A Visit to La Loma

The day after we visited Jarabacoa was a Saturday, and a group of teachers went to visit La Loma, a mountain area behind Callejon de La Loma (meaning "the little street beside the mountain"). Many of our students live in the Callejon, and a favorite past time for many Dominicans (and visitors!) in Cabarete is to explore the natural beauty of the mountains. It is indeed a place where it is still possible to live off of the land, and this tradition has been honored since the time of the Tainos, the Pre-Colombian people of Hispaniola.

Papón (right) served as our guide. Papón has lived in the Loma for all of his life, and he has a nearly encyclopedic knowledge of the plants, animals, and land of the region. He got Joan (left) and the rest of the teachers saddled up and ready! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marina and Tehka are ready to go! The sign clearly indicates our destination: the caves of Cabarete via the Ecological and Historical Park.

This photo shows the view that I had for much of the ride: the head of my horse (Moreno) and the faee of my confident 13-year-old guide. He was so patient with me! I don't have many photos of the actual ride, as I struggled to just keep my balance as the horse climbed up and up. We went through rocky and narrow paths up the side of the mountain.

Our guides demonstrated how this ladder, used to get down into the caves for swimming, could also double as a stretcher if someone was injured. Thank goodness everyone made it safely through our trip!

Papón handed us some Guyabanas fresh from the Loma. We tried to peel them, but they were still quite tough! It wasn't until after we took this photo that we realized we had peeled a heart shape.

This empty cave quickly transformed into...

a swimming hole!

After all the riding and swimming, we were ready for lunch. We arrived at the home of Papón's sister to find an amazing lunch of chicken, salad, chinola (passion fruit) juice, rice, habichuelas, and everyone's favorite...arepas (yucca fritters).