Bob & Chuck?s Dominican Adventure: January, 2004

TravelinJones

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Trip Report - Post#1

I will post my trip report in a few parts... my photos can be found at http://www.ucmc.org/photos/album04

Bob & Chuck?s Dominican Adventure: January, 2004.

After some ski trip plans for January fell through around Thanksgiving, I started thinking about going somewhere warm instead. Chuck was also hinting at going somewhere South, so we started looking at our options. We had been to the Yucatan before, and would not mind returning to Tulum, but wanted to explore other options. Chuck was trying to push for Hawaii, but I thought that would be too expensive and would require more planning than I was willing to do. I also thought we were just taking one week and that would be too short for Hawaii, so we started looking at other options closer to our time zone.

We had heard good things about the Dominican Republic, but most of our friends who had been there went to Punta Cana. Chuck started looking into package deals, and I checked out a copy of the Lonely Planet and started looking at web sites. We heard that Puerto Plata would be better than Punta Cana for independent travel, especially for two single guys, so we focused our research on the North Coast. Unfortunately, airfares to Puerto Plata were very high for January ? over $1,000 in many cases. I knew we both had Delta Sky miles, so on a whim I started looking at that route. Delta did not fly to POP, but with Northwest and Continental now part of the Sky Team, we were able to put together an itinerary. The only ?problem? was that the number of seats was limited, and we could not find a 1-week trip in January with weekend departures. This also locked out any chance of others joining us with their Sky miles, but since there was no interest displayed we went ahead and booked our flights for a 2-week trip.

It would be just Chuck and me for 2 weeks, so the next step was to put together a basic itinerary. We knew we could not sit still for 2 weeks and that we wanted to explore different areas. By using the Lonely Planet?s Thorntree and other web boards, we found Rocky?s Blues Bar & Hotel in Sosua. Marco would pick us up at the airport for free and the rooms were only $15, so we decided to start our trip there. A couple of days at an all-inclusive might be relaxing, so I found Sosua by the Sea had good reviews and a fair price. After that I figured we would check out Cabarete windsurfing beach for a few days, and then venture off the 2nd week of the trip without any reservations. Options we were considering were the Saman? peninsula, Santo Domingo, and hiking Pico Duarte. After finding out that heavy rains had cancelled many hikes up the highest mountain in the Caribbean, we decided against Pico Duarte and figured we could catch the humpback whales in Saman? and explore other areas of the peninsula. We would make final plans when we got there and did not reserve any hotels after Cabarete.


Part 1 ? Sosua & Cabarete

So we arrive on Saturday, Jan 17th and there is Marco waiting for us. ?I have some bad news? I don?t have any rooms but I got you a good deal at the Waterfront.? Actually, it was a great deal right on the water with a pool and nice restaurant, at a good rate. After checking in, we decide to walk around and check out the area. We head back to Rocky?s for dinner and grab some agua and cervezas at the ?Super Super? for our room. The food at Rocky?s is very good and the drink prices are some of the cheapest in town. The only negative we could see was the bar next door to him gets very loud at night. After dinner we return the beers to our room at the Waterfront. After the long flight, I would have been content to stay put but of course we have to check out some more of the local bars. There was a small Dominican bar just up the road that had baseball games on the TV, so we stopped in for a couple of Presidente grandes (large beers). FYI ? Presidente is the main beer you will find in the DR: very refreshing on a hot day and better than expected. You might find other brands but none are as popular, although Ambar is a nice option if you like darker beers.

After another night at the Waterfront, we transfer to Sosua by the Sea, a nice property up the beach with an all-inclusive option. Very nice, but hindsight is 20-20, and we would have been better off staying put at the Waterfront and eating out with the deal we had there. So we spent a little more, and learned that the all-inclusive option is not for us. The first day, Chuck drank too many gin & tonics and did not want to go out later. The 2nd day was my turn, and I tripped over the sidewalk going back to the room and scraped my hand up pretty good. Be careful with those rum drinks you can?t taste the alcohol!

The surf was too dangerous the first few days, but finally on Tuesday the red flag was replaced with green, and we decided to venture out with our snorkeling gear. There is a popular spot called ?3 Rocks? that we could get to by walking up the beach a ways and then swimming out. I had a dive flag with me so I brought it along to allay my fear of boats running us over, and we swam out. The catamaran cruise from Puerto Plata had just arrived, and we were able to experience the same snorkeling for free that they had paid US$65 each for. Lots of different fish, partially because the snorkeling cruises always feed them bananas, but it was still good.

