09/07/2015
SANTO DOMINGO: COME AND ENJOY 500 YEARS WORTH OF RICH CULTURE AND HISTORY.........Visit the oldest city of the New World and Christopher Columbus first permanent settlement after his "discovery" of the Americas. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage in 1992, Santo Domingo is a city of many firsts in the New World with the first cathedral, paved road, university, hospital, stone home, tavern, etc.
Our first stop, in the capital, will be at the Three Eyes National Park with underground caves and lagoons used by the Taino Indians (the Dominican Republic's original inhabitants). From here we'll make a quick photo stop at the Columbus Lighthouse, built in 1992 on the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's landing in the New World. We're then off to the oldest streets of the Western Hemisphere in Santo Domingo's Colonial Zone, a 16 square block neighborhood oozing with Dominican history and culture.
Our first peek at the Colonial Zone comes at the Columbus Palace. Completed in 1514, it was the home of Christopher Columbus's son, Diego. From the Palace we walk through the historic Plaza de Espana and onto Calle Las Damas (the fist paved street of the New World). Our ultimate destination is one of the most important sites in the Dominican Republic: the First Cathedral of the New World.
Lunch is then served at one of the top Dominican restaurants in Santo Domingo, known for it's excellent home style cooking and typical dance performances by the waiters and waitresses. After lunch, we'll pass by some of the modern areas of the capital and the National Palace where the Dominican President and the highest level government officials have their offices...With our adventure to Santo Domingo, you'll experience the city's rich history and the daily life of everyday Dominicans in their capital of 3 million inhabitants.