do you live around dominicans or...

dominicanlou

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Jul 30, 2009
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other foreigners? or both?

have noticed many expats seem to stay around other expats. i have noted on this board several times people quoting prices and naming areas that only the foreigners frequent. rarely is a "regular dominican" area mentioned.

i have read over and over where people, for example say you cant escape gringos in POP and i dont get it. i am from barahona but stayed in POP for a couple weeks with friends who live there. was out and about in town 24/7 and never once saw a foreigner until we went to playa dorade, cabarete, sosua. in town, they are rare.

is it that you dont know of cheaper areas where dominicans live? as in, you are offered property and rentals in usually the gringo areas only and thus end up settling there? it kind of seems like some are oblivious to a whole other world, while others have no problems immersing themselves with the dominicans.

or is it that some prefer not to be around dominicans? please dont be offended. i am only looking from the outside and am curious to know the real stories.

i know it varies for everyone.
 

Chip

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Jul 25, 2007
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Santiago
We live here in Santiago among Dominicans. However, many have lived in the States and returned. I know is at least another American in the area, although I have never met him. The colmado has brought his stuff to my house before, haha.
 

SantiagoDR

The "REAL" SantiagoDR
Jan 12, 2006
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For years I was the only Americano where I live, still may only be 2 or 3 of us, I have not seen the 1 or 2 others. Even OchoA in directions to my house, tell the driver to ask for the house of the Americano.


SantiagoDR
 

flyingfox

New member
Sep 10, 2008
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We live in the Barrio that is still known by some, including the Police, as Los Mulos, now Villa Hermosa in La Romana.
Admittedly we have some members of my wife's family very nearby but all our neighbours, family included, are Dominicans and Haitians. (We have a small complex of 'Pensions' near us).
As an Englishman I prefer to be in the middle of 'the dust' shall we say than in an area which might have more Expats. It helps me 'un chin' to keep adding to my vocabulary and I experience how the not-so-wealthy live.
One problem is having to commute to work and not having enough time to spend exploring La Romana and all its areas as I would like; another is that we are very aware as quiet europeans of the ridiculous level of evangelising that goes on raucously from early morning to late evening. However if that is the worst we can expect whilst others are being attacked and robbed ...we can put up with a bit more 'Bible-punching'.
So we're right in the middle of the poor-middle class local Dominicans and poor Haitians and we find the majority of people to be kind and helpful.
 

Lambada

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Mar 4, 2004
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www.ginniebedggood.com
i have read over and over where people, for example say you cant escape gringos in POP and i dont get it. i am from barahona but stayed in POP for a couple weeks with friends who live there. was out and about in town 24/7 and never once saw a foreigner until we went to playa dorade, cabarete, sosua. in town, they are rare.

We seem to do ok escaping from gringos :cheeky: other than the few who are friends of course. We have lived in Puerto Plata close to 17 years now, first in a middle class Dominican urbanizaci?n, then in the town centre and for the last 9 years in an upmarket area where, of the 400 homes, 3 are totally foreign families, 4 or 5 are mixed foreign-Dominican families and the remaining 392 are Dominican families. We have never lived here among gringos. It wasn't what we came here to do. And we've lived in three different socio-economic areas and seemed to get on fine with the neighbours in all of them. Still see people from the early days here.
 

dominicanlou

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Jul 30, 2009
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i have to commend you all for being able to adjust! i know it is a great difference in ambience and lifestyle. many cannot do it. its too scary.

lambada, right! sometimes i read stuff and wonder if they are talking about the same towns.heck,even the same country! this forum is a portal to another world in a sense lol the world the average dominican doesnt really hear about being that its being experienced by people of very different provenance. expats very clearly have their own unique experiences that can vary greatly from what a dominican would think or see. its extremely interesting to hear of worlds both converging and staying separate even within the same geographical area. i assume it just depends on your particular values and needs.
 

tee

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Sep 14, 2007
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Cabarete
I live in a Dominican area and I absolutely love it. Granted I do not live in a barrio. The area is very clean, the houses are nicely maintained and my neighbors are fantastic. I would much rather live amonst Dominicans than foreigners....more fun to be around. I have lived in this area for 18 months (prior to that I was living in an area tht just had foreigners for 3 years) and not once have I had a neighbor come up to me and ask me to 'lend' them some money just because I am a foreigner. In my area everybody looks out for their neighbors, foreigners included.
And of course, the less foreigners there are the less chance there is of being robbed....having lived in Costa Azul for 3 years we know all about robbers!
 

dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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i have lived here in poor dominican area and the only thing i was immersed in language wise was a constant stream of co?o, diablo, callate and hijo de puta from my neighbours along with unbearably loud bachata attack from as early as 5.30 am.
so i am kinda sceptical about barrios now ;)
now i live in a gringo area and the noise level has improved dramatically. ok, the neighbour in front does play german pop from the 80's that would make my mum happy as it does other pensioners. but he does so during the day and occasionally.
i am not exactly the most sociable person on earth so it really does not matter who lives around me, i'd still pretend they are not there ;) it is, however, easier to ignore the existence of the neighbours when they keep quiet.
 
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dominicanlou

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Jul 30, 2009
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dv8, i hope you realize that "poor" people are all uncouth for the most part, anywhere you go. if you lived in a middle or upper class dominican area your experience would be different. its not fair to lump everyone in because you were around the lowest of low.

its not the fact that they were dominican or that it was a barrio that was your problem.its that they were poor and uneducated. even all poor folks arent the same. all barrios arent the same. some are quiet, some are hellish, some in between...

that is like me basing my POV on "living with americans" according to my experience with folks in low-income trailer parks or projects lol not exactly accurate!
 

dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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dominicanlou, i know all that. i have only complained about the noise factor. :)
 

SteveS

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Apr 15, 2008
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Living in Santo Domingo probably as most, is different, as there's not really an "ex-pat" area.

Until the first SD meet of DR1ers the other week, I hadn't spoken to a native English speaker since coming a year ago.

Everyone I live around is great, but I live at the edge of a barrio, and anywhere up to 1am, the noisy-car/van-with-giant-speakers-on-promoting-something-or-other flies by, and unfortunately goes not to far from the bedroom window. The actual apartment complex you never hear a peep out of anyone, we could be the only ones who live there to be honest. On the flip side, there's not much community spirit.