Today we traversed the beautiful Dominican countryside on yet another adventure. This one included zip-lining, horseback riding and a tour of a tiny but diverse plantation – and all of this before lunch albeit a very late lunch!

 

Our journey took us through the pretty town of Puerto Plata – one of the bigger cities on the northern side of the DR – to just outside the tiny village of Imber.

The weather was overcast much of the day, unlike the last several days which were beautiful – go figure. Despite the mud and gray skies, we had a great time.

 

Zip lining was first on the itinerary. Unlike zip lining we have done in the past where you hike to the edge of a chasm and step off, several of these lines included a lot of stair/ladder climbing which we were not prepared for mentally or physically.

Nonetheless, we pushed through climbing to great heights and then stepping off into even larger, longer chasms. Why? Because it is exciting, fast and fun!

There were six lines total and some of the longest we have experienced.

It was great.

 

The next thrill was horseback riding. For all of our 44 years of married life, Tom has held to the axiom, “Horses and I have an agreement – I don’t climb on their backs and they don’t climb on mine.” Knowing this long held philosophy, I was stunned when he informed me that this excursion included riding along a hilly trail through wood and stream on horses. But that is exactly what we did.

For some reason the guide picked the orneriest horse of the bunch for Tom, and he (Tom’s horse) spent the entire ride trying to nip the other horses, blaze his own trail, and scrape Tom off his back along fencepost and tree. My horse just wanted to push ahead of all the others and to run – a plan that I worked very hard to quell! With bones, teeth and nerves rattled, we both made it through. Needless to say, this was not the highlight of the excursion and we have both avowed/reavowed to forgo any future horseback riding!

The last part of the excursion was a tour of what was billed as a “plantation”. It was about a quarter of an acre but boasted pretty, little gardens

 

 

 

 

and a variety of fruit trees. Our guide, Javier, led us through pointing out the different trees and bushes and telling a bit about each.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tour ended with beverages and a sample of several of the fruits – juicy and delicious.

 

We then waved goodbye to our guides and Imber and headed home to a very late lunch and this time Mai Tais.

Buenos tardes, mi amigos