On the 21st, I had reserved a spot on North Coast Divers? Rio San Juan diving trip. The weather was not looking good, but I went up to the shop and it was a go. The dive trip starts in a lagoon about an hour east of Sosua (Rio San Juan/ Gri-Gri Lagoon), where the boat traverses through a mangrove swamp out to the sea. The visibility was so-so, but we got in two good dives before heading back to the restaurant on the lagoon for an authentic Dominican lunch. North Coast runs a first-class operation and I would recommend them if you want to do some diving in the area.

The original plan had us relaxing for four days at Sosua by the Sea, but getting bored real quick, we verified that we could check in early at our next destination. I had confirmed ahead of time two rooms at Casa Blanca Cabarete, for 3-4 nights. This was something I had found on the Internet that looked nice and was much cheaper than the nearby Condos Magnificos. When we arrived on Thursday, we started to figure out why? First they did not have the rooms we had reserved. OK, maybe because we are there a day early, but Holger was not around so we spoke with his help and were showed some different rooms to choose from. We chose a room in the beach house, which was a good location but we had to share a bed and there was no kitchenette or Internet access like we reserved. We met our neighbors, a nice couple from Ireland, who had a similar situation with their reservation. Combined with the shabby looking rooms, chairs that were unsafe to sit in, and the strange smells, this place did not live up to the description on its web site. When we finally met Holger, the young German owner, he was one of the nicest guys you?ll meet; unfortunately we would not recommend his place for a stay in Cabarete without looking at it first (he claims to be working on some upgrades). All was not lost however, as his creative web site designer friend pointed us to Papi?s beachside restaurant, for our best meal of the trip. The langostinos (baby lobster tails) in garlic cream sauce were extraordinary. So he exaggerates the hotel a little on the web, at least he is honest about Papi?s!

Cabarete is, of course, one of the top wind surfing destinations in the world. There are numerous places to rent equipment and/or take lessons for wind surfing, kite surfing, etc. Combined with our accommodation problems, the fact that we were getting tired of the beach, and the desire to spend more time exploring the Seman? peninsula, we did not do any wind surfing and ended up cutting our stay short to just 2 nights. Walking by Iguana Mama?s that night, we were looking at the flyers on the door describing the various adventure trips offered? mountain biking, rafting, hiking, etc. The store was closed, but the owner was inside and opened the door for us. After discussing the various options, he set us up for the ?27 Waterfalls of Damajagua? cascading trip for the next day, Friday.

http://www.iguanamama.com/tours-daily-canyon.html
 

TravelinJones

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Trip Report - Post#2

Part 2 ? 27 Waterfalls of Damajagua

Friday, 1/23. We met at the store the next morning, and headed off in a van towards Puerto Plata to pick up the other participants. It was a group of Canadians from Ontario, and so we were off, eh? After traveling towards the mountains, the van eventually turns off onto a dirt road and all these guys in funny shirts meet us. They looked like soccer shirts or something, until we noticed on their backs, ?Water Guide.? We park up by the river and eat our breakfast of pastries and orange juice, before stripping down to our swim trunks and tennis shoes. The van driver stays with the van, so we can leave things there without worry.

The adventure starts with a few stream crossings, and a good distance hike on a trail. We are a group of seven, and are told to hurry up and pass the big group ahead of us so they don?t hold us up. We come to a little stand with lockers where you have your last chance to leave things you don?t want to get wet. Since my glasses were fogging up, I decide to leave them, as I can survive without them. The first swim is a tough one, as we must swim upstream against the flow of water. I also notice my aqua socks are too loose and start to come off when I?m swimming; so, I make do and carry them while swimming and put them on to climb and walk on the rocks. This is not going to be as easy as I thought.

We come to a small waterfall that we have to climb up, and then another. Not too high, but the water is flowing stronger than usual, and we have to lift each other up over the falls. The first few people struggle before this strongman comes along and heaves everyone up with ease. Some more swimming, climbing waterfalls and rocks, and hiking, and eventually we have passed twelve different falls. We are on a flat stretch now and are told that there really are 27 waterfalls, but the next set is a long hike away and we would have to turn back now. Many of the other groups would only go up the first eight or so, as the last few that we did involved some rope climbs that were a little more advanced and/or dangerous. (Not rock climbing in the traditional sense, but using a rope to pull yourself up while climbing up the cliff). While this is the easiest of their ?canyoning/cascading? trips, I would not recommend it for the faint of heart or anyone with the slightest fear of heights or water.

