La zona colonial de Puerta Plata

Today we visited Puerto Plata, which is roughly an hour and a half away from Santiago. We first visited Fortaleza San Felipe, which overlooks the ocean and provides a view of the beautiful mountain range. This fortress was made to defend the area from intruding forces in the past, and today, stands as a famous landmark of Puerto Plata. It was very interesting to see how the the fortress has been kept, for it is in great shape, and it's space has been modeled into a historical tour for people to take.

- Laila 

This photo was taken from the top of Fortaleza San Felipe with some of the students from both the Santiago Language and Culture group, and the Santiago Service and Leadership group. It's been fun to converse between groups, and embark on excursions with kids from a differently styled trip. And today we were able to travel together around the area, to the fortress, beach, and town square.

- Laila 

 

This is a photo of the town square of Puerto Plata. There were many colorful buildings ranging in being gift shops, ice cream parlors, grocery stores, pharmacies, and vendors. We had time to explore the streets, do some shopping, and enjoy some ice cream before we headed home. It was very cool to see and compare another part of the Dominican Republic, to further broaden our knowledge of the country and delve into the culture.

- Laila