My Gua Gua experience

My Gua Gua Journey to Las Galeras.

I hopped on the Gua gua that was going along the North coast. A Gua Gua is a mini van that allows 25 - 30 passengers on board (should only fit 10 at the most)! The guar gua gets filled to the rim, and often have people even hanging out the door. The door is in general left open, so that people can easily get on and off. There is no space allocated for bags or luggage. Often you find yourself in the situation that you have someone under you, some one halfway on your lap, people with their hands and legs intertwined with yours. I have found this the best way to travel the country, as it allows you to meet the locals (people and animals), get a close look at their every day life, hear some great stories, get some good local tips, see great scenery and to be a part of their world.

On the first leg of my trip heading towards Las Galeras, I found my self on a gua gua full of Haitian going to work on the fields. I was the only woman on that gua gua, and definitely the only fair skinned and blond one . They all looked at me as I stepped inside, trying to accommodate myself and my backpacks, so they wouldn’t fall out. I was sitting right by the open door, and with little space surrounding me I found myself almost having both bags on my lap which left me with little to no blood circulation at all which left me with the distinct possibility of having to amputate both legs by the end of this journey ;).

When I changed gua gua in Rio San Juan, I found myself in a little more spacious van, but never the less jammed packed. I had the pleasure of sitting next to the man with the cock on his lap on one side and the crazy lady with lipstick all over her face on the other. When I say the man with the cock on his lap (as rude as that sounds) I am talking about the roosters they use for cock fighting here. The crazy lady was very worried, since the rooster was wearing no diapers, that she would be peed on, yet I was the one sitting next to it. Behind me were my backs, which I was holding on to for my life. They were in the booth that’s door kept swinging open. Ahead of me and to my furthest right there was people, and more people. The smell that accumulates in these buses is crazy I tell you.

Everyone participates in everyone else’s’ conversations, and the volume is high. If this had been in Norway there would have been a warning about high sounds damaging your hearing, and someone handing out ear plugs. The scenery was amazing; we drove along the coast, seeing untouched beaches, little fishing villages, palm trees, caves, and towns. On the way there is fruit stalls and food stalls everywhere, it all made me think that I should have rented a car and done this drive by myself so that I could have stopped to enjoy the local food and scenery.

I got dropped of at the next gua gua station which was in Nagua. As I had to wait at least 30 minutes for the next ride out of town. It was almost lunch time and conveniently enough there was a fruit stand right in front of the station. For 3 $ I got a huge plate of pineapple, papaya, mango, watermelon, honey melon all sprinkled with honey. This plate was big enough to feed a whole family for lunch, so I ate slowly and savouring every taste. Especially the pineapple considering the pineapple takes 2 years to grow and ripen. It was the best meal I had had on my whole trip I assure you. I just wish it was like this everywhere in the country.



On my second leg from Nagua to Samana, we all sat waiting in the gua gua for ages. It was supposed to leave at 10:30, but ended up leaving an hour later. Time here has no importance! I was back in a little van. Still packed, and considering the rain all the windows and doors were shut. The humidity and the heat was enough to make me want to jump out of the moving van, bit I stuck with it like a good traveller feeding of the adventure. We were still moving along the coast, but with little to no visibility I got into conversation with the girls in the front in the van who basically updated me on their local gossip. Behind me was a mix of children, men and women of all ages and sizes. I never thought it was possible to get 3 large people on one seat. Here it is the most normal occurrence ever, and people don’t get bat an eyelid when they get asked to hop on top of the man sitting in the corner, and another on top of them again. Everyone just gets on with it without complaining. They all smile and seem to enjoy it! Sometime I can understand why ;) hahahahaha

On my third leg I had to change gua gua in Samana to get to Las Galeras which is on the outer point of the Samana peninsula. As I got to the station the gua gua was loaded up and ready to go. I found myself a space by the door, but was unfortunately asked to move to half a seat further back in the van, which meant having to leave my big backpack by the door, which was open as usual. I asked the lady sitting by the door if she could keep an eye and her hand on it, but she just ignored me, so I sat there watching every move, and having my heart in my throat every time the van hit a bump in the road, and seeing my bag move jolt. I was sure it was just a matter of time before my clothes and belongings would be scattered all over the road. The woman finally hopped of and I was relieved to be able to put my arms around my bag once again. The scenery from Samana to Las Galeras was amazing, sandy beaches. Lush forests, scattered islands in the sea, and pictures villages.

After 5-6 hours in a Gua Gua I finally arrived at my destination, with all my bags in tact, a very sore back, and backside, but with a feeling of having seen so much of the country, and taken part in everyday life the Dominican way. Now I was ready to relax and explore new territory 

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