Spanish is the main language spoken here, but another common language spoken is Haitian Creole due to the large number of Haitian migrants who live here. Peace Corps Dominican Republic even offers Creole classes to volunteers!
The Dominican peso is the currency here. It comes in the form of coins and bills. In coin form, there are denominations of 1 peso, 5 pesos, 10 pesos and 25 pesos. The bills come in denominations of 50 pesos, 100 pesos, 200 pesos, 500 pesos, 1,000 pesos and 2,000 pesos. The conversion rate is approximately 56 pesos to 1 US dollar.
A bottle of water can cost anywhere from 15 pesos to 100 pesos, depending on where in the country you are. The water bottles in bigger cities or more touristy places cost more than in a rural community.
The best meal I had this week was a plate of primavera pasta that I had at a hotel my friends and I stumbled upon while visiting Sosúa. The hotel and restaraunt were owned by a man from Germany. The menu included things like schnitzel and bratwurst. This menu was a nice change from the tasty Dominican cuisine.
