pride21 said:
When I was in Mexico, I was with a Spanish speaking male companion, and he basically took care of everything. When I travel to Santo Domingo, it will be with two girlfriends (no men), and I plan on spending some time alone to check out the historical sites and catch a few baseball games. Is this safe? I'm not so much worried about being mugged or anything..I don't ever intend to be alone at night or in isolated places. I'm also used to Latin men and their appreciation for women, and am capable of dealing with that,but I'm wondering if I'll be taken advantage of by vendors, cab drivers, etc., because I'm a girl and speak only English. Any advice would be appreciated
You will definitely be taken advantage of by vendors etc. they tend to basically double the price for Gringos and sometimes more if they think they can get away with it.
Rule #1 Always ask the price before buying, getting in, etc.
Something that has always worked very well for me, in fact I have often gotten a better price on something than my Dominican wife, I just say: "Soy Gringo, pero no stupido" and then offer them about half of what they asked for.
Another thing to do, is buy from vendors where locals are buying and watch to see how much they paid.
Regardless of paying a little extra to vendors, etc. I'm sure you'll have a fantastic time, besides, unless you are totally clueless, which I'm sure your not, the over charges will probably only amount to a total of about US $20.00 or so anyway.
Explore and have a great time.
Ken