Expat community

Quisqueya Girl

New member
Oct 21, 2002
28
0
0
I am curious to know more about the expat community living in the DR. Is it large? Is it mostly American or European? What types of people form it - retirees, English teachers, missionaries, adventure seeker/travellers? Also, how are Americans viewed by the Dominicans in light of the U.S. historical involvement there?

Thanks!

-QG
 

Ken

Platinum
Jan 1, 2002
13,884
495
83
The expat community composed of all sorts of people. Come from Europe, Canada, the US, and the countries of the east. I've lived here for 16 years and have never experienced any problem because I am from the US. A large percentage of the Dominican families have some relative living there.
 

lhtown

Member
Jan 8, 2002
377
0
16
I am an American living in Santo Domingo. It is not unusual to see another American, but it is still fairly rare. I would guess that there are more french than Americans. There are also quite a few persons of oriental descent. Of the Americans, some tourists, some in business, some aid workers and missionaries.
 

Criss Colon

Platinum
Jan 2, 2002
21,843
191
0
38
yahoomail.com
More French than Americans?Where do you "Hang Out"?

You name it,you can find it! Come down,have a party at your house,invite the "Locals" from DR! and you will have a great time! Most "Ex-Pats" are a little "Strange",in the good sense.The people I have met from DR! are really interesting,and fun.Be sure to invite "Pib",a super cool dominicana,and "Hillbilly",he has forgotten more about the DR than most people will ever know!CRIS
 

Hillbilly

Moderator
Jan 1, 2002
18,948
514
113
I didn't know I was an ex-pat until I got on this board..
However, I have seen it all, from daily rants on the radio about the "CIA agents being foistered on us" to the calls for US needing tohelp more and more. Generally speaking, most Americans (about 27,000 at last count) are treated as they deserve to be. And usually, the Dominican population will give the American a lot of rope before he is hung out to dry. Same with any foreigner. As long as they take regular baths, are not really nasty, they get along well. I think every little town has a few non-Dominicans living there, even if they are just Mormon missionaries...

HB
 

Bill Parker

New member
Oct 10, 2002
7
0
0
www.2transformbusiness.com
Expat clarification

Just to confirm meanings:

An "Expat" is a person sponsored by a company to live and work in a country other than their place of birth or citizenship. The more formal version includes 'residency' status. There can be legal responsibilities for the company on behalf of the person being brought into the country.

Expats usually are planning on leaving the country between 2 and 5 years after arriving.

Others who come to work for companies or live as a resident may be doing so "on the local economy". They are more 'on their own' as far as having a job and returning to their home country.

Hopes this helps. Which group were you trying to learn about ?

Bill
 

Quisqueya Girl

New member
Oct 21, 2002
28
0
0
Bill,

I appreciate your formal definition of the word expat. I'm referring to its more informal use that is commonly used to describe anyone who leaves their home to willingly live in another country. I have been an expat myself in Belfast, Northern Ireland and London among other places. Perhaps I get this informal definition too much from the British - they are rather attached to this term. The British "expat" community has an extremely strong network all over the world.

So I was referring really to any non-Dominicans in the DR who are not necessarily immigrants or migrant workers. But rather people who chose to go there for one reason or another for maybe a short period or maybe forever.

I'm curious about people who are both living on the local economy and those supported from abroad. My main interest is in the interaction between this group of people and the Dominicans and then how the Dominicans view them.

When I was in Haiti there was quite a large expat community consisting of Missionaries, US government types, journalists, Haiti scholars and Peace Corps/help the third world types . The community was pretty tight and everyone pretty well knew each other or knew of each other. Is it that way in the DR?

-QG
 

Ken

Platinum
Jan 1, 2002
13,884
495
83
Re: Expat clarification

Bill Parker said:
Just to confirm meanings:

An "Expat" is a person sponsored by a company to live and work in a country other than their place of birth or citizenship. The more formal version includes 'residency' status. There can be legal responsibilities for the company on behalf of the person being brought into the country.

Expats usually are planning on leaving the country between 2 and 5 years after arriving.

Surprise! Surprise! For the 16 years that I have lived here, I thought that I was an expatriate ("expat") because my dictionary (admittedly abridged) defines an expatriate as someone who leaves one's country to reside in another.

So what should I call myself? I don't work for a company, am sponsored by nobody and (obviously) didn't return to the US 2-5 years after arriving.
 
Last edited:

Quisqueya Girl

New member
Oct 21, 2002
28
0
0
Jazzcom,

You're right. Haiti is pretty small. I think somebody said earlier there were 27,000 Americans in the DR. That's way huge. I guess I got talking about my own context and failed to remember how it is different everywhere you go.

