Last week I went to DR for the Christmas Holiday, I got to Santiago on the morning of the 23rd and them went on to visit my family in Santo Domingo, it had been a long while since I last visited the Conde Peatonal (Colonial Zone) so I wanted to go; I got there on Sunday the 23rd on the afternoon, let me tell you I was schock to see it how dirty and empty it was, a lot of store's spaces were vacant and there was just NOT that many turist on site, I visited the Hard Rock Cafe, and it was almost no people there too; can anyone tell me what's going on with El Conde, it use to be real busy before and all the stores were open and lots of turist used to shop there.
- Thread starter Tallman1818
- Start date
El Conde Peatonal
I don't know how long it has been since you've been to El Conde so I can't agree or disagree with the fact you say that it has deteriorated. I will say that the Colonial Zone in general lacks care. I lived in the Colonial Zone for a year before moving to my present location next door in Gazcue. It was always depressing to see the mounds of garbage on the Conde in the early morning, the lack of light on many streets and the beautiful buildings crumbling due to years of neglect.
This is a center for tourism in the capital but no one seems to take pride in the Colonial Zone.
Sundays are slow days..........
On Sundays 99.9% percent of the stores are closed. The liter starts to accumulate after the stores and restaurants close at night. First thing in the morning before the stores start to open for business El Conde is swept clean to start a new day.
El Conde is still one of the best places to go in Ciudad Centro. There are still plenty of restaurants with sidewalk tables, the street vendors, and a visit to El Conde without having a Presidente at Pacos would not be complete. Sorry you picked the wrong day to visit.
On Sundays 99.9% percent of the stores are closed. The liter starts to accumulate after the stores and restaurants close at night. First thing in the morning before the stores start to open for business El Conde is swept clean to start a new day.
El Conde is still one of the best places to go in Ciudad Centro. There are still plenty of restaurants with sidewalk tables, the street vendors, and a visit to El Conde without having a Presidente at Pacos would not be complete. Sorry you picked the wrong day to visit.
El Conde is just that.... El Conde
I think this is a very nice place and it attracts many people who are local as well as tourists alike. They seem to add new things every once in a while, such as the outdoor vendors under the tents and the car auction and legal advice, etc.
There are many unseedy people on El Conde but you see those in any big city. I like going there and seeing all of the cultural vibrance that Santo Domingo has to offer.
I think this is a very nice place and it attracts many people who are local as well as tourists alike. They seem to add new things every once in a while, such as the outdoor vendors under the tents and the car auction and legal advice, etc.
There are many unseedy people on El Conde but you see those in any big city. I like going there and seeing all of the cultural vibrance that Santo Domingo has to offer.
I don't know how long there pictures were taken, but when I was there on Sunday the 23 rd, it was empty and really dirty.
Christmas here in Colonial Zone area is a bit deserted. Most of the people leave to go elsewhere to be with family. the weeks before Christmas the streets are full. You just picked the wrong time to come.
I know what you mean
Tallman, what you describe dates back to the Hipolito years. The second Christmas of his term was when the economic disaster really began to hit hard. It was the first time I ever remember seeing so many the stores closed for the holiday or out of business. It was also the very first time I remember stores not having outdoor gift wrapping tables. Ever since then, the commercial zone has been in a slump. The trash and lack of customers and tourists are symptoms of what has been going on since then. Beyond the Conde, trash collection in the Colonial Zone greatly improved over the past two years. Scheduled evening collection and fairly regular enforcement of the 'wait until 6pm' to put out your trash rule have helped enormously. There is noticeably less rat activity now that the residential side streets are no longer piled high with household trash. I can remember having to stomp my feet or cross to the other side of the street late at night to disperse or avoid packs of overfed rats on the way to my door.
Tallman, what you describe dates back to the Hipolito years. The second Christmas of his term was when the economic disaster really began to hit hard. It was the first time I ever remember seeing so many the stores closed for the holiday or out of business. It was also the very first time I remember stores not having outdoor gift wrapping tables. Ever since then, the commercial zone has been in a slump. The trash and lack of customers and tourists are symptoms of what has been going on since then. Beyond the Conde, trash collection in the Colonial Zone greatly improved over the past two years. Scheduled evening collection and fairly regular enforcement of the 'wait until 6pm' to put out your trash rule have helped enormously. There is noticeably less rat activity now that the residential side streets are no longer piled high with household trash. I can remember having to stomp my feet or cross to the other side of the street late at night to disperse or avoid packs of overfed rats on the way to my door.
Great Pictures
I have been to El Conde so many times and when I return to the USA and try to explain what it is and it looks like, many here can not truely get the understanding. Nice to see those pics. Thanks for posting them, I have been showing the off to others. - Anyone have any other pics or know where I can veiw them online?
I am heading back to DR in Feb.
I have been to El Conde so many times and when I return to the USA and try to explain what it is and it looks like, many here can not truely get the understanding. Nice to see those pics. Thanks for posting them, I have been showing the off to others. - Anyone have any other pics or know where I can veiw them online?
I am heading back to DR in Feb.
I have some on my web site. Tons of pictures from everywhere. but I don't take that many of El Conde. You must spend all day taking pictures. wonder why I haven't run ino you out there yet.
Many of the police in DR use the Japanese branded motorcycles, but there is a large supply of American Harley Davidsons. The Harley Davidson is the preferred motorcycle for Law Enforcement. While is proves to be a good bike for cops in the U.S., it does not really fit into the streets of cities within the DR. There are many articles and rnews stories here in the past on DR1 about the cops and thier motorcycles.