We HIGHLY recommend Samana for anyone coming via water. The town is safe, welcoming and friendly. Although we did not visit Luperon we have conversed with many who have and by comparison we are very pleased that we went directly to Samana, even if it took an extra day at sea.
From Samana Bay we moved to the Marina Puerto Bahia, highly recommended for anyone that wants to leave their boat to tour the island for a few days. We decided that after two months at sea the boat needed a ‘bath’ and the dogs needed air conditioning while we toured the island via car.
We hired a rental car for three days to tour the island so on Monday the 13th, Fabian delivered our car to the marina and we were off. Well, just a few words about that. Fabian needed a ride back to town, so Ed offered to take him; Ed forgot to inform Vicky of his gracious offer. So, Vicky was unaware of Ed's location when two military helicopters began to hover and landed at the marina (more on the helicopters later). As the DR military swarmed over the property Vicky went looking for Ed to no avail and seriously began to wonder if Ed's past had caught up to 
him and if she should simply slip the dock lines to sail away with the puppies. Fortunately, before she had to act Ed returned and the helicopters departed, sans Ed.With the entire crew of Boto safe and sound once again, we were off to the north coast (Los Terrenas) to give the girls some quality beach time and to see the sights. With the strong north winds and swell the beaches were not exactly calm, however we had a great day on land and the girls were tired out.
Tuesday the 14th rolled around and Vicky and Ed were up with the sun and off early for the drive to Santo Domingo, the DR's capitol. While a good portion of the DR's roadways are paved, there are still good percentages that rival any pot-holed strewn section of Houston, TX or NYC for that matter. We made it without issue and strolled around the old town taking in the architecture and spirit of the oldest settlement in the Americas. Heading back to Samana late in the day offered us a chance to drive in the dark. REALLY, REALLY, DARK, no street lights. We failed to mention that a majority of the population gets about via small motorbikes. They are the highway/roadway equivalent of gnats; buzzing all about without a care. Finding one inches away from your front bumper as you try to avoid a Mack truck is exciting.
Our last day of automobiling we headed back along the north coast, today with the dogs, to Rio San Juan. A great drive through the country and a wonderful late day meal of Langostino and Paella. Stuffed and tired we headed back to the marina for a nice long sleep. On a side note, in addition to the aforementioned motos buzzing all about, the road is the only passageway so everyone and everything uses it to get around. This means you must also keep an eye out for pedestrians (goes without saying I guess), horses and donkeys (with riders and or cargo), dogs (everywhere), pigs, turkeys, buzzards, chickens (we did see one take a car head on, bounce off, get up and shake it off and keep on walking… tough birds) and lizards. Basically, if you can imagine it you will find it alongside or in the middle of a road in the DR.
Back to the military helicopters. We awoke on Thursday the 16th to a lot of activity around the marina and the soon to open resort. Army, Navy and Secret Service patrolling the property all heavily armed. We were soon told that there was to be a ribbon cutting ceremony that day and that El Presidente Fernandez would be attending to cut the ribbon. We still had to leave the property to return the rental care. So off we went, stopping at the main gate to let them know (them being: The resorts security, the local Polizia, the local military captain, as well as some guys in suits wearing sunglasses 
with wires in their ears) that we were staying at the marina and had to run a few errands and then return the car and that we would be back. Try communicating all that using the handy dandy tourist Spanish dictionary. We smiled a lot. Off we went soon to return with 20 gallons of diesel in the back of the car for the boat, the marina was out. We smiled and waved, all of the heavily armed folks smiled and waved back as we drove down to the marina. Then it's back out the main gate to return the car. Then back to the main gate with our ride from town. When our new friend Fabian drove us back, no one was smiling and waving, they questioned him as to why he was there and what he wanted. Then they saw us and smiled and waved. Must be the dimples. Back at the boat we cleaned up and put on our Sunday Best and walked amongst the party goers. Initially we were waved into lobby for the ceremony (our snazzy dress must have made us look like guests!) until a rather severe looking woman, with wires sprouting from her ears, pointed at us and told us we had to return to the boat until El Presidente departed. Apparently we are less of a threat in our cruiser attire than when we clean ourselves up. Oh well! Lots of activity and we did assert ourselves by leaving the boat to walk the dogs. We were stopped and told to return to the boat at which time Chula promptly squatted and deposited her daily constitutional in front of the Agent wearing the earphone. We did pick it up, but I think Chula made her point. By the way, if you'll recall from earlier in the missive, we officially left the country the next day, not that Chula had anything to do with our timing.
The park on Bahia de San Lorenzo is quiet and peaceful; we had the
entire bay to ourselves, well except for a pod of dolphins. We were able to relax after our touring and visit to some of the caves that had served as homes for the earliest inhabitants of the island. Other than the fishing camps along some of the beaches we were the only people here. We also took our dinghy for a long distance up a river that feeds into the bay. The mangroves and multitude of birds to watch were a delight! The twice daily feeding frenzy of the dolphins provided a lot of entertainment and a reminder that unlike the dolphins one sees at the Sea World shows, these wild dolphins are predators and very accomplished hunters. They are still really cute, even when devouring schools of fish.
Bright and early (not so bright really at 4am) on Sunday the 19th we are off for Puerto Rico, 160nm and 32 hours in front of us. On our way out of Bahia de Samana we encountered what at first glance we took for a cruise ship, however as we approached closer we realized this was simply someone’s private (200 footish) motor yacht. Well, with all the crew they had on board I bet they can't get as comfy cozy as we can on BOTO. While our crossing top PR was uneventful, no flying fish attacks, no 
murderous fish catches, we once again realized that any weather forecast that foretells of calm seas and fair winds is essentially a lie. We beat our way into 15-20k winds gusting to 25k with 6-8 foot rollers coming from every direction. Of course this only got better as the rain began and kept up right until we made landfall. What the hell, the moon was full and bright and we had no one else on the water (maybe they had a better forecast) to contend with for space. 
Making landfall in Boquerón, PR we were able to drop the hook in a wonderful, if rocky bay and catch up on our sleep. Then it’s off to check in with the good ole' USofA Customs and Immigration. Well, the laundry is almost done and it’s time to clean up for dinner so more on the PR next time. Until then, Feliz Navidad y Prospero Anoy Feliadad.
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