Last night we went out for one of our usual late nights on the town. For those "usual" nights we start off at some liquor store. Now hold on, before you judge! These stores are a bit classier than the ABC stores in the States. They have tables and chairs set up outside and (naturally, because it's a Latin country) music is blaring all around. Then with your group of friends you buy a bottle of your liquor of choice-vodka, whiskey, rum; they've got it all-and then whatever you want to mix it with. Basically it's just a more formal way of pre-gaming. And the fabulous part about it? If you have guys in your group, they pay! I don't know what it is, some kind of unwritten rule I guess, but the cheap tacana in me loves it. :) And then once you are sufficiently buzzed to put on your dancing shoes, you head out to some discoteca and get your merengue/reggaeton/salsa on.
This is how we do it here in the DR.
So after drinking our share of cervezas, we headed out to a club to dance the night away. We had plans to meet up with 3 Haitian friends of ours, but while we were inside waiting one of them came inside and said there was a problem. Apparently he was light-skinned enough to get inside, but his other 2 friends were not. The bouncers had blocked their path telling them it was a "private party". A total load of crap. I felt pretty outraged by the whole situation. I've never seen such overt discrimination in my life. The guys were taking it a lot better than me, explaining that it happens all the time and unfortunately there's nothing they can do because it's an underdeveloped, 3rd world country. I knew there was Haitian/Dominican race tensions, but that was the first time I'd seen it with my own eyes.
Living here I've definitely noticed that I am treated a little differently. I've gotten a free taxi ride, been given free spices from a vendor at the outdoor market, and in general been allowed to get by with a lot more things than Dominicans. (Of course it also goes the other way in that I'm blatantly ripped off at so many places!) Even the school where I work has different rules and standards for Dominicans versus Americans.
We decided that was not going to be the club for us, so we left and tried 2 other clubs. Both times we had trouble at the door, and had to repeatedly explain to the bouncer that the guys were with us until they were reluctantly allowed in.
And sadly that's a common attitude around here. How sheltered I've been being white and privileged
Current Dominican hit blowing up the airwaves:
I'm going to let you figure out on your own what "Pepe" means ;)
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