Dominican Republic

Countless souvenir shops, diving schools, travel agencies, nightclubs, cafés and bars characterize Sosúa,... which, with over 100 boarding houses and hotels, is the touristic epicenter of the island’s northern coast. It was founded in 1940 by Jewish immigrants following dictator Trujillo’s invitation. In the subsequent time, many Europeans from different nations, especially Germans, settled here and developed their own, multicultural society in Sosúa. A beach about 1 km long divides the two parts of the city: Los Charamicos, with its characteristic Caribbean influences, located on a hillside and predominantly inhabited by Dominicans, and El Batey. Here, in the periphery of Calle Pedro Clisante with its European flair, everything is oriented towards the lucrative business with tourists. A synagogue and a historical museum as witnesses of the Jewish history can be found in this neighborhood, in Calle Dr. Alejo Martínez. In the immediate vicinity of the town, those who love to swim can enjoy the ocean on several small beaches such as Playita and Playa Chiquita. more

The fates of the harbor, dubbed “Silver Port”, at the foot of the city’s landmark mountain, Pico... Isabel de Torres, is characterized by a constant alternation between economic upswing and decline: After the hide trade of the 16th century led it to its first prime, it experienced its true heyday as a port of export for tobacco, sugar, coffee and rum during the 18th and 19th centuries. After another decline, tourism discovered the lovely city center with its many wooden houses in the 1980s. Majestically, Fortaleza San Felipe (mid-16th century) dominates the harbor entrance on the western end of Malecón. It was commissioned by Charles V as a form of protection from pirate attacks. Formidably restored, it now accommodates a weapons museum well worth seeing. In close proximity to the tranquil Plaza Central, in Calle Duarte 61, the Museo del Ambar enchants visitors with a large collection of amber, including specimens with leaves, up to 60 million years old, lizards and insects. To the east of the rather unattractive Longbeach, the beaches belonging to the comfortable Playa Dorada resort begin, ideal for sunbathing after a stroll through town. more

Nowhere does the history of the conquest of West India become more tangible than in this three-winged... palace complex. Here, famous conquistadors such as Hernán Cortés, who conquered the Aztech empire, Nuñez de Balboa, who was the first to reach the Pacific, Ponce de León, who subdued Puerto Rico, and Francisco Pizarro, who decimated the Inca empire in Peru. In 1509, the Spanish Crown permitted Diego Colón, the oldest son of Columbus and successor of the vice-king Nicolás de Ovando, to erect this bastion of mighty coral stone by the high bank of the Río Ozama. A two-storey gallery, with five round arches each, and Mudéjar-jewelry in the style of early Spanish Renaissance loosen up the massive impression. After the conquest of Mexico, Cortés erected an almost identical palace in Cuernavaca. After the plundering by Francis Drake, Alcázar deteriorated for centuries, until the Spanish architect Javier Barroso led the restaurations decreed by dictator Trujullo in 1955. A second restoration was necessary in the 1970s because US-troops had fiercely fired at the building during the battles of June 1965. The interior of the newly constructed palace now accommodates the Museo Virreinal, which includes many furnishings form the times of the viceroyalty donated by the Spanish government. more