Santiago attractions -not only sun & beach
The Centro Leon is not only the best museum in the city; it's the best in the country. It opened in 2003 and holds art exhibitions, cultural events, a media library for researchers, a tasty cafeteria, and a tabacalera, or tobacco-rolling house. It was funded by the Leon Jimenes family, the Dominican answer to the Rockefellers and the owners of Presidente beer and Aurora Tobacco, so your entrance fee of 70 pesos ($2.25) not only buys you admission to anthropology, fine art, and rotating exhibits, but also a cigar-making demonstration and a cold one. Rancho Merengue is the headquarters for merengue tipico, the traditional accordion-based rhythm that was born in the Cibao. Owner John Taveras opened in 1989 with the goal of becoming el hogar de los merengueros, the home of merengue fans, and he achieved it by offering a mix of innovative and conservative artists every day but Tuesday. Taveras recently remodeled and the result is a picturesque homage to the enramada or thatch-roofed shelter were rural merengue has always been played. Hors d'oeuvres and a full range of liquor and cocktails are also offered. The carnivals of Rio and Trinidad are better known, but the Dominican Republic boasts a wider variety of carnival activities, and they last longer too. Just about every town has its own traditional costume and mask, and in most cases, carnavaleros take to the streets every Sunday in February, sometimes continuing into March. Carnival in La Vega, 30 kilometers (19 miles) to the southeast, has more funding and is better set up to accommodate tourists, and it's easy to get there from Santiago to see its elaborately costumed diablos cojuelos (devils). But I still prefer Santiago's version, where any city resident, no matter how poor, can participate in any way they like. That means you can see anything from carnival Indians to cock-fighters to Saddam Hussein, as well as the age-old lechon, a colorful figure with an enormous horned mask, a noisy whip, a catchy dance step, and an inflated pig bladder with which to whack the unwary passerby. Besides being the oldest Santiago in the Americas, founded by Chris Columbus himself, it's the capital of traditional merengue music. You can hear live merengue in Santiago seven days a week, every week of the year. However, some especially interesting times include the last week of February, which is the culmination of carnival month, or July 25, the feast day of the city's patron saint. Kaskada Aqua Park is the new recreation attraction in Santiago, the central second largest city of the DR. This water park was built on 33,000 square meters and is said to be the largest of its kind in the Caribbean. The promoters have plans to build a 200 room hotel. Major merengue bands are scheduled for performances. Kaskada Aqua Park is located four kilometers from Santiago. The park features two giant-sized pools, one built like a beach with cascades and another with bar facilities. There is a diving area, a slow moving river, and 10 toboggans for adults, and six for children. The children's area features three castles. Built into the water park also is a tunnel with unexpected curves, a magic carpet water slide, a whirlpool, among other attractions. |
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