What did we do today, you ask? The better question is, "What didn't we do today?"!!
In the morning, we visited the Acuario Nacional, where the highlight, ironically, was the iguana display. There were also stunning views of the Carribbean Sea, marred only by the omnipresent floating islands of trash.
After a brief siesta, we took a tour of historic Santo Domingo, including the Cathedral de las Americas, the oldest cathedral in the Americas. My favorite part (and something I missed last year) was a cross that was blessed by Pope John Paul II. Our tour guide explained that, instead of confession, Dominicans place their hands on the cross to purify themselves of their sins.
The highlight of the day was dinner at El Conuco, which was our first meal in Santo Domingo that could compete with Lazaros home-cooked dinners. Both the food and the music were fantastic, and our students particularly enjoyed the merengue demonstration. I'm going to try to post the video here! As Mark Kurlansky says in his new book on the DR, The Eastern Stars, "Things you cannot do while listening to merengue: reflect, stand still, be sad."
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