The return trip was even more of an adventure. I was never a high diver, but the easiest way down is to jump into the pools where it was safe as indicated by our guides. We had the option of climbing back down the ropes or in some cases, sliding down the waterfalls, but most of the time we would jump into the pools anywhere from a height of 10-20 feet (3-6 meters). Swimming down, we come to a bottleneck where some people are climbing up the falls. A woman being helped up has her grip on the rocks on each side, and with the water flowing over her she cannot help coming out of her bikini top. She didn?t seem too concerned about that though.

Eventually we get to the last jump, near the lockers. We all complete the 10-foot jump safely, and our guide proceeds to climb back up to the higher rock, at least 30 feet high (10-12 meters). He takes a running jump and does a double flip into the pool below, to the applause of all the onlookers. On the way back, we stop for another good Dominican lunch: chicken, beans & rice, fried plantains, etc. If you are looking for a challenging adventure tour in the DR, Iguana Mama?s is the place to go.
 

TravelinJones

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Trip Report - Post#3

Part 3 ? Saman?, Las Galeras, and Playa Rincon

The best way to get to Saman? from Puerto Plata or Sosua is via the Caribe Tours bus; however, it does not stop in Cabarete so we arrange for a cab to pick us up at 6:30 the next morning for a ride to the bus station in Sosua. Of course you could try to take gua-gua?s the whole way (small vans or trucks used for public transportation in some areas), but you would have to change many times and it would take much longer. We also had an abundance of luggage that would be much easier to deal with on the Caribe Tours bus. There is only one daily bus from Sosua to Saman?, and it leaves at 7:30AM. We arrive before 7:00 on Saturday and purchase our tickets for the equivalent of about US $3 each for the 4-hour trip. At 7:45 it finally arrives from Puerto Plata and we load up and go. We arrive in Saman? City sometime around noon, and are of course immediately approached by various cab drivers and ?helpers.? We finally get one with some basic English to drive us up to check out Tropical Lodge, and then settle on another place (Leidy) where we get two rooms for 800 Pesos each.

We head back down to the square to look for whale-watching options. Kim Beddall?s place (Victoria Marine) is closed (opens back up around 4:00PM) but we find out the price is $45 and there are others for $38 or 40. Our ?guide? from earlier finds us again and tells us he can set us up on our own boat for $100 total. We tell him it?s too high and haggle a little but do not make any agreements. We tell him we?ll look for him tomorrow morning when we are ready to go on the tour. FYI ? I looked all over for the supposed post office that is listed in the Lonely Planet guide, to mail a post card, but could not find it in the location listed. Back at the hotel and aching from the waterfall adventure and all the walking, I try to ask if there is somewhere to get a massage, but our 18 year-old desk clerk tries to hook me up with a prostitute instead. I guess if you want a real massage, this is not the town to get it in.

That night we had a very good meal at Williams? Restaurant, but unlike the guidebooks say, they do not serve Creole as far as we could tell. We also had a strange experience with some locals and a German ex-pat name Alex, who convinces them it is Chuck?s birthday. We later find a ?car wash? that turns into a bar/disco at night, and sit down for a beer with the locals. It only takes about 10 minutes for another ?helper? to find us and offer to set us up on a whale-watching tour. Again we would have our own boat to ourselves, but he only wants $35 each and we don?t have to pay if we don?t see any whales. We talk him down the $30 each (3000 Pesos total) and tell him to meet us at the hotel the next morning. FYI ? if staying in Saman? on a Saturday night, I would stay away from Leidy and the other hotels on that street due to the loud car wash (bar) that blares music on until about 3:00AM or later. Even with ear plugs it was loud (and then a dog decided he had to bark for the next hour or two after that).

FYI ? I bought a bottle of water in a little shop next door to the hotel that was supposed to be purified. Either it wasn?t, or the lettuce I ate with lunch was soaked in tap water, because I would be sick the next few days, and never really back to normal until a few days after returning home. This was the worst case I had in all my travels, and now I know why even the locals don?t drink the water in the DR. Be very careful and be sure to bring the medicines.

