Introduction

This short report is a continuation of my trip described in Santo Domingo, DR Redux and Sosua with a Side of POP. Day 1 begins in Sosua.

Day 1

For breakfast I went to Rocky's where they had a good deal for 150 DOP. Like the dinner, the breakfast was pleasant and well priced.

Since Casa Valeria didn't have phones, I walked to one of the internet/call centers to call the Hotel Los Jardines in Santiago and confirm the rate and room availability. They had a room for $50 USD, so I gave my name and told them I'd be there later that afternoon.

After checking out of Casa Valeria, I walked to the nearby Metro bus terminal and bought my ticket to Santiago for 180 DOP their 1:20pm departure.

Considering my 5+ hour ride from Santo Domingo to Sosua, the 2 hour ride was a piece of cake. We arrived at the Metro bus terminal in Santiago at 3:30pm. I noticed that the Caribe Tours station was on the same block. My hotel was not too far, but since I wasn't too familiar with the area and had my bags, I took a cab. At 150 DOP, the short cab ride was overpriced.

The Hotel Los Jardines website lists the hotel as being at the intersection of Calle Texas and Calle 10, but the street signs say Padre Ramon Dupert and Sebastian F Valverde. I confirmed they were the same place on Google Maps. I'm not sure which are the older and which are the newer names, but I'd default to the street signs.

I did some walking around but didn't find much of interest nearby. Consequently, I didn't like the area. There was a Burger King, KFC, and McDonalds a few blocks away. I got a McCombo of the day for dinner for 180 DOP. After that I took a nap in preparation for a late night.

My hobbying started with a 200 DOP cab ride to Casa Blanca. There were only about 5 ladies available at 10:45pm. Three of them were attractive, but I was in no rush to choose. I eventually allowed a pretty dark chocolate lady to sit with me and bought her a beer. Marciel was nice and easily an option, but she didn't sell me completely. Before I left I got some details about the club. They are open daily from 11am - 3am on most nights, 5am on busier nights. She said they were busy Friday through Sunday. Onsite sessions were 3000 DOP. I told her I'd be back that night or the next and walked over to Ilusion.

My comment from my Sosua/Puerto Plata report:
"I don't recommend walking around like this, especially in that area. I do some borderline unsafe walking at times, but I'm also a little younger, fit, and most importantly, fast. I realize that might be irrelevant when weapons or groups are involved, so I do try to do this as little as possible and don't recommend it to others at all."

The talent at Ilusion wasn't much better. My stomach was a bit empty so I only ordered a 175 DOP Perrier and bought a 190 DOP beer for an OK looking lady named Emily. She was very forgettable, in fact, at the point of writing this I only have her name and drink order because I had it in my notes. I've forgotten what she looked or acted like.

I'm not a big fan of Ilusion. Casa Blanca was dark, Ilusion was even darker. I find it annoying that you have to practically walk up to a woman to see what she looks like. Even the dance show was poorly lit and consisted mostly of a silhouette dancing. I was also very annoyed as the announcer took a full 15-20 minutes introducing the dance show.

I forgot to get their operating hours, but I'm pretty sure it's about 9 or 10pm until something like 3 to 5am. I did get their onsite price of 3500 DOP.

There were definitely more ladies, but many of them tended to be stockier. The most attractive one that night had a nice body, but only a soso face. She was busy and Marciel was a better option so I caught a cab back to Casa Blanca. He wanted 150 DOP for the short distance, but agreed to 100 DOP when I started walking.

Back at Casa Blanca, Marciel seemed moody, I think because it was getting very late. I tried flirting with her, but she wasn't reciprocating, so I left her at the bar. While I had been sitting with Marciel, I noticed a fairly hot lady that I hadn't noticed before, but she was busy the entire time I was with Marciel and until the time that I left. The new one was a definite consideration for the next night.

I contemplated a decent looking lady I met outside named Joanna, but her body wasn't that great and she seemed tired as well. Joanna quoted me 3500 DOP. I just decided to call it a night.

I didn't get laid today, but at least I saw the lineup at two clubs and would be more fully charged for the next day. The cab driver wanted 250 DOP for the ride back to Hotel Los Jardines, considering the time of night and money I saved by not sessioning, I just paid it.

Vladimir
vladrasputin@hotmail.com

DISCUSSIONS:
Metro Autobuses
Hotel Los Jardines
Casa Blanca
Ilusion

Day 2

In the morning I went downstairs for breakfast. They didn't have a menu to present me. I would have liked to have seen some options, but got by with the guy telling me what they had available. When I finished I sat back and the guy took everything, including my unfinished juice, without asking me about it.

