Cascading & Kite Surfing

There’s more to the Dominican Republic than nice beaches, so we decided to go on a cascading excursion to Ciguapa Falls with my brother from another mother in DR – Alejandro Peña Jímenez and 2 more local guides, Diomedes and Alberto. For non-spanish speakers, cascading is essentially a softer version of canyoning where you swim/float through a river and then jump down the waterfalls into natural pools – loads of fun!

Sal & Dave having a shower mid way through the descent

After a slippery hike down to the Arroyo Frío river we started its descend through the natural pools and up to 10m waterfalls. When asked who wanted to go first, Jane (Sal’s Mum) jumped at the opportunity (pun intended) and led the group off almost every cliff into the stunning greeny blue pools.

Jane shows us how it’s done!

3hrs, some scratches and few bruises after, we climbed out of the river, walking back to the van through coffee and habichuelas (beans) plantations and humble but beautiful farms.

Beautiful scenery on the way up

Alberto’s family was waiting for us at the base (his place) with one of the best home-made
meals that we’ve had in this trip so far. The menu consisted of the typical rice, beans, chicken and vegetables but we were told that everything had been grown nearby and we were lucky enough to try it. We will start posting about our favourite meals soon!

A day or two later the call to attempt kite surfing became too much to resist so we gave it a try. Winds start to blow after lunch time, so it’s a great sport for those who have had a long night and lazy morning. While Scott has already mastered the sport and was getting some air, Sal, Dave and I started our induction by familiarising ourselves with the handling of the kite.

Despite our instructor’s flashy looks, all eyes were on the kite

For those who haven’t tried it before, imagine a biiiig kite connected to a steering bar, connected to your harness (and secured by a plastic tube apparently called the “donkey dick”). These kites are capable of lifting you off the ground or water so learning to control the kite is the key unless you want to end up on a rooftop.

The local kids showing off incredible tricks

Couldn’t have a different name: Kite Beach – Cabarete

After the full lesson on the ground, we managed to get control, but the next day Dave proved to be more persistent than us and continued the lessons in the water. It’s an sport that requires time… so hopefully we’ll get the chance to give it another go during the trip!

Cabarete and surroundings

BNE-SYD-LAX-MIA-STI

Hola amigos y família from Cabarete, Dominican Republic, home of many natural beauties, chocolate, coffee and very friendly people!

We’ve started the trip with a Clout family reunion spending a week in the mecca for kite & windsurfing. Cabarete used to be a fishing village but, with the eruption of kite surfing in 2001, it has become a touristic destination although not as exploited as other more calm beaches on the other side of the island.

Kite Beach - Cabarete

Family dinner at La Casita del Papi

After a few days enjoying time with the family and playing with Eloisa (my 2yo niece), we wanted to get out into the villages to get more of a feel for how the locals live, so we ventured inland to Sabaneta and then Jamao. We took a Guagua, which are minivans that can be hailed anywhere and is the main local transport between towns. They’re pretty chaotic, they usually pack in way too many people but are cheap and fun.

Motorbikes are also everywhere and typically they’re tuned with neon lights instead of break lights. The riders whistle at pedestrians, offering rides to and from town for 25 pesos (around 50c).

The moto-taxi gang waiting for clients at the supermarket

Expect to see up to 4 people riding a 150cc motorbike

Back to Sabaneta and Jamao… the thing that surprised us most was how friendly and welcoming the people were! In Sabaneta, Xavi was invited into a barbershop for a chat and to take pictures of the owner and his staff. They loved posing! Other than that, people spend most of their time outdoors playing domino and cards, having a chat and a drink, and kids are always around waving an “hola”.

Best cuts in DR - The Master Father Style in Sabaneta

Baseball/Beisbol is the national sport. Dominicans are really proud at the moment because the national team won the World Cup a few weeks ago beating Japan in the final, and they were unbeaten for the whole tournament!  When we found the local field in Jamao, we were lucky enough to witness a softball game between Los Fuertes de Jamao and Ferreteria Linares de Cabarete. The local team (Los Fuertes) invited us to join them on their bench and even offered us beers for being so supportive.

Los Fuertes de Jamao

We have found that Dominicans are quite concerned about their image as the most predominant types of shops are barbers and beauty salons, followed by lottery outlets, motorbike garages and little grocery shops that prepare creole meals, sell fruit and, of course, the local Ron Brugal. You can also run into random places… like the vet in Jamao, which, suspiciously, also claims to be a food factory.

The Vet with very suspicious signage...

Exchange bank next to a bank exchange, complete with BBQ chicken!

No such thing chiringuitos in DR

Our last adventure in Jamao took place in “El Chorro”, a section of the Arroyo Frío river where most of the locals spend their Sundays. We were not planning to go there but all the locals recommended it. Imagine a concentration of tuned cars pumping loud reggaton, food stalls selling cheap rum and people chatting, swigging rum straight from their bottles and having a laugh in the river.

El Chorro in full Sunday swing!

We topped the day off with a relaxing sunset and dinner with the family at a house on a hill owned by an American couple.

We’ll post about the adventure sports soon! Until then, lots of love, Xavi & Sal