then salads start appearing all around the table. Who ordered these? They keep coming and we feel we are soon going to deplete that local supply of potatoes. Finally the food dishes start arriving. Not all at one time, but one person get's theirs and a little later another order come out. Time for more beer. My whole fish with it's eyes looking up at me comes out. It was grilled and has a delicious lemon garlic sauce smothering the fish. It is so good I am savoring every bite.

Our tummies now full we again squash back into the mini van. The seems to be shrinking the more time we spend in it. Maybe it was all of the french fries. Our guide asked if we want to go to the local grocery store to get supplies for the boat. We readily agree not thinking how we are going to carry it all back in the already too small van. The beer and food is finally stowed on laps, under feet, and everywhere else and we head back to the marina.

What a fantastic day finished by happy hour on Why Knot. We now know why most everyone falls in love with the Republic Dominican