October 5, 2008 - Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

It is an interesting experience, being at an all-inclusive resort in a developing country. The resort is like an oasis of luxury and wealth in a dessert wasteland devoid of prosperity and sick with poverty. As a person who has always been very much against vacations spent at resort monstrosities, I was a tad apprehensive about spending a weekend involved in such a false cultural experience. I have been in the habit of pitying people who spend their vacations safely barricaded inside a resort's high walls. These kind of tourists never leave their comfort zone and never experience anything new and unknown, as the resorts are just a little piece of the United States, Europe or Canada placed on a beach in some other country. The tourists, fearing the "third world country" that lies beyond the resort's fortified walls, fail to experience the culture of the country they claim to be visiting. Some, though, do venture out to "experience the culture," but tend to do so through an expensive, first class tour company. This is no different from staying within the resort compound, for, though the tourists claim to see culture, they are not actually experiences. They are merely snapping photos from their safe, secure, air conditioned vehicle. This fear of the unknown is something that saddens me, as I am one who embraces the unknown and sees it as an adventure and an opportunity to grow and get to know myself better through experiencing things that are outside my comfort zone. This weekend, however, I am slightly embarrassed to admit that I took full advantage of all the amenities that the resort had to offer, from the fine dining to catamaran sailing to rock climbing to trapeze fun. I must say that I had quite a good time and it was nice to not have to pay for everything individually. If that had been the case, I most certainly would not have done half of the things that I did, but since it was all included I took full advantage. I also spent wonderful quality time with the rest of the people in my program, as we went to the resort for a program trip. It is amazing how well we all get along and I feel as though we were all thrown into an ocean without life vests and we have had to cling to each other to keep from drowning. Because of this we are, in a way, forced to be friends to keep sane in this country, but so far I have had a wonderful time with all of them and am very thankful to have them to experience everything with this semester. I would like to think that my weekend spent at the resort was on a different level and would like to think of myself as an exception to the type of tourists I previously described who stay the resorts and never venture out. I say this because I am already living in this country, and have lived here and visited here previously. I know the culture quite well already, so by staying at the resort I am not missing out on an opportunity to discover a new culture. Also, already being very familiar with the culture of this country, I can look at the resorts in a whole different light than the majority of the people there can. This means, of course, that I can see them as a destination for a random weekend of relaxation away from the chaos and noise of the city, as well as much of the rest of the country. By random weekend of relaxation I mean that it would not be a planned destination location, but, rather, simply a destination I would visit if I was able to find a good deal. I do not look at the resorts as something vital to my experience in this country and if I was never able to visit one, I would not feel as though it was an opportunity lost. I suppose that sets me apart from many people in the "Western World," although I would like to think of the young people of my generation as far more adventurous than they are given credit for and I believe there are many more young people that would like to experience a culture and a country by "roughing it," so to say, for they know that doing so will lead to a far more memorable experience. This must be the case, for backpacking through countries and continents has become quite the sensation for my generation in the past 5 to 10 years. This sensation, I hope, will continue to grow and more people will venture forth from their comfort zones to experience the ever connecting world around them.