Monte Cristi – Santiago

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The days in Monte Cristi were passing slowly. It was a time to leave - finally. So I went to Santiago, treating it as a stop during my travel to Samana Penisula. The room no 37 in my hotel in Santiago, and free wifi and other things that are "luxuries" in Dominican Republic - like hot water and tv in the room...
So this time I wont waste so much time in my hotel room in Santiago. I will visit nearest mountainous villages - Janico and Sabana Iglesia. In that second town there is a lake - Presa de Bao, which I'd love to see...The road from Santiago to Sabana Iglesia is driveable, but with a lot of potholes...

sabana iglesiaNorway ? Netherlands ? No, its Sabana Iglesia in Dominican Republic...

And Sabana Iglesia ? I was expecting some small village, forgotten by everyone, but what I see here, it amazes me. It looks like that people who live here (or at least - who have houses here) - have money and that the local council also has money. Nice , well maintaned houses, waste baskets on every corner with the signs- warnings "do not trash the environment" and so on. Modern building of local administration (which actually looks somehow like building built in Norway or Netherlands, not like something from Latin America).
Sabana Iglesia is also quite big village - it took me some time to find the road leading to the lake. And finally I'm here. The Lake Presa De Bao is regulated and they put the dam and hydroplant on it, but since this lake is not so big itself - it probably doesnt produce so much energy. And the water in the lake ? Maybe that's because of the rain that is raining since few days, but water in the lake - looks really dirty and muddy; of the yellow- brown color...Later I see many "fish shops" selling fish from that lake - but I am not buying anything....

presa de bao - lake in sabana iglesia

Presa de Bao - Lake in Sabana Iglesia
So now its time to go from Sabaneta to Janico. I take some "shortcut" through Mesetas. Yeah, right. Dominican shortcuts in the mountains. That wasnt a good idea...So I'm riding unpaved road, with more potholes than the road..Luckily its just a few kilometres.
So Janico is a typical small dominican town from the Cibao region - similar way of constructing buildings, of their style and paintings..And similar level of wealth and poverty...

road to Janico               On the road to Janico....
I'm going back to Santiago. I enjoyed this trip; these two towns are good spot to leave Santiago just for few hours - there is nature and calm here. And from two of them - Sabana Iglesia seems to be more interesting.

old car in janico           And this is what happens when you got bored with your old car...Janico, Dominican Republic

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