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Giving back to the Community Tour Review


marshhawk
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The giving back tour was so much more than what we expected- we boarded a bus, and headed to town, where we were given a tour of the town square, visiting the main church, and doing some shopping, then we headed to the orphanage, which is not a place to adopt a child, but a place where children (girls) stay while their parents handle what ever problem they are going through (mostly jail). Possession of drugs, is a 10 year sentence on this island, and dealing is 15-20. What do they do with the kids? They put them in a home/orphanage. They are fed well, attend school, visit their family once a month, and live in this safe house. At 18 however, they will be asked to leave, UNLESS they go to college, and guess what? College is free. The Dominican Republic, is very Catholic, and very socialist. So you can stay as long as you stay in school, and you help out with the little ones.

 

After the tour of the orphanage, we headed up into the mountains, to see how Casaba (sp) bread was made, got a free sample, and then headed back to the flat land where we had lunch-chicken, salad, spaghetti, and there was a shop to purchase jewelry (which I did).

 

We then drove along the coast, visited the fort (did not stop, just drove by) and then back to the ship.

 

We knew in advance that this tour talked a lot about religion, which didn't bother us. It was great learning about a country that takes care of all. Very family oriented, very religious, very beautiful. The humorous side was seeing cattle wandering the streets, the down side was the amount of trash on the streets, along the road, basically everywhere.

 

However, when the ship sailed away from the island, and you see the high mountains, the green of the island, and the beautiful coastline, you cant help but think, I just saw what paradise can look like. (without the trash).

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The tour guide spoke for the Catholic church, the orphanage was run by the church, but not by nuns, it was run by "volunteers" who got a salary. (sort of misleading) I work with volunteers and the only thing they may get is a ticket to a concert, so I am guessing it is not a big salary. When you go on line to the actual site of the orphanage, they state what they need, and ask for donations. I don't think that a large amount of what we paid went to them. It covered the tour guides, the food, perhaps the maker of the Casaba bread. a cut perhaps to the store that we visited in town-the tours all went to this store-clean restrooms, and geared to tourists, so maybe a small amount went to the orphanage, but they definitely received a bunch of things for the girls from the people who were on the tour.

 

There is an orphanage tour in Cozumel, and they ask for NO donations.

 

Giving back for Amber Cove, may be giving to a cause, or seeing how the island itself cares for their own.

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I think you have been given an unrealistic picture of the DR "taking care of its own." Take a look at this: https://dominicantoday.com/dr/poverty/ I have spent a great deal of time there (I also speak fluent Spanish, which helps) and have found it to be an extremely poor country riddled with corruption. The amount of prostitution in Sosua is astonishing, as is the narcotics trafficking. It's a beautiful country, but...

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