Little GTO

This morning we took a tour and both drove a Slingshot. This is a super, red car with three wheels, two in the front and one in the rear. It's a two seater convertible and super fast. Jeff says it has a Chevy engine and transmission. There were three cars in our group with our leader and a photographer in a Toyota sedan in the lead. With no training or checking to see if we had a driver's license, we drove off for about 20 minutes on a highway. Lots of speed bumps were annoying, but the ride was great. First stop was a public beach area where we got out for a short while.

Now Jeff and I traded places so I could drive. I had not used a stick shift in many years, but it came back quickly and I got us safely to the next stop. Have to say it was lots of fun to drive and the day was sunny and hot, so just perfect.

This stop was a cigar and chocolate factory and the obligatory gift shop. A small museum had displays about growing and curing tobacco. A gentleman was hand rolling cigars and none of us took him up on his offer to smoke one. This is a big industry here in the Dominican Republic using locally grown tobacco and leaves from Connecticut and Cuba. We also tasted a local liquor called Mamajuana. We could not understand what the guide was saying as he kept asking if we want try Mamajuana. It is good and can cure any ailments and also an aphrodisiac when you add rum and honey.

The other side of the building was a chocolate store with anything you can imagine made from chocolate including cosmetics, creams and, of course, chocolate to eat. We had samples of a hot chocolate tea flavored with brown sugar and little chunks of dark, milk, and white chocolate.

Now we are back in the cars and Jeff drove us home.

It was a nice excursion and good to see a little more of the area. Time for lunch and we took a tram from the main lobby to Isla. That is the restaurant closest to our rooms and one of three that are independent buildings facing the beach. It is large and airy with a huge buffet and a grill. Today I had a nice salad with greens, beans and couscous. A small bowl of crema de vegetable soup and small rolls with mantequilla. Jeff had them grill him a hamburger and I went back for a grilled chicken thigh with rice and beans. I really enjoy the island food and we are both using lots of Spanish to order food and talk to the staff. Everyone seems thrilled that we speak Spanish and are helpful correcting our words and encouraging us.

After lunch it is siesta time. We had so much sun this morning we decided not to go to the beach or pool. Instead we sat on the shady balcony and now it is nap time. We plan to eat dinner at Toro tonight. It is the only restaurant we have not been to for dinner.

Dinner at Toro was very nice. our waiter was so attentive and friendly. Jeff had Caesar salad and a rare steak. I had French Onion soup and BBQ chicken. We both had baked potatoes and I had creamed spinach. Ice cream sundaes were our dessert choice. We walked part of the way home trying to burn off a few calories after such a feast.

Feed the Birds

Today is our birding tour and we did not feed birds as in Mary Poppins, but we did see them. Our guide Manny picked us up at 7:45 so we were up early and had breakfast in the wee hours. Manny had driven two hours to get us and now we drove 1 1/2 hours to Parque Este, a National Park.

Nothing much to see along the way,but we got a complete history of the Island of Hispaniola  including the countries of Dominican Republic and Haiti. Also passed miles of sugar cane fields which comprise much of the industry here. Many other fruits and grains are grown here and exported around the world, but the biggest industry is tourism. We arrived at La Romana, a tourist town with resort hotels near the park. The water here is very blue and calm.

The Park isn’t much compared to US National Parks. No rangers, no visitor center, but we had our guide to take us around. We parked and were the only ones there. After using bug spray and the one, dirty toilet, we walked along a dirt path. Jeff lost interest quickly and went back to the car to read. I was in bird heaven and really enjoyed myself.

Manny is an excellent guide and has superb hearing. He would say there's a ... and then I would see movement and usually a bird. He had a blue tooth speaker hooked up to an iPod with bird calls and it worked well. We saw a large variety of birds including several endemic species, birds that only are found on this island. My favorite is the Broad Billed Toady. Adorable little guy with gorgeous green feathers and red beak and throat.

Also fascinated by a Hispaniolan Lizard Cuckoo. When he flew his wings were a rufous, rusty color. He was gorgeous and we followed him a while so I could get some good pictures of his red eye ring.

Other birds we saw were the Black Crowned Palm Tanager.

Banana Quit

Best were the hummingbirds. There were so many of two types. The little one is a Vervain Hummingbird and the larger is the Pantaleon Mango Hummingbird. The Vervain is the second smallest bird.  The Mango is a magnificent green with a purple breast. It took a while, but finally a few of them perched long enough for me to get some photos. Manny liked that the little guy did a head bob thing.

Other birds we saw were the Northern Mockingbird, Flat Billed Verio, Greater Antillean Bullfinch, Pearly Eyes Thrasher, Prairie Warbler, Magnificent Frigatebird, Turkey Vulture and the Hispaniolan Parrot. Also the White Neck Crow.

Zebra Butterfly

Hispaniolan Lizard and Curly Tailed Lizard

Finally our time was up and we returned to the car to rescue Jeff and head back to the hotel.