Sunday, 1/25. Of course, our guide is there early waking us up, and we have to tell him to chill out while we get ready. We walk him up to the bakery/deli for some bread and cheese for lunch, and then grab a motoconcho for the ride to the docks. We cruise by the main docks and go about another mile or two North to a smaller dock where all the small boats launch. We don?t have the entire boat to ourselves, but only have to share it with an Israeli businessman and his Dominican girlfriend. It turns out they found the boat captain themselves and only paid $20 or $25 each. After dropping off a case of Presidentes on Bacardi Island, we head out to the bay and soon spot a whale near another small tour boat. We had at least 10 sightings of 4-5 different whales, but alas the boat only stayed there about 30 minutes before heading back to Bacardi Island.

Our guide tried to get us to buy lunch from his family?s stand at tourist prices, but we were not very hungry and already had lunch with us so we passed on that, but did indulge in some tropical drinks. After paying our guide the agreed 3,000 pesos, he tried to beg for more as a ?tip? but we refused based on the fact that we did not stay with the whales very long. Back at the docks the Israeli offers us a ride back to our hotel where we arrange to leave most of our bags for a day while we head up to Las Galeras for a night. We pack enough in our day packs for one night including our snorkeling gear for Playa Rincon, and find a taxi for a few hundred pesos.

Using the Rough Guide, we choose the Paradiso Bungalows, a good choice for budget travel. We decide to walk down to the Casa Marina Resort to check it out and see what the deal is with their boat that goes to Playa Rincon. One of the guidebooks says that is the only boat going there, but we later discover there are boats that leave from the beach right in Las Galeras near our hotel. We pick one up the next morning and spend a good 3-4 hours on Playa Rincon snorkeling and enjoying the best beach in the DR. The fresh fish lunch was excellent for about 300 pesos each, and the boat ride was $10 each round-trip, pay on return. Be sure to get the price for the lunch ahead of time, as I?m sure it would have been negotiable and probably could have been cheaper.

From Las Galeras, we find a gua-gua as soon as we get back, and it returns us to Saman? for just 100 pesos each. From there, one of our potential ?helpers? from before finds us again and asks if we still need a rental car. I explain we didn?t need one but were looking for a ride to Las Terrenas. He says a cab is normally $35 but he could get us one for 600 pesos. We offer 500 ($10) and he agrees. The cab driver slips him 100 pesos and I give him another 25 for his help. We would pay the driver the 500 when we get to Las Terrenas. So we get a ride back to the hotel Leidy to retrieve our bags, and cross over via El Limon to Las Terrenas.
 

TravelinJones

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Trip Report - Post#4 (final)

Part 4 ? Las Terrenas & the return to POP

Monday 1/26. Using the Lonely Planet this time, we choose Hotel Casa Nina to look at first, as it is one of the first we would pass on our way into Las Terrenas. They did not have anything with two beds open, but did have a room with a loft (3 beds) for $35/night including breakfast, and a nice pool in the center gardens. The grounds were very well-kept, and we took it right away. This was probably the best deal for the money we had on the entire trip, and highly recommended, although English is not well spoken.

The first thing we do after dropping our bags in the room is jump in the pool, and then we head into town to check it out. Not quite as rugged as expected, Las Terrenas is a European hangout with many modern French and Italian establishments, with all range of hotels and resorts to choose from. We find an Internet caf? in the El Paseo shopping area, but later discover the best Internet caf? in the DR, just up the main intersection in the other plaza behind the French pastry shop and souvenir shops. Run by two young Serbian brothers with extensive computer knowledge, they will help you with anything you need to accomplish, and have USB connections if you want to send some of your digital photos.

Las Terrenas is constantly changing, and a lot of what you read in the guidebooks is already out of date. There are many more dive shops than listed in the books, all charging about the same competitive rates. We chose one called Blue Dive located in an Italian resort just down from Casa Nina. Their dive boat leaves at 9:00, 12:00, and 2:30 each day, and with calmer seas more likely in the morning we chose a 9:00 dive for one day?s adventure. The dive master and staff are very good. A one-tank dive is $30 with your own equipment, and just $5 more if you need all the gear. They also have packages available like 10 dives for a discount, as well as PADI training classes. Add 5% with Visa/Mastercard. I should mention that the diving I experienced here, as well as in Rio San Juan, was good but not great. The fish seem small compared to the Bahamas (over-fished?), and lots of the coral reef is dead, although I did not do enough diving to make a good comparison. I did hear that there is better diving on the Caribbean side of the DR if you are looking for better reefs.

