La Romana.

Okay! Yesterday we visited La Romana, which is a city about an hour and a half east from the capital.  And it is beauuutiful! I wish we could've stayed a lot longer and seen more of the city, we really only got to drive through it and get out in the plaza for a few minutes but goodness! It is so colorful... and there is a lot less traffic and it seems a bit cleaner than Santo Domingo too. I loved it! Both Ana and Olga grew up in La Romana... I'm a bit jealous!
Ana and Olga are two of seven siblings.. and they were all there yesterday for Mother's Day! It was a very big party, since each of the seven siblings brought most of their children and grandchildren.  I loved getting to talk to everyone! One of their nephews, Miguel, is the same age as us and speaks English very very well so it was a lot of fun talking to him about school and everything.  His older brother, Javier, and his cousin, Carlos were hilarious also.  Miguel attends a university in Santo Domingo, so he said he could take us around town and that we could hang out with his friends sometime! We might even go on a trip to Jarabacoa this weekend--espero que sí! Also, I think we're going to go to a Juan Luis Guerra concert in a few weeks! Tanta. Emoción.

Adelfa lee un cuento sobre las madres antes de la bendición.

They have a beautiful, loving, intelligent family.  I got to talk to so many interesting people! One of her brothers is a renowned cigar maker, and owns two of his own brands of cigars. One man I talked to, Stefan, said his mom was Bolivian, his dad was French, he grew up in the Dominican but went to a British school here, and then spent two years in the States. He nows lives and works in international law in Paris and speaks English, Spanish and French fluently and... is the most interesting man in the world. 
There was a lot of dancing, singing, talking, and a lot a lot of food! Everyone was so welcoming and genuine, they really opened up their home to us and made us feel like part of the family.  It took a picture of my plate... everything was so delicious! There was also mango-chocolate cheesecake, along with carrot cake for dessert! You would've loved it, Dad :] I had no idea they ate carrot cake here!

 

We had such a wonderful day... I only wish we could've stayed longer! Visiting with their family, along with seeing Casa de Campo made for one incredible Sunday.

LOVE,

Abby