That's why I'm here at DR1. So I can learn how it is in the DR. Since I can't hop on a plane right now and find out for myself I'm going to have to learn/live vicariously through all of you.

Thanks for putting things back in perspective for me. And tell me more!!!

-QG
 

JOHNNY HONDA

Motorcycle MANIAC
Sep 25, 2002
771
0
0
Ken you are surely in the same category as the rest of us unsponsored unexpats,marginal people who went off the deep end came here,had our brains put in storage,sorry just kidding but we are all a special breed of animal especially those of us who have passed way more than a decade on this rock and still love it.In reference to the mostly french statement ,if you were refering to the north coast its been well over 10 years since Quebecquois had any majority there,the germans have pretty much taken over since however they are on the downslide now as interpol has somewhat diminished their ranks the last 2 or 3 years,french still rule in Las Terrenas i believe
Johnny:bandit:
 

Ken

Platinum
Jan 1, 2002
13,884
495
83
JOHNNY HONDA said:
Ken you are surely in the same category as the rest of us unsponsored unexpats,marginal people who went off the deep end came here,had our brains put in storage,sorry just kidding but we are all a special breed of animal especially those of us who have passed way more than a decade on this rock and still love it.

Thanks, JH, for finding my place. I was really worried after reading Bill Parker's post.

BTW, all, if anybody wants to sponsor me, I am available.
 

Criss Colon

Platinum
Jan 2, 2002
21,843
191
0
38
yahoomail.com
The "MAD MAGAZINE" dictianary defines "EX-Pat" as follows:

If a guy is named Patrick,and he changes his name to, "Bill", for example,he is henceforth an "EX-"PAT"!!!!....Makes as much sense as the other "daffynitions" above!!CRIS
 

lhtown

Member
Jan 8, 2002
377
0
16
I was wrong.

I defer to the other posters on the question of the French population at least considering the island as a whole and accept their conclusions that the Americans greatly outnumber the French. I live in Santo Domingo. If you go to Carrefour (a French grocery supercenter sort of like a European Wal-mart) you will see quite a few French(much as you would see a lot of Americans here at a Wal-mart if there were one.
 

jetli

New member
Oct 26, 2002
5
0
0
This is interesting! Do you guys/gals meet any oriental (eg: Chinese) in Santo Domingo? Well there gotta be some of them, they're just everywhere in the world anyway, but would you mind telling me what are they doing in DR? Are they enjoying their life there or working hard to their butts off?
 

m65swede

New member
Mar 18, 2002
312
0
0
jetli said:
This is interesting! Do you guys/gals meet any oriental (eg: Chinese) in Santo Domingo? but would you mind telling me what are they doing in DR? Are they enjoying their life there or working hard to their butts off?

The Chinese I knew of in the Cibao were mostly employed in the Hotel/Restaurant business and seemed to be doing very well.

There are also Japanese in the DR; I believe many were brought in by Trujillo. My tractor drivers at the ranch were both Japanese. One of the favorite forms of entertainment for the Dominican ranch hands was to eavesdrop on me giving orders in my American-accented Spanish to the Japanese who responded in extremely heavily Japanese-accented (and very poor) Spanish. :) These 2 guys did very well for themselves, also.

Now I'm confused on the ex-pat thing. Since I am a US citizen who once lived in the DR for 4 years but am now living in the US - does that mean I am an ex-ex-pat? :)

Swede
 
Last edited:

Ken

Platinum
Jan 1, 2002
13,884
495
83
m65swede said:
Now I'm confused on the ex-pat thing. Since I am a US citizen who once lived in the DR for 4 years but am now living in the US - does that mean I am an ex-ex-pat?

Make it ex-expat, swede.

When I lived in Samana, I found that many people living there were convinced that the orientals that Trujillo brought into the country brought with them the Asian flu that continues to this day.
 

Andy B

Bronze
Jan 1, 2002
774
0
0
www.elmarinique.com
Actually there's several very good Chinese restaurants in Santo Domingo and a reasonable number of Chinese living there. I don't know how many there are but I'm told there are quite a few but they mostly stick to themselves and don't comingle with the locals.
 

jetli

New member
Oct 26, 2002
5
0
0
<but they mostly stick to themselves and don't comingle with the locals>

That's kinda upset because Chinese people often got their mind closed when being part of expats, it also happens in Canada unless they are the 2nd generation local born... But nonetheless, they are still nice people. ;)