Bayahibe is on the opposite side of the south coast from Barahona. Getting there involved a crowded ride from Santo Domingo with an almost constant scraping of metal-on-metal. Summer remained pleasant albeit concerned; Chanel did not. I was desperately attempting to navigate the hapless driver while he stopped to ask directions every mile or so! Needless to say, we were thrilled to arrive.

Bayahibe is easily navigated on foot, and highly populated with Italians. What a pleasant surprise! We had fabulous Italian food every night: calzone, pasta, brick oven pizza. And excellent–really excellent–pastries each morning.

I’d selected Barahona as a destination because of its proximity to the island of Saona. So we set off the next morning for a day of water play that began with snorkeling. Then we swam on “starfish beach” that had endless calm water but no starfish as far as we could see.

As we reached the channel between Santo Domingo and Saona, we could see the separation where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Caribbean, by a marked difference in the color of the water.

We arrived at the tropical island and spent an idyllic afternoon before returning on a catamaran. I have concluded that our dwellings in heaven will be catamarans. There’s no place I’d rather be. And Summer and Chanel had their chance for a full on merengue party! We returned to our hotel happy and exhausted.

Horseback riding was on our agenda the next day. I thought my insecurity may be showing, but Chanel and Summer confirmed that the proprietor kept saying “grande” as she spoke about us to everyone else present. What’s funny is that she was NOT a featherweight herself.

And we rode off into the sunset…

I rode Fortunata, the leader. Summer rode Noellia, who would occasionally try to overtake Fortunata. And Chanel rode a sad horse that wanted nothing else than to ride in last place, CHANEL’S PERSONAL HELL! We had so much fun laughing hysterically–what is it about riding horses that makes you feel like a child again?

Chanel worked with her horse to become more aggressive, and on the return trip she incited a riot and all three horses were galloping for the lead. I hung on for dear life and tried to console Fortunata when we conceded to Chanel.

We are so glad we visited Bayahibe. Hopefully, our ride back to Santo Domingo will be pleasant!