San Francisco de Macoris threeth city more important of the country

Lots of money flowing towards SFM. It is currently # 8 in population, behind Santo Domingo, Distrito Nacional (Different places now), Santiago, San Cristobal, La Vega, POP, San Pedro..
HOWEVER, SFM was "projected"to occupy the #7 spot.. It certainly is now a major and very important city...
Good post S>J>

HB

I am probably one a just a few that understand what you are writing, but do not stop. Keep at it!.
Yes, Duarte province is probably #3 in size (Kms2), and very large in population. More importantly it is the political and agricultural center for the Northeast of the DR.

HB

Look Jaya Man

I am sorry to say this, because half of me is from San Francisco de Macoris. Part of my family is from Jaya and La Loma de Los Paulino. I spent part of my vacations during my youth in the mountains full of Cacao in La Loma. I even used to fish Tilapia in the towns creek.

But San Francisco de Macoris has gone down the tubes from what it was. Today SFM is a town full of Dominican Yorks who are mostly into drugs. Not a day goes by without a casket arriving from New York or Miami with a dead drug dealer from San Francisco. SFM has become wealthy thanks to bad business, not to hard working people. Today, it is a hick town full of cadenuses, Joes and junkies. It is the capital of crime and #1 in low lifes.

I have never returned to that town because crime is so high I would be afraid even to come within twelve miles of it. Drugs are everywhere, counterfeiting, kidnapping, smuggling, you name it, SFM has it.

It is so bad, that part of the big problem in Santiago has to do with its closeness to SFM. Santiago is full of criminal elements from SFM. So I am sorry my friend. All your accolades for this town keep to yourself, I rather drive by Capotillo than by your colmadon town.

TW

TW, didn't know your roots were from la loma. Wondered if you used to climb the coconut trees yourself, or did you send one of the boys with no shoes or shirt up for you. My wife is from Jaya and much of my time in the Peace Corps was working up in these mountains. You should go back, the road is brand new almost all the way to Loma de Jaya. There is even a motocross track right there is Santalena. While living in SFM in 88 and 89, I found it to be a nice place. Everyone I dealt with were hardworking family types. You can avoid the criminal element if you don't go looking for it. There is a lot of drug money all over the country. I never saw drugs being used at all the entire time I lived in that city. The only place I was ever approached about the subject in the DR was in front of the Jaragua in the Capital. SFM has the fame but I'm not sure if it is a bit overrated. The town is a bit more organized since I lived there. Less motoconchos and those rounded trailer things that used to go up and down Libertad. Libertad has been cleaned up, and they finally have a nice hotel in town. I was disappointed with Burger King came to town. Nice natural juices at El Polo. I met the business class and productive farmer types. Compared to many other parts of the country SFM is quite a nice place to live. The traffic is not near as bad as the Capital or Santiago. Tom F.

TomF

Maybe that's part of what is wrong witrh Loma de Jaya. I used to like it when it was a real forest of Cacao and you had to walk up or take a burro. My uncle there had a nice big hut house. It was very comfortable and cool and they had all the natural food they needed plus livestock and farm animals. They even dried their own grains in a special area and had grain storage. I reserve given you the name, but my uncle is a legend in Jaya.

But thanks, but no thanks. San Francisco, just like Salcedo, which is now a very high crime area too is in my past. By the way, I never lived there. I just spent my vacations there. I grew up in the old, original Bella Vista on Sarasota Avenue, before Colmadones, McDonalds and the rest came in. We only had Hotel Embajador across my house and the polo fields where I learned to play polo. The house still survives the condo boom today.

TW

I'm here since May 2002, one of the few "gringos" here. And
YES, there are places where they still love to burn tires (but Puerto Plata is more fucked up after 2 hrs of hard rain) AND
YES, there is a lot f Money out of "unknow sources" here, but when has it been ?? 2 yrs ago when el bohen, Caba?as Nueva York and all the stuff suddenly closed down...uups. BUT
YES, evereybody does pay his dues in time AND
YES, the town is getting nicer and nicer AND
YES IT IS CLEAN AND SAFE HERE (i wouldn't like to live in La Mulata / Sosua these days) AND
YES i do like it here, if there is anything after Santo Domingo or Santiago it definitely is San Francisco de Macoris.
Where else do you find somebody owing money to you paying it back a week BEFORE it's due?????????
AND where else do you get invited to a beer (as a gringo/foreigner) just because the people want to chat with you, nothing else (in POP i would just take a run)
I have been in Higuey a lot, too. But SFM is still "EL CIABO" and has the nice Cibao People with it. Go and try to do business on the East Coast as an "outsider" you can't imagine how many rocks people can invent to put into your way....
8 Month in SFM and i'm still thinking "why haven't i had this f... idea before????"
One thing is right, though, a lot of dominicans which are coming back to SFM from the "tourist centers" are NOT welcome, but why should that be? -> Everybody who can't figure by himself is diqualifiing himself by asking in reply to this message....


Chris

chrisxy said:

AND where else do you get invited to a beer (as a gringo/foreigner) just because the people want to chat with you, nothing else Chris

Click to expand...

That is because of people like me and those who preceded my years residing in SFM. You can't believe how many times I sacrificed my personal health by drinking all that beer, scotch, coffee, that was offered just so I wouldn't risk offending my benefactors! LOL

I visitied SFM last April after not having done so for more than 20 years. I found that many changes had occurred in my absence; some good and some bad.

I'm firming up plans for a return visit to SFM in March or April. I'll let one of you guys buy me a Presidente if ya want!

Swede