May 12, 2015 
Sarah & i were excited to arrive at La Romana, Dominican Republic, and we were really looking forwards to our shore excursion. After applying strong suntan lotion, deet bands to our wrists and ankles and finishing off with our hats, we went to see if we could find where the excursion actually starts!
Using my knees as suspention, i slowly navigated down the treacherous gangway steps until i reached land. yay! The hot sun was shining, I could hear a local band playing, and then i heard Jo’s voice, she is part of the excursion team. We homed in on her voice and she said that she was coming on the same excursion so we could wait for her and she’ll take us to the coach. Fantastic, we can now relax! 🙂
⇧ Sarah’s lovely Caribbean outfit! 🙂 ⇧
After a short coach trip, and hearing about the history of the island by the tour guide, we arrived at Casa de Campo,
Roman-styled 5,000-seat amphitheater…
⇧ Sarah relaxing in the sun, sat on the amazing steps. ⇧
⇧ My new hat kept my head nice and cool, thanks Suzanne ⇧
After briefly taking in this fantastic amphitheater, it was a short walk to the lovely fountain.
I had no idea that Sarah had stopped sitting down and was now walking towards me, but it’s made a lovely photo! lol. 🙂
Another short walk around this beautiful place until we reached the church and river.
St. Stanislaus Church…
⇧ Me walking around wondering what to shoot next! ⇧
Whilst looking at the stunning church, at my 6 o’ clock was the stunning Chavón River. What a beautiful place, and such a blessing to be able to be here.
The Chavón River…
Just as i finished taking this photo, Sarah said “quick, take a photo of those ladies wearing the beautiful red dresses”. I span round and said “Where are they?” They were about 10 feet directly in front of me(i told you i was blind! lol). But just then they stood either side of Sarah and posed for the photo…
Some of you more experienced travellers will probably know what i’m about to say?!!
After the photo the ladies said “Tip…tip”, i was about to say “No, it’s ok you don’t need to tip me for the photo, i’m not that good!”. But then as we realised it was they who wanted a tip for posing for the shot, Jo(our Thomson excursion leader) quickly gave them a tip as we had no change at all. That was a lesson learned for Sarah & i, and we will be a little more discerning next time! I still think it was worth the mix up as the photos are lovely. 🙂
At the bottom left of the photo above…you can just make out the paddle boat. That’s where we are heading next! 🙂
Paddle Boats & Palm Trees…
⇧ Me reflecting on God’s beautiful creation ⇧
⇧ Sarah feeling relaxed in the sun ⇧
The whole excursion was amazing. I’ve never seen such vibrant colours, breathtaking scenery and a chance to travel along the “Rambo River”.
Back on-board the ship…
We went straight to the ice cold water machine, and then out on deck to get some last shots before we sailed away.
Wow,what a day! The south east corner of the Dominican Republic. was labelled “The fairest land under heaven” by Columbus. I don’t disasociate myself from his opinion!! 🙂
Our Route 4 2day…
This afternoon the Thomson Dream sails to Road Town, Tortola. We’ll arrive tomorrow afternoon having travelled 277 nautical miles, at an average speed of 14 knots.
🌴 Day Navigator 🌴
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iChristian 
LOL on the tip mishap. It happens.
Dom Rep is beautiful. I went there once – on business.
I did manage to make my way around & catch a glimpse of Santo Domingo though.
Thanks for sharing. It was like being on the excursion with you. Loved the vibrant colors!
Dawn, thanks so much for joining us on this amazing journey! It’s such a blessing that you are enjoying it too. I’ve never seen colours quite like it, and it was really hard to replicate it with my camera. Hope to see you on Day 4! 🙂
Beautiful pictures. What a variety of scenery. You and Sarah look like you’re having the time of your lives. I’m so glad you got to go on this trip. I’m looking forward to the rest of the trip notes and photos. God bless. And thank you for sharing.
Yay, great to meet you here again Steven! So pleased you’re enjoying this fantastic trip with us! And it really encourages me when i hear that other people can enjoy it with us! Thanks for always being here to inspire me on! 🙂
Steve and Sarah, I have no idea how you find the time (or tech) to do these daily travelogblogs – but I am loving travelling with you both!! Thank you 🙂
Hey Paul! Blessed to have you joining us on our amazing trip.
Some of my trusty tech i use is my 9 year old big Nikon D2Xs, i’ve gotten so used to it that i just don’t want to replace it! My 5 year old 27″ iMac which is still going strong, and i use a few photo apps for quick post editing. And MarsEdit for posting quick and easily to my blogs.
Even with all this great tech though it still takes me ages, as i need the screen zoom so big it takes hours to navigate, but i’m determined. lol! 🙂
Oh and i use an iPhone 5s for panoramas, although you’ll soon see that Sarah is the Panorama Queen!
Such a blessing to know you’re enjoying this trip too! Hope to see you on day 4! 🙂
God’s creation is beautiful. Good shots my brother in Christ!
Amen! I have been lost in wonder the past few weeks as i’ve travelled to incredibly beautiful places. How Great is our God!! 🙂
Thanks for joining me on this trip, it’s great to see you here! God bless you.
Hey bro! I just wanted to touch base with you and let you know that I’m still very interested in your story. I’m not, however, trying to nag you if you’re not interested. God bless, bro!
Hi, Yeah i’m still interested. It’s just taking me a long time to get on top of things at the moment, but still trying to answer the questions you sent me little by little! 🙂
God bless you.
I’m excited. It’s going to inspire some people around the planet who may be struggling with similar situations. Thanks for letting your testimony encourage others.