The best chicharrones in SD? On the SD-Bani highway, before you reach San Cristobal, lots of stands, cooked right there. You buy the chunk you want and they chop it as you watch, by the pound.
- Thread starter Spicedwine
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saddened and disappointed once again
The best chicharrones in SD? On the SD-Bani highway, before you reach San Cristobal, lots of stands, cooked right there. You buy the chunk you want and they chop it as you watch, by the pound.
Forgive me....I'd like to play Devils's advocate here for a second.
I too get a little angry when i get charged a different price for things, but i learned a long time ago not to let it bother me. I try and put myself in people's shoes...even if they're shoes are too small and stink a little. let me give you an example.
On a very rare occasion i will take a public taxi between Cabarete and Sosua. I know they charge something like 25 pesos for the trip (i can't remember exactly), but I always give them 40 or 45 pesos. Why? Well, for one thing, 20 extra pesos is only U.S .50 cents. And secondly, because i'm in the service industry, i know how much a little extra money goes for picking people's mood up...it can make their day, and it can also make their mood change instantly and they smile more. I always try and give a little extra. but I don't give a little extra because i have much money...i don't. Not remotely. Remember, I work for $8000 pesos (US $200) a month just like everyone else in the DR. It's just that, a little extra money really brightens people's day up.
I know this is a moot point at this stage of the thread, but, being half Dominican and working in the DR for $US 200 ($8000 pesos) a month, a little tipping is very much appreciated (more so then in the US or Europe), even if its in the guise of being overcharged. I know, i know...it leaves a bad taste in your mouth. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth as well. But you got to remember, these people are working for pennies compared to what many people make elsewhere, and they're living in sub-standard conditions that 99% of the people on this board could never live in. Not everyone has a hot water tank and A/C. Nor do many people working on the street have much more then a dirt floor and an outhouse, and very poor plumbing and almost non-existent electricity because, let's face it, they don't have a back-up generator and live in a condo complex that makes sure these things work.
I'm not trying to make you feel like its ok to be ripped off and be charged a completely different price, i'm just trying to get you to understand that Dominicans have many mouths to feed and very little to subsist on, and that an extra 20 pesos for them goes a long way. I would suggest that, maybe, turning the cheek in these situations and just relaxing. Remember, at the end of the day, 20 pesos is not going to break or make your day, but for many Dominicans, it can actually make their day by having an extra 20 pesos.
Again, i'm not saying its ok to rip people off, but when you see the amount of long hours these people on the street put in everyday, 6 & 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year, with no such thing as "Vacation pay" or "Sick days off," and also the amount of mouths that are being fed by their meager salaries, and children being clothed and sent to school...i often think, "There, but for the grace of someone, go I."
Love Frank
I too get a little angry when i get charged a different price for things, but i learned a long time ago not to let it bother me. I try and put myself in people's shoes...even if they're shoes are too small and stink a little. let me give you an example.
On a very rare occasion i will take a public taxi between Cabarete and Sosua. I know they charge something like 25 pesos for the trip (i can't remember exactly), but I always give them 40 or 45 pesos. Why? Well, for one thing, 20 extra pesos is only U.S .50 cents. And secondly, because i'm in the service industry, i know how much a little extra money goes for picking people's mood up...it can make their day, and it can also make their mood change instantly and they smile more. I always try and give a little extra. but I don't give a little extra because i have much money...i don't. Not remotely. Remember, I work for $8000 pesos (US $200) a month just like everyone else in the DR. It's just that, a little extra money really brightens people's day up.
I know this is a moot point at this stage of the thread, but, being half Dominican and working in the DR for $US 200 ($8000 pesos) a month, a little tipping is very much appreciated (more so then in the US or Europe), even if its in the guise of being overcharged. I know, i know...it leaves a bad taste in your mouth. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth as well. But you got to remember, these people are working for pennies compared to what many people make elsewhere, and they're living in sub-standard conditions that 99% of the people on this board could never live in. Not everyone has a hot water tank and A/C. Nor do many people working on the street have much more then a dirt floor and an outhouse, and very poor plumbing and almost non-existent electricity because, let's face it, they don't have a back-up generator and live in a condo complex that makes sure these things work.
I'm not trying to make you feel like its ok to be ripped off and be charged a completely different price, i'm just trying to get you to understand that Dominicans have many mouths to feed and very little to subsist on, and that an extra 20 pesos for them goes a long way. I would suggest that, maybe, turning the cheek in these situations and just relaxing. Remember, at the end of the day, 20 pesos is not going to break or make your day, but for many Dominicans, it can actually make their day by having an extra 20 pesos.
Again, i'm not saying its ok to rip people off, but when you see the amount of long hours these people on the street put in everyday, 6 & 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year, with no such thing as "Vacation pay" or "Sick days off," and also the amount of mouths that are being fed by their meager salaries, and children being clothed and sent to school...i often think, "There, but for the grace of someone, go I."
Love Frank
Laugh it up, Pg. Like I said, I don't care what you or others say. This is a personal
preference. Everybody should be able to post what they like or not and not be laughed
at when it is not being seen their way.
Not all Dominicans. It depends on who the Dominicans are that you ask.
I understand that these street vendors have mouths to feed, but I am looking
out for my health.
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Very well said Frank. Spoken by a man with a heart. Thank you for making it real.
I'll try to remember that the next time........
Exactly the scenario I'm referring to. There are places like it all over the country. I've always found them fair. As for getting sick, the only place that happened to me, many years ago, was a very well-known restaurant in the capital that's still there. I can't say I'll never go back because there's no telling what it was that made me ill.
Best foood? I've eaten at several street vendors from Sosewer to SDO, and while some of the fare might be tasty, its hardly what I'd qualify as "best food". some of that Sheit is downright scary. No telling how long some of it has been hanging, sweating, and fermenting in the heat. Wouldn't think twice about lacing it to the bottoms of my shoes and save the soles from wearing out. Not to mention; almost every time the wife (Dominicana), eats at one of these establishments, she becomes ill.
Why would you buy what looks nasty to you? And then complain about it after the fact?
I know that these street vendors are poor and in need of help but you also have to
look out for yourselves, your health. Some of them use old oil over and over again,
so thick, that it looks like syrup.
I help out the poor in the DR, tremendously(give out alms) but I will not at the cost
of my health. This is where common sense prevails.
Now, if you want to be the good samaritan and continue to buy from them, by all means
continue, nobody is saying not to.
look out for yourselves, your health. Some of them use old oil over and over again,
so thick, that it looks like syrup.
I help out the poor in the DR, tremendously(give out alms) but I will not at the cost
of my health. This is where common sense prevails.
Now, if you want to be the good samaritan and continue to buy from them, by all means
continue, nobody is saying not to.
Behind the Parque Mirador Sur towards Anacaona. Best in SD for sure....oh, and they do give you Yuca
Seriously? In lots of the pica pollos the prices are displayed. Where are you living that you don't
know that?
Supermarkets, Dominicans choosing a supermarket or cafeteria instead of street vendors? Reality check!
You mentioned being Dominican; I wonder if you were actually raised here? What you mentioned above has been the mold of this country for years and it has not changed much.