Dominican Republic News

When the earthquake in Haiti struck no one was expecting it. Eric Calais, a geophysicist, stated, "If I had to make a bet, I would have bet that the first earthquake would have taken place in the Northern Dominican Republic, not Haiti." 100 miles northeast of the Dominican Republic is a long fault line, similar to the one in Haiti named The Septentrional. This fault line hasn't had a quake in 800 years. Scientist are predicting that it will cause a 7.5 earthquake very soon. This is very bad for the Dominican Republic because the Dominican Republic is very poor and if this hits Santiago, which scientist are thinking will happen, that will hurt the several million people living in that area. . A scientist who works at the University of Texas says that, "It's been going on for longer and accumulating faster. Therefore it is going to produce a stronger earthquake." The Caribbean is a seismic hazard so all of the countries in the Caribbean are awaiting an earthquake

Dominican Republic Current Events

One of the latest current events in the Dominican Republic is their Hydroelectric Dam. To be exact the dam is called the Guaigui hydroelectric dam. The scoop on this is that there formal president, Leonel Fernandez, is sending loans for US $118.8 million to the Senate for approval. This amount would be $723 million in the Republics currency. The Dominican Republic's currency is abbreviated with RD. This money will be included into proposed construction for this dam. This will also effect the Dominican Republic because this will control flooding issues and will increase the providing of electricity and clean water. The major floods caused by this dam is located in La Vega. My opinion of why Leonel Fernandez is doing this is because of what happened in Haiti. Its just so that his country could be a little bit safer so if there is a major earthquake they will be prepared. (url: http://www.dr1.com/news.php#1)

Dominican Republic Weather/Geography

The Dominican Republic's weather is close to what we have in Tucson. Right now the weather is about 81˚F. In this time of the year the Dominican Republic usually gets a lot of thunderstorms so they have to watch out for floods or mud slides. If you would like to see what the weather is like in the Dominican Republic right now, you could go to this link, http://www.wunderground.com/global/DR.html. Mostly all year round it is warm. One mountain range in the country is by the Cordillera Central Border by Haiti. This is the Dominican Republic's largest mountain range. One of the largest peaks is called Duarte Peak. In the south the Sierra de Neiba Mountains rise to about 7,200 ft. The water from this mountain drains into a river called Lake Enriquillo. Some beaches in the Dominican Republic is the Punta Cana beach which is known for its beautiful white sand, The Puerto Plata Beach which has magnificent reefs, and the beaches of Sosua which is a private beach. Those beaches that I just listed were named the top 3 beaches in the whole country. One sea that is well known in the Caribbean islands is the Caribbean Sea. This is known for its beauty and vibrant color.

Dominican Republic Sport

Baseball is a passion in the Dominican Republic. After the USA Marines introduced Baseball to them, it started getting more and more popular. When it hit 1960, it was the most popular sport in the Dominican Republic. In 1990, the Dominican Republic Team made it into the major leagues. The Dominican Republic Team was so good that they defeated North America making the US team practice even harder. One of the best known people on the DM team is Sammy Sosa, and outfielder. Today, more than 100 Dominicans play in the minor leagues.

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Mangú Dish

The recipe fro mangú is pretty simple. All you need is 4 plantains, A cup of cold water, 2 very large onions, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and butter. First you have to peel and chop the plantains into 8 even pieces. Then when you finish that you have to boil then for 20 minutes. As those are boiling but another pan on and sauté the onions with vinegar, salt, and oil. When the onions turn to a clear, glossy color turn off the heat. Probably about that time the plantains will be ready. Now you take the plantains out of the boiling water into a big bowl. Mash the plantains. While you are mashing but the butter and water in. When the plantains texture is creamy, pour in the onions. Then you mix again. Now you have to refrigerate them or you can eat it on the spot!

I think this was time consuming because it took about 15 minutes just to peel the plantains! Also my recipe didn't tell me how long to boil the plantains so I just had to estimate. It took me about 10 minutes to sauté the onions but then when it came to the mashing the plantains, that defiantly shows why you have to make the plantains tender while boiling them! Over all, this was medium difficulty, but I did have a blast making it!

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