Included in the cost of the International Studies Abroad (ISA) program are excursions to various parts of the country. The first of these was to a smaller city on the northern coast of the country called Puerto Plata (Port Silver).
That morning the other American student and I piled into our mini tour bus, ready for our first excursion of the semester. Our first stop was at the Teleférico de Puerto Plata, which is a cable car that goes up Pico Isabella de Torres. This mountain was named after Queen Isabella I of Castile by Christopher Columbus in 1493. We went up this cable car, which is the only cable car in the Caribbean, and the views from the top were breathtaking.
That morning the other American student and I piled into our mini tour bus, ready for our first excursion of the semester. Our first stop was at the Teleférico de Puerto Plata, which is a cable car that goes up Pico Isabella de Torres. This mountain was named after Queen Isabella I of Castile by Christopher Columbus in 1493. We went up this cable car, which is the only cable car in the Caribbean, and the views from the top were breathtaking.
At the top, there was a replica of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil. There were also a lot of beautifully maintained botanical gardens atop the mountain. We got to meet some interesting people as well, including a group of soon-to-be Jesuits.
After returning from the cable car, we visited the central plaza of Puerto Plaza, where we walked around and saw some of the art on display. This plaza was well-kept and there was even a scandanavian rap artist filming on location while we were there.
After returning from the cable car, we visited the central plaza of Puerto Plaza, where we walked around and saw some of the art on display. This plaza was well-kept and there was even a scandanavian rap artist filming on location while we were there.
We then traveled to the more historic area of La Isabella, which was established by Christopher Columbus in 1493 after finding that his first fort established a year earlier had been taken over by indigenous peoples of the island, known as Tainos. Columbus looked for gold on the island, but was unsuccessful and instead enslaved many of the natives. Due to hurricanes (a Taino word) failed European crops, and Taino skirmishes, the site was abandoned in 1498 for Santo Domingo. The port prospered as a site for pirates, but later in 1564 in an effort to ward off pirates Spain built the Fortaleza San Felipe, which we visited next.
This was used numerous times as a prison, especially during the Trujillo dictatorship (1930-1961). Present Day it is a museum and contains many old artifacts. This fort is positioned right at the port.
Finally, we spent the rest of the afternoon at a popular beach, Cabarete. This is very tourist oriented, but there were mostly European tourists when we visited. The beach itself wasnt the best for swimming in, but had high winds for water sports like kite-surfing! Unfortunately we didn't have enough time (or money) to do that. After a few hours, we packed up and headed back home to Santiago.
More information about Puerto Plata's history can be found here.
More information about Puerto Plata's history can be found here.