on the beach at the Barceló Bávaro Beach resort

I’ve spent this past week at the Barceló Bávaro Beach Resort in the Dominican Republic on a press trip researching for an upcoming story. I must admit, I had initial trepidations about going there; they quickly dissolved as soon as I was greeted by the many smiling and kind Dominican faces at the airport. The DR is a beautiful country, and from my previous experiences in Cabrera, and recent experience in Punta Cana / Bávaro, filled with kind hearted people. However, much like the US, it has a history scarred with systematic racism. Again, similar to the US, it continues today, however, it’s blatantly enforced by the government. I’m in the Dominican Republic this week for a work trip with a hotel, NOT the DR’s ministry of tourism and I was happy when a Periscope viewer called me out on it and I said my piece (which I afterwards deleted out of respect for my hosts). I don’t support what’s happening there with the mass deportation of Dominican Haitians that have made the DR their home for years, and even generations. I did look forward to this trip to gain some perspective and hopefully share that with you beyond the natural beauty of the country and my accommodations– really not only the hospitality extended to us, but the respect I witnessed among the staff, I’ve never seen at any other resort; BBR was definitely not your cookie cutter resort destination. This trip did serve as a reminder that countries are made up of people not just the politicians which act as their representatives and their bad policies.