I think MrMike is having a bad day..
Santiago is certainly not a cultural desert, nor is it the most vibrant of cities, like New York or LA.
However, I do not think it is fair to measure a city by the number of overpasses and malls.
Santiago is the heart of the country. It is an intellectual center, and educational center and a cultural center. It is also a major industrial center with the rum, cigarette and cigar industry pretty much based here, and shoe manufacturing, leather goods furniture making an importan part of the city's economic life. It is also a major zona frana center with four important industrial free zones, and an important cement factory. Santiago happens to be the most important medical center in the North of the country, and the URJMCB hospital serves the entire 13 provinces of the Cibao.
Now for partying, apparently it is okey, too. My boys never seem to lack for having fun, nor my daughter, either. The Centro Espa?ol offers many dances for its members, and there are clubs from Ambis to Tribeca for all classes of people. For the bachata loving crowd there are at least 10 Rancho T?picos within 20 minutes of town center. Places like Daiqui Loco, Pops, Baja, Francifol are where the younger, more middle class and professional folks get together. For older folks there are lots of really good places to eat: Cosa Nostra, Nano's, La Parillilla, El Caf?, Maroma, Mezzaluna, Pasta House are just a few. And it has some of the best "friquitines" in the country, like "El Humazo" on the road to La Cumbre or Meca's on the hwy to POP via the tunnel...
There are dozens of softball fields and league play is very popular. Tennis, basketball, baseball and volleyball are popular. The shooting sports are also available but terribly expensive because of government restrictions (for which I am sure Hipolito is giving thanks to God, right about now!!). Judo, Karate, Table tennis are also well represented. Swimming is available at three locations-Amaprosan, PUCMM and the Centro Espa?ol. I do not know if the new facilities of Gurabito Country Club have a pool.
One thing. Santiago-middle and upper class Santiago, but it also applies to most of the families here- is very family fun oriented. By that, I mean that a lot of what goes on is family stuff. Birthdays, even the baby's birthdays are excuses for the grownups to get together for some fun. The 15 yr birthday for the girls is a major event. For example, at our house, a really sh!tty, dreary, rainy day almost always means that there will be a huge 'sancocho' with casabe and beer. Our closest friends know this and when it is raining a lot of them will stop by to have lunch. Sancocho, casabe, avocado and beer...15-18 people is about par for that day....
So, Santiago, with a lot more that 505,000 people nowadays, is a pretty cool place to live and raise kids. It can be closed to newcomers, until they make friends, but that is awful easy to do here.
HB