March 31, 2014

It’s about 11.30am. We are at the entrance of Reserva Cientifica Ebano Verde, waiting for someone to open the gate for us. We could actually trespass. There are so many people visiting this Natural Park that there isn’t anyone at the entrance. It was the gua-gua driver that called the gate-keeper.

Entrata Ebano Verde Constanza
Entrance to the Natural Park

Last night Luca came back to the room repeating the words “Tambien” and “Manana”. “Tambien, manana”.

Have you learnt two new words Luca? Do you know what “tambien” means?

No.

Too.

I don’t know. They asked me “Tambien” and I replied “Si” and they seemed happy with the answer.

Maybe they asked “Estas bien?” , are you ok?

Mmm… no. It was “tambien”.

Maybe they don’t pronounce the “s” and you understand “ta-bien”.

Mmmm… no. They say tambien to ask if I am ok.

Oh, ok then.

Le colline attorno a Constanza
The hills around Constanza

4.04pm After waiting for one hour we decided to enter the park. The road was closed by a gate, but there was a passage covered in scrub that you could cross. Half an hour after we were in the park, here comes a boy, the supervisor. “How could you come in?” Ehm…

To go to the other side of the park, where there is another exit, you have to walk about 3 hours and the other part is supervised by another guy. “Let me call him, let’s see if you can enter. No, you need the authorization from Santo Domingo. You can only get as far as the repeaters.” ???? Which authorization? Nobody told us about that before and the Lonely Planet doesn’t mention it. Of course we can’t go to Santo Domingo to ask for the authorization, so we go to the repeaters. A family lives there, with two kids that instead of going to school run kites. I steal one to the youngest child, but I can’t run it. We go back to the main road.

The 500 pesos, almost 10 euro, for the gua-gua, I would have spent more gladly at food and drinks, instead to try to run a kite.

Not far from the entrance to the park there’s a sanctuary dedicated to Virgin Mary, with an elder lady that spends the whole day here, keeping the area clean and welcoming the few visitors. While we wait for the gua-gua to go back to Constanza, someone drives by and waves hello, others cross themselves (for the Virgin Mary, not for us).

Once we are back in Constanza, Luca has a mirage: a porchetta! Along the road there’s a guy with a whole pork well cooked. We have a piece sliced with the machete, a bit of yuta and dinner is served. Not bad at all!

Porchettona!!!

7.30pm We are having the last burger. Tomorrow at 6.30 we leave for Santiago, where we’ll take a gua-gua towards North, they are waiting for us in Cabarete!