Cultural Differences!

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Alyonka

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Jun 3, 2006
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How about religion? Dominicans I met seemed to be very much into it. Examples: church on Sundays, kids reading Christian books, prayers for every occasion, etc. Is this common for each family?
 

AnnaC

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No one willing to mess with this question eh ? :laugh:

Alyonka it's best we don't get into this religion subject because it will open a huge can of worms that we really can't discuss here because it's not going to be a simple answer of yes or no.

If you search you might find some answers in threads that were closed because it gets too heated. ;)
 

Alyonka

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No one willing to mess with this question eh ? :laugh:

Alyonka it's best we don't get into this religion subject because it will open a huge can of worms that we really can't discuss here because it's not going to be a simple answer of yes or no.

If you search you might find some answers in threads that were closed because it gets too heated. ;)

I know, I have seen those threads. My question was not about if it is right or wrong, it was mostly about stating the fact - it is there or not and how common it is without getting into any kind of arguments. But if it is that complicated - no need to answer ;)
 

miguel

I didn't last long...
Jul 2, 2003
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Si.........

I'll say it again, most expats and 99% of tourists are pretty clueless how many aspects of this country really work. Fact!

Most expats don't need more than one hand to count their Dominican friends. Fact!

I have lost count of the amount of single girls (all classes) I know that have "patrocinadores" (sponsors) married men that look after them. Fact!

I would guess that 75% of the Dominican guys that I know (all social classes, married and dating) have girlfriends, some more than one. Fact!
Paragragh by paragraph:

1: TRUE,
2- TRUE,
3- TRUE,
4- TRUE.

I must say that if given the opportunity, that 75% on paragraph 4, IN MY OPINION, would be 95-98%.

Btw: same thing I have been saying for years........(and AZB too).
 

sjh

aka - shadley
Jan 1, 2002
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My read on the religion thing is that dominicans come in two classes:

religious evangelical type: women wear skirts,no sex, no disco, no drinking, etc... some dont even let the women shave their legs.

religious by lip service. may actually even attend church sometimes but dont really pay attention to it. Even those who havent been to church in 38 years claim to be catholic etc. You can sit outside a church and watch the "naughty" girls head in and then right out again to go play!

i haven't really met any who claim to be non-religious, non-christian, or agnostic. I think you would get a harsh reaction from most dominicans if you told them you were atheist. I am not saying they dont exist but everyone atleast pays lip service.

As far as dating goes, i doubt they would care too much what your beliefs are as long as you have some. If they were evangelical it would matter a lot, except you wont meet them unless you come down here on a mission or something.

We have jehova witness, mormen, 7th day adventist, pentacostal, open and closed brethern, and other evangelical groups active here. IF you actually belonged to one of those groups back home, you may find yourself welcome to visit them and you may find people to date there. You may be surprised at how much stricter they are here than in other places. You should expect to be accompanied buy an escort on your date etc......

I dont know of any buddist, muslim, or other religious groups active here. at least not way out where i live
 

miguel

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Jul 2, 2003
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Sigue y veras........

My read on the religion thing is that dominicans come in two classes:

religious evangelical type: women wear skirts,no sex, no disco, no drinking, etc... some dont even let the women shave their legs.

religious by lip service. may actually even attend church sometimes but dont really pay attention to it. Even those who havent been to church in 38 years claim to be catholic etc. You can sit outside a church and watch the "naughty" girls head in and then right out again to go play!

i haven't really met any who claim to be non-religious, non-christian, or agnostic. I think you would get a harsh reaction from most dominicans if you told them you were atheist. I am not saying they dont exist but everyone atleast pays lip service.

As far as dating goes, i doubt they would care too much what your beliefs are as long as you have some. If they were evangelical it would matter a lot, except you wont meet them unless you come down here on a mission or something.

We have jehova witness, mormen, 7th day adventist, pentacostal, open and closed brethern, and other evangelical groups active here. IF you actually belonged to one of those groups back home, you may find yourself welcome to visit them and you may find people to date there. You may be surprised at how much stricter they are here than in other places. You should expect to be accompanied buy an escort on your date etc......

I dont know of any buddist, muslim, or other religious groups active here. at least not way out where i live
I guess you don't care much about your thread, do you?.

If you don't, keep talking about religion and watch how fast they will close it!!.

Lookie here, what's worse than "talking" about Politics?:

"Talking" about RELIGION!!.
 

AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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One post will do and that will be the end of the religion subject. ;)

If Alyonka has any further questions about religion she can send PM to members.

Thanks
 

estrella01

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Apr 24, 2007
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I guess that everything that has been said, has something that is true.