I decided to spend the next night at the Hotel Platino. Based on the location on Google Maps, it looked much closer to the more lively area around Calle del Sol. I called ahead to confirm the rate and make sure they had a room available. There was, so I caught a cab ride there for 150 DOP.

The Platino was 1990 DOP for the night. After checking in, I walked around to explore the area. To my dismay, there wasn't really anything near the Hotel Platino, either. I had a hamburger for a late lunch at the supposedly 24hr Cappuccine restaurant nearby. The patty was thick, but the circumference was small, it took up less than have the area of the bun.

I decided to do a little sightseeing after that. I caught a cab ride to the Cathedral off Calle del Sol for 150 DOP. It was being restored and was less than impressive. I then walked up the Calle del Sol towards the Monument. I passed the Aloha del Sol on the way. I would have stayed there again had it not been $80 USD for a room, the location was much better.

I took some pictures of the Monument as it started to get dark. I had read reports of freelancers around this area, but I didn't see any. Perhaps it's only later in the evening or old news. I did spot several university students, one of which was extremely hot and for whom I would have paid a premium for, but I'm pretty sure they weren't working.

After the monument I caught a cab back to the hotel. I didn't want to eat at Cappucine again so I just ordered a fancy sandwich via room service. The fries and sandwich were better fare, but I did pay a little extra to eat it in my room when I should have walked to the restaurant.

I had contemplated using one of the many ATMs while walking up Calle del Sol, but I decided not to thinking I had a few thousand DOP back at the hotel. I had forgetten I used it to pay for the hotels. This ended up costing me a bit.

Around 10pm I had the hotel call me a cab. I told the cab driver I wanted to go to Pasion, but needed to stop at an ATM on the way. I should have been very specific on getting a quote for the taxi fare, I'm not sure why I was so mentally lazy, I knew better. The first ATM he took me to was at a casino. It only dispensed small bills and wouldn't give me the amount I needed. He then took me to Calle del Sol where I easily got my pesos. From there we went to Pasion. For what should have been at most a 400 DOP ride, even at the jacked up tourist rate, he wanted 700 DOP. I complained that he was overcharging me and he countered that he had to go to different places. He ended up accepting 500 DOP.

Pasion was definitely the best of the three clubs. It had the most women, the most attractive women, and was the most brightly lit. Another benefit is the restaurant they have on the outside through the side door. You can see the women there in very good lighting.

My first drink was a Red Bull for 150 DOP. After that I had a beer for which one of the asshole bartenders charged me 200 DOP. I ordered another one later for 150 DOP from someone else.

I was approached rather early by what would end up being two of my top prospects for the night, a milk chocolate lady named Carolina from Santo Domingo and her Caucasian-looking friend Lorena. Lorena would turn out to be a dancer in the late evening show. They were both easily doable, with Lorena more attractive but Carolina seeming to have the better attitude, but I wanted to wait to see what else was available.

There were a couple of Caucasian looking blonds that I would have liked to experience, but one never smiled and the other stayed out of the light and didn't seem that friendly, either. A few others had some potential, but for the time being, none surpassed Carolina and Lorena. By the time I realized I wanted to take one of them, Carolina was busy and Lorena was getting ready for her show.

It ended up being, or seeming to be, a fairly long wait. Eventually Lorena was finished with her show and was available. I invited her for a drink, but she immediately countered with a proposition to go to the room. I smiled and said maybe later, she smiled and walked away.

Fortunately, Carolina broke free, she was just talking, she didn't go to the room. I invited her for a drink and she happily agreed. While we were ordering, Carolina's friend Bianca came to talk to her. Bianca was the blond in the dark, and in the light, she was GORGEOUS. Although I would have rather taken Bianca, I already had what seemed to be a sure thing in Carolina, but I did agree to buy her a drink as well.

Bianca seemed reserved which was also reflected by her style, so I had probably made the better choice even if I hadn't already been with Carolina.

Eventually, Carolina and I excused ourselves for a fun 3500 DOP romp in one of the onsite rooms. She didn't give a BJ, the one and only that didn't this trip, but other than that she was very good and a lot of fun. She asked for a tip afterwards. I told her I didn't have much and could only give her 200 DOP since I still had to pay for a taxi. She was happy with that.

Photos: Carolina - Pasion 01 02 03 04 05 06

The cab ride was a bit more for the late hour as expected, 250 DOP to get back to Platino. I cleaned up and hopped into bed quickly to get some rest before my return to Santo Domingo the next day.

Vladimir
vladrasputin@hotmail.com

DISCUSSIONS:
Hotel Platino
Pasion
Taxis