The beach along Las Terrenas was fairly nice, with a kite-surfing area on the point towards El Portillo when the winds kicked up. However, the best beach in the area is Playa Bonita to the West of town. We took two moto-conchos from Casa Nina to Playa Bonita for 50 pesos each, and then hiked back. The hike from Playa Bonita to Playa Las Ballenas is a short trek through the woods over a hill, where we pick up the beach again and can walk all the way back to Las Terrenas along the beach.

Restaurants: We liked Casa Coco for reasonably priced good pizza and other selections, as well as great pi?a coladas and other drinks. Baro Latino was good but nothing special. There was a new Swiss place east of Casa Nina where you can barbeque your choice of meats at your table, or try the fondue. They also had a good bar, as well as a beachside drink shack during the day where they served basic drinks and Presidentes, or would radio the more complex orders into the bar. The owner was working on building a new shack on the beach and said the portable shack would soon be history. We did not have a good experience with Casa Azul, in the main part of town, despite one of our neighbors telling us he had a good Dominican meal there. The curry tasted like it was all salt, and the Pasta Bolognese did not sit well with Chuck. There are many, many more restaurants in Las Terrenas, and with the number of French and Italian places you should not have trouble finding a good meal, but don?t expect to find a lot of authentic Dominican meals. We were a little surprised that the night life did not live up to expectations, both in Cabarete and Las Terrenas. A lot of places were practically empty when we walked by, and we wondered how they all stayed in business, but it was probably because we were usually asleep by midnight.

If you want some good Dominican or Haitian art, unless you are traveling to the capital, Las Terrenas is the place to get it. Just walk up the main road leading away from the beach and you will find multiple stands set up. We also found a cheap Dominican store near Hotel Diny for supplies, where we picked up some Dominican rum to take home for about 100 pesos a bottle ($2, Barcelo Anejo). Later at the airport we found that the same brand was $5 US in the ?duty free? store. What a joke, make sure you get everything you want before getting to the airport.

The original plan was for us to catch a cab to Sanchez on Thursday and pick up the Caribe Tours bus to Sosua so we would be close to the airport on our last night. The transportation cost would be about $12 each, and then another couple bucks to the airport with a cab from Sosua. Unfortunately, the 48-hour strike to protest the president was on Wednesday and Thursday, and we were told it would not be possible to travel on those days. While Las Terrenas and other resort areas were little affected, the Caribe Tours bus would probably not be running, and there was a good chance of running into road blocks and rock-throwing protesters. That was not good news, with the ?official? cab fares from Las Terrenas to the POP airport being over $100 US, but with our flight not until 2:45PM we would probably be fine getting there on time Friday. After a futile attempt at trying to find a cheaper driver on our own, we get our landlord to arrange a cab to pick us up Friday morning and take us to the airport for $90.

Friday, 1/30: Let the adventure begin. The drive over the hills to Sanchez is very scenic, and as soon as we get to the town we stop to look for Diesel fuel. ?Sorry, all out. You?ll have to wait until you get to Nagua.? Oh great, we have the cab but we might not make it now because there is no gas. When we get to the next station in Nagua, they are also out but direct us to another station in town off the main road. We get there to find lines of motorcycles waiting for gas, but luckily they did have diesel and the line for it was not as bad. Despite telling our driver our flight was 2:45PM, he still drives like a mad man (ie. the usual), and we are glad that it is him driving and not us.

When we get to Sosua around 11:30, I have our driver stop so we can drink a few Presidentes at Rocky?s and try to spend the last of our pesos on some more rum and cigars. We make it to the airport well ahead of schedule, with two hours being the recommended lead time. We find that the line for Continental is very short, so we have plenty of time to kill. And so ends our adventure.

Notes and observations.

Just about everything is negotiable. In towns like Sosua where there is a good mixture of tourists and locals, you will find it easier to bargain for cheap cabs, motoconchos, or just about anything else. Of course in local stores with prices marked, it is less likely, but at tourist traps and local guys selling souvenirs like necklaces and so forth you are expected to bargain. In Las Terrenas, the number of wealthy European tourists and the remote location have combined to make the cab prices more expensive and less negotiable.

