We started the day out early for breakfast before the 8:00 Catholic church service. On the way to church, we saw one of the workers at Springfield station who is pregnant (due in September with a boy; he has 3 brothers and 3 sisters) and we turned around and gave her a ride to work. Then we hurried back down the mountain to church and got inside just as they were singing the last few introduction songs. I actually understood a good bit more of the priest's speech than I expected, since most of the people speak Creole. They were celebrating the first communion for just over a dozen young ones. They all dressed in their best suits and the little girls wore fancy white dresses; some had veils, tiaras, and gloves. Then the rest of the congregation had communion, but seeing as how most of our group isn't Catholic, we didn't participate in their communion. Prof. Hains told one of the ladies behind us that we were Presbyterian, which is close enough I guess. Their musical rendition of The Lord's Prayer was so beautiful; much more upbeat than any version I've heard before and they used various instruments for an awesome harmony. I wish I could've recorded it on camera.
The service got out at about 10 and then we went to Fort Young, which is now a high-end resort spot. We had smoothies at the outdoor bar (actually virgin daquaries; I had banana). They host tour groups, so we will be travelling with one of their tour guides to Boiling Lake later this week. The veranda reminded me of Charleston, but it had much better views because you could see mountains on the side and the sea wasn't crowded with ships.
We returned to the station for our bag lunch (a sandwich, banana, a pack of crackers, cookies, and a Capri-Sun). Then we headed up to Freshwater Lake where some other tourists were kayaking. I couldn't figure out what language they were speaking; definitely not English or Spanish, perhaps it was French or Portuguese. The lake was formed by a volcano's crater where a smaller volcano peak rose inside it. One side of the open part of the crater is Freshwater Lake, the other side is Boeri Lake, where we hiked to next. On the way, a small drainage stream of cold water flowed between the mountain and the road, and one pipe emerging from the mountain let out warm water from a hot spring. Then we began our trecherous hike beginning with stairs made from dirt and logs (some of the fibrous logs were made out of tree ferns), which later commenced to slippery rocky sections. One had to be careful about footing and placement, being sure to have a hand on some other surface on occasion. Prof. Hains was glad he brought his machette (which the Dominican's call a cutlass) when he had to chop up debris from a fallen tree. We tiptoed across streams, while Kala decided to just wade across and forget about keeping her feet dry. Finally, redfaced and a bit out of breath at that altitude, we made it to Boeri Lake. It was nice and chilly, but quite refreshing after the hike. The shore was completly made of rock, so I'm glad I brought my water shoes so I could get a grip and have flexible footing. They also helped to avoid that slippery algea feeling on the wet rocks. A couple of Europeans came up and took pictures of the mountain tops covered in clouds, as we observed the clouds lowering towards us into the valley of the lake.
On the hike back down to our parking spot, Prof. Hains took some algae samples from the streams we crossed over and we ran across a fairly large crab. Be sure to check out the pictures in a few days (they upload really slowly so I need to wait until I have ample time for my computer to wait).
We took a break at the concession stand at Freshwater Lake and I had the most delicious cheese sandwhich I have ever tasted, that's not hunger talking! The guy added some kind of special sauce that included mayonaise and ketchup, and some other seasoning. He had a pit bull puppy just 3 months old named Singe. I tried to get some pictures of an orchid plant but they don't do it justice. We planned on walking a trail that goes around Freshwater Lake, but the clouds began to sink into the small valley.
On the ride home, we saw large pipes made of Douglass Fir tree (which is imported from another island). The boards were held together by straps no more than 5 inches apart. As long as the wood stays wet, it will not dissentigrate. On the steeper slopes they used steel or cement. These pipes carried water from the mountain to hydropower plants below; the steepest slopes make for the best return on electricity. Using 3 hydropower stations, Dominicans get 25% energy outflow. A diesel station in the city, however, only gets about 10% energy outflow. We rode about the towns and saw the Princess Margaret Hospital.
The service got out at about 10 and then we went to Fort Young, which is now a high-end resort spot. We had smoothies at the outdoor bar (actually virgin daquaries; I had banana). They host tour groups, so we will be travelling with one of their tour guides to Boiling Lake later this week. The veranda reminded me of Charleston, but it had much better views because you could see mountains on the side and the sea wasn't crowded with ships.
We returned to the station for our bag lunch (a sandwich, banana, a pack of crackers, cookies, and a Capri-Sun). Then we headed up to Freshwater Lake where some other tourists were kayaking. I couldn't figure out what language they were speaking; definitely not English or Spanish, perhaps it was French or Portuguese. The lake was formed by a volcano's crater where a smaller volcano peak rose inside it. One side of the open part of the crater is Freshwater Lake, the other side is Boeri Lake, where we hiked to next. On the way, a small drainage stream of cold water flowed between the mountain and the road, and one pipe emerging from the mountain let out warm water from a hot spring. Then we began our trecherous hike beginning with stairs made from dirt and logs (some of the fibrous logs were made out of tree ferns), which later commenced to slippery rocky sections. One had to be careful about footing and placement, being sure to have a hand on some other surface on occasion. Prof. Hains was glad he brought his machette (which the Dominican's call a cutlass) when he had to chop up debris from a fallen tree. We tiptoed across streams, while Kala decided to just wade across and forget about keeping her feet dry. Finally, redfaced and a bit out of breath at that altitude, we made it to Boeri Lake. It was nice and chilly, but quite refreshing after the hike. The shore was completly made of rock, so I'm glad I brought my water shoes so I could get a grip and have flexible footing. They also helped to avoid that slippery algea feeling on the wet rocks. A couple of Europeans came up and took pictures of the mountain tops covered in clouds, as we observed the clouds lowering towards us into the valley of the lake.
On the hike back down to our parking spot, Prof. Hains took some algae samples from the streams we crossed over and we ran across a fairly large crab. Be sure to check out the pictures in a few days (they upload really slowly so I need to wait until I have ample time for my computer to wait).
We took a break at the concession stand at Freshwater Lake and I had the most delicious cheese sandwhich I have ever tasted, that's not hunger talking! The guy added some kind of special sauce that included mayonaise and ketchup, and some other seasoning. He had a pit bull puppy just 3 months old named Singe. I tried to get some pictures of an orchid plant but they don't do it justice. We planned on walking a trail that goes around Freshwater Lake, but the clouds began to sink into the small valley.
On the ride home, we saw large pipes made of Douglass Fir tree (which is imported from another island). The boards were held together by straps no more than 5 inches apart. As long as the wood stays wet, it will not dissentigrate. On the steeper slopes they used steel or cement. These pipes carried water from the mountain to hydropower plants below; the steepest slopes make for the best return on electricity. Using 3 hydropower stations, Dominicans get 25% energy outflow. A diesel station in the city, however, only gets about 10% energy outflow. We rode about the towns and saw the Princess Margaret Hospital.
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