The thing that I think is worth a discussion is the poor or rich factor.
Because I believe if it's true love, money doesn't matter. It's about 2 people who love eachother. Not about a good carreer or a high bankaccount.
 

planner

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Sep 23, 2002
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Except that in so MANY MANY cases it is not "true love" as defined by North American fantasies..........
 

sjh

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short term "love" is about sex, lust, desire, fantasy

a relationship is about bankaccounts, religious beliefs, cultural compatablity, long term goals, etc

the two can combine, but not across insurmountable barriors that some wish to ignore
 

simpson Homer

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Nov 14, 2003
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just a culture, just different than other

Ok, it hurt to see how someone compare the Dominican culture and North American.

I see a lot off kids smoking outside their school here in north america, men with 2 woman and sometimes kids with more than that, you see also a lot of porno stores and marijuana smoke shop displayed to public and you dont see that in the DR. About religion people practice their religion in different ways in all countries, no just in the DR.

2- many Dominicans do not like dating foreigners but that doesnt mean they are gays, they have their reasons just as many north americans do not like dating latinos.

"Para los gustos se hicieron los colores"

I dont know you but I have heard my north americans friends letting their teenage children sleep over at their boyfriend or girlfriend house. This doesnt happen in the DR but apparently "It's normal here". maybe Dominicans are being closed minded in this sense but there is also such a thing as being too
open minded........

since you have shared your observations I have also shared mine. apparently, Dominicans are also very opinionated.

Homer
 

simpson Homer

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Nov 14, 2003
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You wrote this part at the end.

Dominicans who have lived 25 years in santo domingo still are considered local to the town they were born in and must return there to vote. It is rare to find a dominican who moves from one town to another (excluding city migration). If they do you have to wonder why? did they have problems in the last town? Although it would be second generation now, note that towns like sosua and cabereta are largely populated by people who just up and moved there.
_____________________________________________________________

Me here, you have to remember that people move for many reasons, not just to hide or escape from something, could be work , school, families or even health reasons.
sjh, making generalizations like the one you have made base on what you have observed is a very dangerous thing: What you see is not always what you get, what you see is not always real, what you see always depends on what you want to believe.
 

sjh

aka - shadley
Jan 1, 2002
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i feel, based on my experience, that dominicans while open to sexual partners are very very private about actual sex.

take a look at the cabana for example. Pull in garage with automatic door, blind bill pass through, etc.

The rules for confrontation differ signifigantly from the US. expressing anger at someone here can get you in a physical altercation or killed pretty quick. Dominicans that get loud and angry usually have lots of scars.

Dominicans seem to be more patient and tolerant of things than americans.

homer, i am not sure why you feel hurt? please explain.
 

sjh

aka - shadley
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homer,

yep you are right. my bad. i still stand by the part that dominicans rarely move from one small town to the next, usually to the big city and back. i recant my other comments on the topic..
 

Berzin

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Nov 17, 2004
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Another cultural difference I've noticed is the average womans' aversion to collecting(or at least attempting to collect) on child support.

Maybe a Dominican can answer this for me, but chicas who have been left hanging out to dry by their novios never seem that interested in even making an attempt to go to court and straighten the situation out.

They seem more inclined to just go about their lives as if the babys' father doesn't exist.

Is it frustration with the court system or are they afraid of retaliation?
 

suarezn

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Feb 3, 2002
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Is it frustration with the court system or are they afraid of retaliation?

Afraid of retaliation most likely. The child support law is one that actually is enforced in The DR...

The other thing is that even though the court may set an amount for the guy to pay collecting that amount is another matter as I don't believe they do automatic deductions from paychecks like they do here and so many guys work in the informal sector anyway it is almost impossible to make the guy pay without taking him to court over and over which can bring about bad consequences for the girl...
 

estrella01

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Apr 24, 2007
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short term "love" is about sex, lust, desire, fantasy

a relationship is about bankaccounts, religious beliefs, cultural compatablity, long term goals, etc

the two can combine, but not across insurmountable barriors that some wish to ignore


I don't think that you're a 100% right, though there is a part of what you're saying is true.

But if you start a relation in your own country, are you looking for someone who has a nice bankaccount? I don't know about you but I don't. So why would it be different when you meet someone form DR? Money is not the most important issue...
 

MaineGirl

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Jun 23, 2002
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When you marry someone you form a partnership. It is more than just being "in love". It is long term compatabiliy on many levels. I think that is sjh's point? Dating someone is different than creating a legal entity that supposedly should endure until one or the other dies.

Money should not be the motivating factor for marrying someone but let me tell you as someone divorced....you need to look at so many things....the way your partner handles finances is very, very important.

But hey, just having a fling, I suppose anything goes! As long as the two people involved realize what the bottom line is...that is one of the hardest things to realize. One partner may think "Oh, we are so in love!" and the other might think, "Thank goodness I am getting some every day!"
 
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