Volunteer in Dominican Republic

This beautiful Caribbean nation called Republica Dominicana is located in the central area of ​​the Antilles. Its capital is Santo Domingo de Guzman better known as Santo Domingo and is located over the Caribbean sea. The population in this beautiful country bathed by white water beaches is about 10 million. Dominican Republic has a national district and 33 provinces which are sub-divided by 231 municipal districts.  Volunteer in Dominican Republic is peace and just exploration of breathtaking scenes. This country is well known for being the site of the first European settlement in the new world.

Due to its wide diversity, it is a perfect destination for volunteers.

Dominican Republic is a country that annually hosts over 6 million tourists from different parts of the world . Attracted by its beaches, music, history, flavors, natural landscapes, and charisma have made the Dominican Republic one of the first pioneering countries in the Caribbean in terms of tourism. In addition, the people of Dominican are some of the most hospitable and welcoming people. If you’re planning to Volunteer in Dominican Republic then its perfect to finalize trip.

Santo Domingo is the biggest and most important city in the Dominican Republic. This city was founded by Bartholomew Colombus an Italian explorer in 1498. Tourism and agriculture are the main economic activities for Dominicans. The Dominican flag is the only one in the World that has the bible.

The official language in La República Dominicana is Spanish mixed with some dialects spoken in different regions of the country. In the Dominican Spanish language, there are a large number of words from the aboriginal culture, which is one of the three cultures that make up the ethnic groups of this Caribbean nation.

The Dominican Republic has been a country that has not lagged behind in terms of globalization. Globalization and the internet has exposed other cultures to the Domincan

people and there is a growing interest in welcoming foreigners. This has led to the incorporation of some languages ​​into Domincan cultures, some of which includes learning mainly English, French, and Italian. Mainly for commercial purposes, cultural experiences, and professional development.

The dominant climate type in the Dominican Republic is the Tropical Humid Sabana, but there are also different microclimates. The rainy season is during the months of May and November, and the dry season is between December and April. Temperatures are usually above 18°C with slightly lower temperatures during cold months. Depending on what activity you want to do as a volunteer, you should consider when the rainy months are especially if you are considering going to the countryside as a Volunteer in Dominican Republic.

 

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The Dominican peso (Peso Dominicano) peso is the official currency in this country.
The coins are 1, 5, 10, and 25 pesos. Banknotes in circulation are 500, 50, 100, 1000, and 2000 pesos. In each banknote or Dominican coin, there is a place or character that has been history for this nation of charismatic people.

 

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The symbol of the Dominican currency is RD$ and the ISO code is $ DOP.
A Dominican peso weighs 6.00 grams. Electronic money is also a very important part of the Dominican Republic economy. ATMs are an essential part of the life of this nation. Especially in most developed cities. The most widely used banks are Popular, Banreservas and Progreso, and all of them offer Visa and Mastercard cards.

Weekends are the days of excellence for fun. Whether with family, friends, visiting tourist places, eating ice cream in the park, or going to dance mainly bachata and salsa.

 

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Sunday morning is the day that families visit churches. The days of the week are dedicated to work eight hours from 8 am to 5: pm. Most universities work at night and schools from 8: am to 4 pm.

If you are thinking of volunteering in the Dominican Republic, one of the last things you should worry about is where to stay. You will find a wide variety of options ranging from five-star hotels to simple family homes. You are going to find many options on different internet platforms. Airbnb and Booking at the most used by tourists. Since homeowners have discovered that it has never been easier to make money from the space of their homes and business places. You will have at your disposal apartment-studios, whole apartments, hostels, hotel rooms, family houses, shared rooms, and much more.

 

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You can find accommodation with prices ranging from 15 US dollars per night or even less in very good and safe locations. An apartment for a month’s stay can be around 300 to 400 US dollars in the safest areas of Santo Domingo.

The Dominican Republic is a very rich country in terms of diversity, and this is not an exception for religion. All religious opinions and beliefs are welcome. The most practiced religions are Catholic and Christian faith.

 

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The Dominican Republic has a wide variety of dishes with exquisite and Creole flavors, that is prepared with ingredients that can be found in the surroundings of each Dominican house.

 

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The main dish of this culture is La Bandera Dominicana. The dish consists of rice, meat, and red beans. The second most cooked dish is Sancocho. A typical soup dish of yuca, green banana, yams, meat, and spices. Sancocho is an essential part of celebrations such as birthday parties and weddings in this region of the Caribbean.

 

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The climate varies from one region to another. The clothing you are going to use will depend on the region of the country where you are going to stay.

 

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Constanza region is the coolest region in the country. If you will be staying in this region, make sure to bring and wear long pants and a coat even when it is 12 noon. As is in most of the countryside and provinces of the southern region. In Santo Domingo during daylight hours, the weather can be a bit stifling. So it is recommended that you wear more loose clothing to ensure that you have a great volunteer experience

Although the Dominican Republic does not have a train system, it has other means of transportation that are efficient. The capital city of Santo Domingo has a subway system with 34 stations and a cable car. This allows the transportation of passengers from one location to another in a matter of minutes inside the city. It’s mainly used by university students, however, public motor cycles, public cars, and the bus system called la OMSA are the most used means of transportation in the city. They offer good transportation services within the city for less than two US dollar.

 

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In rural areas or less populated cities, motorcycles and trucks are used the most. Over 90% of the households and families have a motorcycle. There are also what Domincans call Conchos. Conchos are men who are dedicated to transporting people informally using the motorcycle at a very cheap price. This is not recommended since most of the roads in the Dominican Republic are only two ways and on certain occasions, motorcyclists encounter the most road accidents.

Read: How to Volunteer in United States | Details

The Dominican Republic is not one of the countries with the best health systems in Latin America. However, just like in any other Caribbean country, you will find public and private health services. If you have insurance from the government or insurance paid by an institution, you will be fine. You can attend public hospitals and they will treat you well like they will any Dominican. This country respects and highly values ​​foreigners and they will serve you well regardless of social status. However, remember that the health system is not the best and they will not be able to provide you with all the care you need in public hospitals and you may need to visit a private clinic to get the best care. Every year different volunteer groups came to volunteer in Dominican Republic in the health sector.

Here are three of the best public hospitals in The Dominican Republic (SantoDomingo):
1. Plaza de la Salud.

2. Dr. Robert Reid Cabral

3. Hospital Central de las Fuerzas Armadas

• Do not wear valuable clothing such as watches, rings, chains.
• Never accept help from strangers at ATMs.
• Always check the Uber ID number.
• Since it is tropical weather you should consider vaccination for malaria before coming.
• Make sure the money banknote you get especially from informal stores is not fake before leaving the place.
• Don’t walk the lonely streets alone at night.
• Always without exception verify the card number ID mainly when using public transportation.
  

 

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