2003 – Page 33

Recent news reports reveal that Brad Pitt, who was here to accompany Angelina Jolie when she was filming the movie “The Good Shepherd” with Robert De Niro was in the DR last week scouting for real estate development locations. DR1 forums had reported that Pitt was “extremely interested in Samana.” He was accompanied by star …

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Magaly Toribio, who has worked as marketing counsel to the Tourism Minister during his current term in office, and has been in charge of liaison with the BVK public relations and advertising agency in the US, was appointed deputy tourism minister last week. Decree 144-66 appoints her to replace Hans Dannenberg who has just taken …

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The Caribbean Electronic Music Festival 2006 is scheduled for Cabarete Beach, April 14-16, the Easter holiday weekend. The event is organized by “After”, an electronic music collective and production company based in Canada and the DR. The event will feature artists from Canada, the U.S., Spain and the Dominican Republic, over a 36-hour period, an …

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Gonzalo Gonzalez, managing director of BVK, announced the first phase of the new Ministry of Tourism website ? http://www.godominicanrepublic.com The website highlights tourism destinations within the Dominican Republic. BVK is the US market advertising and public relations company for the Ministry of Tourism. Gonzalez announced the government invested US$50,000 in the first phase of a …

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The Dominican Annual Travel Exchange, the leading travel booking event for the Dominican Republic, opens Wednesday, 5 April in Punta Cana on the east coast. The three-day event will be held at Paradisus Palma Real’s brand new convention area. The event brings together hoteliers and buying tour operators.

President Leonel Fernandez was in Puerto Plata on Saturday for the ribbon-cutting of Puerto Plata’s revamped seafront avenue, the malecon. The government announced that a RD$307 million investment was made to repave the five-kilometer long Atlantic ocean boulevard. 450 light posts were installed to make the avenue attractive for night strolls. The improvements also included …

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The 2006 Major League Baseball championship that opened on Sunday, 2 April in the United States marks the 50th year that Dominican baseball players have played in the league. 72 year old Osvaldo Jose Virgil Pichardo was the trailblazer for Dominicans, debuting in the Major League on 26 September 1956, wearing the New York Giants …

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An article in the 20th March edition of New Yorker magazine focuses on the initial plans by the new owners of Playa Grande for the development of what many call the country’s most spectacular golf course and adjacent beach and cliffs surrounding properties. 40-year old Boykin Curry, who bought the property from the Central Bank …

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The Dominican Institute of Telecommunications (Indotel) and the Airport Department, two government bodies, have agreed to install free wireless Internet service at eight of the country’s airports. Jose Rafael Vargas signed the agreement for Indotel, and Andres Van der Horst for the Airport Department. The installation of free Internet access is planned for the Las …

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Tourism Minister Felix Jimenez, who accompanied President Leonel Fernandez on his visit to London, announced that the President has allocated an additional US$5 million this year for international promotion of the Dominican Republic as a tourist destination. He said this would bring the budget for international promotion to US$27 million this year. According to the …

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