Samaná Dream
El Salto de Limon, Dominican Republic
I’ve found a slice of heaven.
Something many Americans will have you believe is that Punta Cana is the only beautiful and picturesque city in the Dominican Republic. Something I am always determined to do when I travel is venture outside of the norm. Some places are staples that you must visit when traveling but some places are totally avoidable. That’s how Samaná became my travel destination of choice. If you haven’t heard of Samaná, it’s a province located in the eastern region of the country and it’s like heaven.
I stayed in the Las Terrenas section of Samaná in a dreamy private AirBnb with a private pool. The town itself was quiet, clean, and full of life. The main street was lined with restaurants and bars on 1 side and the beautiful beach lined the other side. That is where I constantly heard a combination of ocean waves, motor bikes, and music. The vibe was perfect.
Playa Punta Popy was our permanent spot for our 4-day stay. Once the wonderful waiters on the beach met us with food and drink menus, we were constantly supplied with ice cold cocktails in the steamy sun with the warm ocean only a few feet away.
There is one main attraction in the vicinity. A quick 20 minute motorbike taxi will get you to Salto el Limon, a must-see. The waterfall there was majestic and required quite the hike. Should you ever decide to check it out, beware of the locals who will pressure you to pay for a tour guide and a horse to get to the waterfall. A word of advice between us? PAY FOR THE GUIDE! I was determined to hike it on my own. Once I was 5 minutes into the hike I was silently thanking the universe for making me so susceptible to peer pressure. My knees, feet, and lack of hiking stamina were thankful.
The foodie that I am I enjoyed every restaurant however one of my favorites was Totem. This was not due to their tapas though. There were dancers who’s sole job was to grab unsuspecting guests like myself and make us dance bachata and salsa all night. It was invigorating. Something I have loved about most of the Spanish-speaking countries I have visited (plus Brazil) is that it is always appropriate to dance. It does not matter if you’re in a bar, a restaurant, at the beach, or the in the street. There is always music playing and people are dancing and enjoying life. Needless to say I soaked up every bit of that night.
Speaking of dancing, on our last day in Samaná we met a Dominican man who has lived in Brooklyn for 7 years. He gave us a list of great restaurants and told us to reach out should we want to hang out. Thank goodness we did because he took us to El Mosquito Art Bar. It was the best night! We danced bachata and salsa with our new friend, the bartenders, the professional dancers we met at Totem the night before, and other strangers. It was another one of those dream moments that I mentioned having on my Ibiza trip. I kept taking the free shots from the bartenders and watching the beautiful people effortlessly dance while thinking to myself, “you’re in the middle of D.R. on a random weekend dancing the night away at 1AM. Life is good. And although I was extremely hungover from the free shots and sad to leave our little private oasis the next morning, it was time for the next leg of our trip. Santo Domingo!
