Dream Trip 2008: September

Great Travel Moment

I had an opportunity to spend several (winter) months in the Dominican Republic in 2003, and it was an utterly magnificent experience. This photograph was taken in downtown Puerto Plata on the north coast; the gentleman on the cellular phone in the photo is selling traditional costumes and papier mache masks for the approaching Carnival celebration, which begins in the capital (Santo Domingo) and progresses more or less northwards across the island. The concluding parades and celebrations in Puerto Plata are especially energetic and vibrant, and constituted a spectacular conclusion to my brief adventure there. I find the contrast between the modern communications technology, directly alongside the arcana of a traditional religious festival, fascinating. In the DR today, even in the remote campo where the 21st Century often feels distant, cell-phone use is ubiquitous, and transmission towers vie for space on the skyline with the coconut palms.