HELP! MONEY-DANCE-WALKING @ NITE

Ok, so I've gotten my ticket. I'm staying in a quaint bed & breakfast. Now, the new questions: I'll be in the Dominican Republic for the entire month of December and am looking for opinions/advice on the following:

MONEY - How much do I bring for 1 month? Do you prefer ATMS, Travellers Checks, or CASH? Are hotel Safe Deposit boxes safe in DR?

DANCING - What places are the most fun with LIVE Carribean "flavor" and music?

WALKING @ NITE - I want HONEST opinions of YOUR personal experience in Santo Domingo at night. I have two friends who were mugged walking on the beach alone (one was a guy) and I'd like to know what areas ARE one's to avoid. (I live in NY and I KNOW where NOT to walk alone or wait for the subway here.)

Gracias para sus ayuda! p.s. Here is a new DR site I found about the island. Very informative TOURIST stuff: <A HREF="http://www.bravo2000.com/educationalservices/">http://www.bravo2000.com/educationalservices/</A>

Thank you for the link, it is very helpful!

Lauren

Your post is hard to answer if we don't know in what part of the island you will be vacationing.

SANKY: I will be in Santo Domingo primarily for the first two weeks staying at a Pension near the Zona Colonial ... I'll have a weekend near the Las Terrazas resort where friends have a home.

Thanks for ANY comments, suggestions ....

Quick tip: AVOID DUARTE AT NIGHT!!

There is some nice mid to low end shopping during the day but you would be wise to follow the lead of the police. They generally avoid Duarte at night as well.

Re: DUARTE AT NIGHT!!

Amigo NewT,

Thanx for helping out with the sicko and his velero in this forum. I beg to differ on Duarte, though. Been there several times over the years and even took some of the wives with us last year. All of us clearly tourists but speaking Spanish ?cause my good buddy Alejandro was with me. Alejandro is a cop is San Carlos. True, he wouldn?t want to patrol there if he had a choice, but it?s not really a no-goer at night. Like him, I have worse areas in my patrol-area in Amsterdam.
Reina, enjoy your stay in Santo Domingo, I absolutely luv (!) the place. Damn, It?s a long wait ?till the Merengue festival in july ! Cuidanse.