Other sources have said not to use ATM cards in the DR, that you would be hit up with fees and/or a bad exchange. Nothing could be further from the truth (at least in my experience). The rate of pesos to US$ started in the 40's and hit 53 while we were in Cabarete. I didn't try my ATM until Las Terrenas where the cash exchange rate was back down to 40-44. With my ATM I recieved over 50 and 52 per dollar with no extra fees!

You may see a 10% ?Service Charge? added to many restaurant bills. According to the guidebooks this is not usually given to the servers and you should still throw in another 10% for good service, which will be appreciated.

Something really needs to be done about the stray dogs, but I don?t see the government paying for a mass spay-neuter program, so don?t expect it to happen. They are some of the nicest stray dogs you?ll meet :cool: but you really feel sorry for them and don?t be surprised if they come in and sit next to you while eating at a beachside restaurant.

Despite all the tourism, the country is poor and the economy not too good right now. You will be approached multiple times a day by boys wanting to shine your shoes, even if you are just wearing sandals. At some point they graduate to making and selling necklaces and other jewelry or trinkets. Some of it is actually not bad and you should look around before settling on a price (offer about half of what they quote to start the bargaining process). I found 200-300 pesos to be fair (at least I know they will appreciate the money more than I will miss it, whether I got a good deal or not I don?t know). At some point however you will not want to look at any more necklaces or be bothered by shoe-shine boys and a firm ?no gracias? should do the trick.

Motoconchos. I guess if you can afford a motorcycle then you drive up and down the streets or wait at a corner and offer to take people across town for 10-20 pesos. The problem is that they are everywhere, produce lots of exhaust smoke with their 2-stroke engines, and are sometimes very loud into the night. They also don?t seem to understand that if you needed one, you would flag them down, but instead every one of them has to beep at you when they pass to see if you want a ride. When choosing a place to stay, no matter which town you are in, consider how close it is to the road and be sure to bring earplugs.
 
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appleman

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Nice in-depth report. I found it similar to my own "adventure" from last year. Thanks for posting.

Bob H.
 

Festero

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Great report!

What a wonderful trip report! Well written, with great attention to detail.... the kind of info other travelers will find very helpful.

While this shouldn't even have to be mentioned, the use of paragraphs makes it readable, unlike some other recent trip reports.
 

SaintTaris

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Great trip report. Your photos are also very nice.

In Part 1 Cabarate & Sosua you mentioned Condos Magnificos. A few friends and I are may stay at Condos Magnificos during our DR trip. Does is look as nice as the pictures on their website?
 

TravelinJones

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Condos Magnificos

yes, it looked very nice from the outside. I wanted to go over and take a closer look but never did.
 

JanH

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Very good detailed trip report. You touched on specifics not easily found in the forums. Glad your posts got consolidated into 1 also.

My family's opinion on the Waterfalls was the same as yours. You've got to be in good shape to handle it. Climbing the ropes was strenuous even for my son who works out all of the time. His girlfriend also lost her bathing suit top when straddling the waterfall.

I think your post is good enough to be added to the Info for Newbies thread.
 

Festero

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Sanki breast exposure trick?

JanH said:
His girlfriend also lost her bathing suit top when straddling the waterfall.

Could this be a feature cleverly designed by Sanki waterfall guides?

"My friend... my friend... the senoritas have to climb this way..."

:cheeky:
 

JanH

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That's what I thought, Festero.

The girlfriend is built like a brick sh**t house. They insisted she climb with the ropes too. She couldn't do it, without their help. They assisted by grabbing her butt and pushing.
 

Hillbilly

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Jan 1, 2002
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an Outstanding Post

Even the visuals are very good. Of course, JanH's son's girlfriend with the janet jackson exposure (built like the proverbial "brick schitthouse" ) brought back memories of teenage years....

Why o why do we call that wonderful superstructure a "schitthouse?"

Anyway, back to the report. It was very good and should be a mainstay for firstimers who what to go it alone.

Well done Jones, very well done!

HB
 

TravelinJones

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thanks!

I was also very happy with my pictures being it is a new digital camera (Pentax Optio 555) - except for the waterfalls and reef pictures being from a "disposable"
 

rmary

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sticky????

Really, I do think that this should be a sticky. These guys managed to see more of the north coast than most of us (tourists, that is) have seen in numerous trips. It is also a good example of what a "first time" tourist can see if they don't succumb to the AI mentality. It is also a good example of what people want to hear in a trip report.