We had lunch at a buffet and then headed to a pool to take a dip and sit in the sun for a while. Big decisions now as we choose where to have dinner tonight. Zen won out and we headed to the main lobby for the hibachi restaurant. The place is huge with 20 tables each with 12 seats. Best meal I have eaten here with chicken, beef and shrimp along with fried rice and vegetables all cooked by a fun performing chef. Now we are in bed, relaxing since I have to let all the food digest before trying to sleep.

Cupid Shuffle

I did not do line dancing today, but can hear the music from my balcony and wish I had been there. I did do water aerobics and feeling so good about myself. Day three of vacation and it is an eating fest with bouts of sun and sand and water. Such a pretty place and delightful weather. Was supposed to rain today, but instead it is sunny and breezy.

We got up a little earlier and went to the main lobby for breakfast. Lots of costumes and items that belonged to musicians are on display. This Lincoln was owned by Madonna and had metallic tiles covering it.

Visited with a vacation planner and booked a few trips and massages. Made appointments to get our manicures and pedicures. We will be looking good when we get home with our new tans. We sat for a while at the main pool which is noisy with a DJ and emcee. I wanted to do water aerobics at noon and I really enjoyed myself. Two young guys led the class and gave a moderate workout. I did see this Greater Antillean Grackle.

The some folks came around with a monkey and two parrots for photos.

We had lunch at Toro, a beef restaurant. Bull statues were hanging upside down from the ceiling. For lunch there is a large buffet. I never made it past the salad bar area which included couscous and guacamole. Jeff got to the hot foods section and enjoyed thin grilled pork chops. We will go back for dinner as they assured me they have salmon on their menu in addition to lots of beef.

We spent the rest of the afternoon on the beach which was pretty windy. They have a few vendors that come around selling hats, sunglasses and jewelry. I found them interesting. The sunglasses were mounted on a boogie board.

We read and slept and now back at our room relaxing some more. I saw a new, yellow bird that I think is called a Village Weaver. They construct intricate nests that are truly beautiful in the pictures I saw. The woodpeckers are very busy playing in the trees near our balcony. I saw four of them on the tree trunks.

Dinner tonight is at the Italian restaurant in the main building. Fair food in a pretty atmosphere. Interesting conversation with two gals at the next table who are travel agents. Afterwards we took the tram around the grounds to get some fresh air and enjoy the moonlight.

You are the Sunshine of my Life

Here we are in sunny Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. A nice winter getaway from the cold weather at home. We flew from Savannah,  changing planes in Atlanta. After a pleasant flight we landed mid afternoon at a modern airport and easily got our luggage and found our transportation to the hotel. We are staying at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.

It is a huge property with beautiful grounds and lots of lagoons, ponds and rivers with lush landscaping. Our room is just beautiful and spacious with a large balcony overlooking a lawn with pond, palm trees and lots of colorful plants.

A full moon greeted us and a short walk took us to one of eight restaurants for dinner. All the food, drinks and tips are included so it is party time. After eating we took a tram ride around the property to see all 12 pools and more.

Woke up this morning to sunshine and warm breezes. Compare to low 30's at home, we are pleased. I spent some time out on the terrace and to my delight saw some birds. A pair of Palm Chats are building a nest in a palm tree about 20 feet from me. They are the National bird of the Dominican Republic. They build communal nests, but I only saw the two birds.

Then I noticed a woodpecker in another palm. He is the Hispaniola Woodpecker and he posed for a long time. I believe the one with a black head is the female and the full red cap is the male. At times there were four woodpeckers on the tree trunk.

Had a late breakfast and headed to the beach. There are many areas and all have thatched canopies for shade.

We found chairs looking out at the blue ocean and planted ourselves for several hours. Waitresses come around for drink orders and we napped, read and relaxed. I got my toes wet and took a nice walk before we had a very late lunch. On the walk “home” we saw some beautiful flowers and
a green heron.

Back at the room we are napping and getting ready to pick a restaurant for dinner.

We decided on Ipanema, a Brazilian Steakhouse. The restaurant is large with amazing salad bars and hot food buffet. Jeff was very happy as they came around with large skewers of beef, pork and more. Jeff’s, favorite was the sirloin and he enjoyed the pork loin also. I was fine with all the buffet items including peel and eat shrimp, salad, soup and stewed chicken with mashed potatoes. Afterwards we went over to explore the main lobby and found more restaurants and stores. The casino is there too. We started to walk in, but it smelled like smoke and I had just washed my hair, so that is not a place we will frequent.

We are back in our room and thinking about what to do tomorrow. Will involve the beach and more food.

Baby, It's Cold Outisde

First cold day of the season. It is the last Sunday in October which means Shalom Y'all, the Jewish Food Festival in Savannah, sponsored by Temple Mickve Israel. Met Carol there and a few other friends, ate some good food, heard klezmer music.

Jeff and I drove out to Fort Pulaski to spend a few hours in the solitude and beauty of the grounds. It was too cold for song birds, but we found our way to the Savannah River and watched some huge freighters make their way into the port.

A special treat while watching the gulls - a bald eagle appeared and put on quite a show.

Then I took a walk around the fort enjoying the stillness and history of the grounds.

The best was to come as we went back into town to see our cousins Marlene & Bob Waage. They flew in from Texas for a business conference and we had a lovely dinner together with great conversation and lots of catching up on family stuff.