2 - A Tropical Paradise

For the majority of my career, my work was focused on the Dominican Republic, a small Caribbean nation which shares the island of Hispañiola with Haiti. It is also a major tourist destination for Canadian and US citizens seeking relief from the rigors of winter and is considered by many to be a Tropical Paradise.

There is a saying in the Dominican tourism industry that the country can offer visitors the five S’s–sun, sea, sand, song, and sex. Many of the tourists who visit the country are simply looking for a beach holiday. Others come hoping for romantic encounters; many are willing to pay for such encounters.

Tourists brochures promote the Dominican Republic with photographs of 15th Century Colonial Spanish architecture, pristine beaches with attractive female and male models in swimwear, colorful meringue bands, smiling dark-skinned Dominicans posing by small, brightly colored houses which, if not what one is used to seeing in North America, still have a certain charm.

A lot of tourists who come to the country stay at resorts where all their needs and desires are catered to. Meals–and alcohol–are provided; the beaches are not crowded and are free of litter; visitors can purchase souvenirs in the resort gift shop or have their hair braided and beaded on the beach by pretty girls who speak a little English with cute Latin accents. The weather tends to be pleasant; the water is warm and inviting; the rum, beer, and cigars (or so I am told) are excellent.

And when it is time for the visitors to return home, many may feel perhaps more than just a little envious of the people lucky enough to live in this tropical paradise all year round. Often friends and acquaintances have remarked to me how lucky I was to have the opportunity to work in such a beautiful country. They also occasionally expressed surprise that I considered the Dominican Republic a developing country. Their experience had not left them with a sense that the Dominican people had any significant difficulties.

The experience travelers have of the Dominican Republic is often very different from the experience Dominicans have of their own country. For example, the beaches where the tourists relax usually are not public. They belong to the resorts, so Dominicans are unable to make use of them. It is a fairly common experience in countries such as the Dominican Republic that when resort complexes are built, they deprive local residents of access to what previously may have been public recreation areas. It is small but significant point.

Of course the guests at these resorts wouldn’t necessarily be aware of this. In fact, since those guests are often encouraged not to leave the resort boundaries, they may not have a very clear idea of how the lucky natives live at all.

The contrast between the tourist’s view and the resident’s view is the starting point for this series of essays. I have learned that it is not enough to present information about countries like the Dominican Republic; it is also necessary to overcome popular misconceptions about these nations brought back by well-meaning and often intelligent people who visit them without necessarily seeing them