Trip Planning


Chuck and Chuck & Virginia -Barcelona Spain! Viriginia a the beginning of our cruise in 2022 on the Celebrity Beyond, currently the most expensive ship ever built!

We visited Barcelona, Malaga and Cadiz in Spain. Then stopped in Lisbon Portugal and on to the Azore Islands. We ended up in Newark after crossing the Atlantic.

The weather was wonderful the first six days of the cruise, 70 degrees and no wind. Then we hit bad weather, rough seas and strong winds, the Atlantic sea currents were running both north to the south and east to the west.

As the waves hit the ship, at times it actually vibrated. The Captain said it was very strange for this to happen!

We had a cruise planned over a year ago but it fell through due to the pandemic.

The money we had put down was used to help pay for this cruise visiting the southern Caribbean Sea!




    Personnal Travel Agent - Gerard Ramos - Vacations to Go


Gerard Gerard has been our travel agent for many years as we have cruised around the world to the Caribbean, the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, the South Pacific and more cruises.

He is is so helpful and responds quickly to questions one might have about traveling, especially in a time of uncertainty as far as Covid is concerned.

Gerard Ramos

Master Cruise Counselor

Vacations To Go

gramos@vacationstogo.com

My office hours: Tue-Sat: 8am-5pm (US Central Time)

US and Canada: 1-800-338-4962 ext. 7487

Feel free to tell Gerard you viewed his business as a travel agent on my website.




   Dominican Republic Flag History


The flag of the Dominican Republic represents the Dominican Republic and, together with the coat of arms and the national anthem, has the status of a national symbol. Dominican Republic Island The blue on the flag stands for liberty, the white for salvation, and the red for the blood of heroes. The civil flag follows the same design, but without the charge in the center. The flag was designed by Juan Pablo Duarte

As described by Article 21 of the Dominican Constitution, the flag features a centered white cross that extends to the edges and divides the flag into four rectangles; the top ones are blue (hoist side) and red, and the bottom ones are red (hoist side) and blue. The national coat of arms, featuring a shield with the flag design and supported by a bay laurel branch (left) and a palm frond (right), is at the center of the cross.

Above the shield, a blue ribbon displays the national motto Dios, Patria, Libertad (English: God, Homeland, Liberty). Below the shield, the words República Dominicana appear on a red ribbon (this red ribbon is depicted in more recent versions as having its tips pointing upward). In the center of the shield, flanked by three spears (two of them holding Dominican banners) on each side, is a Bible with a small cross above it and said to be opened to the Gospel of John, chapter 8, verse 32, which reads Y la verdad os hará libres (And the truth shall make you free).

It is one of 28 national flags to contain overtly Christian symbols. Additionally, along with Haiti, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, and Venezuela, it is one of only seven national flags whose design incorporates a depiction of the flag itself.




   Dominican Republic History

The recorded history of the Dominican Republic began in 1492 when the Genoa-born navigator Christopher Columbus, working for the Crown of Castile, happened upon a large island in the region of the western Atlantic Ocean that later came to be known as the Caribbean. It was inhabited by the Taino, an Arawakan people, who called the eastern part of the island Quisqueya (Kiskeya), meaning "mother of all lands." Columbus promptly claimed the island for the Spanish Crown, naming it La Isla Espanola ("the Spanish Island"), later Latinized to Hispaniola. The Tainos were nearly wiped out due to European infectious diseases. Other causes were abuse, suicide, the breakup of family, famine, the encomienda system, which resembled a feudal system in Medieval Europe, war with the Castilians, changes in lifestyle, and mixing with other peoples. Laws passed for the Indians' protection (beginning with the Laws of Burgos, 1512 - 13) were never truly enforced.

What would become the Dominican Republic was the Spanish Captaincy General of Santo Domingo until 1821, except for a time as a French colony from 1795 to 1809. It was then part of a unified Hispaniola with Haiti from 1822 until 1844. In 1844, Dominican independence was proclaimed and the republic, which was often known as Santo Domingo until the early 20th century, maintained its independence except for a short Spanish occupation from 1861 to 1865 and occupation by the United States from 1916 to 1924. During the 19th century, Dominicans were often at war, fighting the French, Haitians, Spanish, or amongst themselves, resulting in a society heavily influenced by caudillos, who ruled the country as if it were their personal kingdom. Between 1844 and 1914, the Dominican Republic had 53 presidents (of whom only 3 had completed their terms) and 19 constitutions. Most came to power through the barrel of a gun and left the same way.

Around 1930, the Dominican Republic found itself under the control of the dictator Rafael Trujillo, who ruled the country until his assassination in 1961. Juan Bosch was elected president in 1962 but was deposed in a military coup in 1963. In 1965, the United States led an intervention in the midst of a bloody civil war sparked by an uprising to restore Bosch. In 1966, the caudillo Joaquín Balaguer defeated Bosch in the presidential election. Balaguer maintained a tight grip on power for most of the next 30 years when U.S. reaction to flawed elections forced him to curtail his term in 1996. Since then, regular competitive elections have been held in which opposition candidates have won the presidency.




   Ship's Itinerary & Map


Ship's Itinerary

Our last stop after leaving Tampa Florida is the Dominican Republic.


Itinerary!




   Celebrity Constellation - Upgraded to Concierge


We were upgraded to Concierge and invited to a party given by the Captain. Entertainment and prizes were given to raffle ticket holders. Of course, free cocktails also!


Fine Dining




   Dominican Republic Photos



Dominican Republic Island

Dominican Republic Island


Dominican Republic Island

Dominican Republic Island


Dominican Republic Island

Dominican Republic Island


Dominican Republic Island

Dominican Republic Island


Dominican Republic Island

Dominican Republic Island




   Martini's at the Rendevous Bar



Dominican Republic Island

Dominican Republic Island




   Breakfast in our Cabin - Last Day with free Champagne



Dominican Republic Island

Dominican Republic Island




   Rivers, Seas, Straits and Oceans I have traveled on.


Chucks Travels on Water Ways So far I have been able to travel on most of the major oceans, seas, rivers, and other types of water ways around the world.

The longest river in the world, the Nile in Egypt - 4,258 miles long. The biggest river in the world, the Amazon in Brazil - per water discharge, the Yangtze in China - 3,950 miles, the Zambezi in Africa, and the Mississippi in the U.S.A. - 2,348 miles.

The Mekong, Volga, Rhine at 766 miles, Parana River - 3,032 miles and the world famous Iguazu Falls, Zambezi River - 1,599 miles - world famous Victoria Falls, the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and the Bospours strait.

The Mediterranean Sea, the South China Sea, the Sea of Java, the English Channel, Straits of Magellan, Chao Phraya in Thailand, the Seine, Thames and other bodies of water! I was just in Jordan and the Dead Sea and the Jordan River!

Here I am for my first trip from the midwest! I flew to Florida, took a seaplane to the island of Bimi and sailed all over the Bahamas for two weeks, scuba diving and much more!


Chucks Travels on Water Ways





    Created on: 2022.11.12 Return to Chuck    Return to Chuck's Home Home Page   Buntjer's Home Page Updated on: 2023.03.07