With the Sparrows

Lessons from my first 3 months as a ‘digital nomad’

by Simon 20 March 2021

written by Simon

God I hate that word. Calling yourself a digital nomad makes you sound like an intrepid explorer, a digital first counter-culture entrepreneur. The reality is that you just work remotely. Giving yourself the digital nomad stamp feels a bit self congratulatory to me. Everyone loves to travel, you’re not special.

Whichever nomenclature is chosen, in December 2020 I decided to leave London to work remotely for the foreseeable future. My first stop was the Dominican Republic – a destination that had not previously been on my radar but due to the current restrictions it seemed like an adequate choice.

I got to surf in the morning. It was a Caribbean island. I was staying in Playa Encuentro which is a very small surf town (*town is being used in the loosest of terms) so distractions should be at a minimum.

It was time to start this chapter of my career.

This is what I learnt from my first three months of being a digital nomad, remote worker, location independent, [insert any other name you can think of].

Give yourself a few weeks

I started working remotely from the Dominican Republic with a 2 day a week contract. I figured that would pay the bills and would leave me with 5 days a week to explore the area.

Similar to millions, if not billions of people worldwide, I had been working remotely since March 2020 so the only change was the time difference and location. That turned out to be a little naive.

The problem was that settling down to a full days’ work was difficult. My distractions were fairly limited – was the surf good? Where would I eat lunch? Should I go for a run? Fairly normal stuff (except the surf). It was just the novelty of the location that was distracting. I wanted to get settled and meet people, which takes time.

The result was that I ended up working half days but I still had to fulfil my time obligation of 2 days a week. As such, in the first month I ended up working 4 days a week at a relatively slow pace. Not the end of the world, but I’m a big believer of not doing face time. When you’re working or at your desk you should make the most of that time. That was certainly not the case here.

What’s the remedy? Well, if you’re just starting out like I was (and still am), I would highly recommend that you take a few weeks off work the moment you land. It allows you to get used to the novelty of living near a beach or in a topical environment. To use a phrase, you can “get it out of your system”. In fact, I’d allow a portion of time wherever you are travelling to. I allowed myself a week after the Dominican Republic when I travelled to Costa Rica, just to get used to the new surroundings. After which, it’s time to start working.

Get Over Yourself

In much the same fashion as giving yourself a few weeks, you also need to get over yourself and your surroundings.

My intention when I left London was to carry on living a fairly normal life. I wanted to work. I wanted to have a fairly similar working week, it was just that on the weekend I would immediately be in a holiday destination. That was harder than I thought it would be.

Perhaps it was due to the fact that I was surrounded by people that were there on holiday. Maybe it was a bit of smugness that I was where I was, when London experienced its 3rd lockdown.

Whatever the reasons, I started to resent work a little. Scheduled calls were cutting surf sessions early. Why was I working when everyone I was surrounded by were on extended holidays? What’s the point, I’ve saved a decent amount working in London for 10 years, I don’t need the cash in the short term.

It is my view that such thoughts can be dangerous.

It’s all too easy to fall into a lethargic state. All too simple to burn through savings and let your industry knowledge stagnate.

Remote workers are typically going to find it harder to land jobs than those that can be in the office permanently. As such, your profile and knowledge needs to be that much better. I didn’t want a short few weeks break to turn into a short few months break, which quickly turns into a few years break. Suddenly I’d be out of touch with my industry, my connections would have decayed for referral projects. I might be better at surfing but that’s not going to contribute to a pension.

An overriding thought during my first 3 months was that I needed to get over myself and settle down to a more normal working life. You’ve worked hard to facilitate this type of lifestyle, well done. Now don’t fuck it up by being lazy.

Routine & focus are everything

Working remotely from a tropical location is not the same as working remotely from your kitchen table in London. It’s the same in principal but it’s not the same in reality.

There’s stuff going on during working hours. There are the aforementioned distractions. If you’re working outside, midday is too hot to concentrate.

It’s just different.

This is highly linked to getting over yourself. You don’t want a routine, you’re on a Caribbean island. You want to live free with salty hair and a tan. You want to work when you feel like it. You don’t want to be beholden to the capitalist nine to five office hours.

Fucking get over yourself. Have a listen to what you’re saying. Of course you don’t want that, very few people want to work 8 hours a day. That’s why they call it work and why someone has to pay you to do it.

I briefly mentioned before that I’m not a fan of face time. I ended up doing my own style of face time, for my own gratification. I’d open my laptop and work incredibly inefficiently for 8 hours. I guess my validation was that I had been in front of my laptop for 8 hours, good work Simon. That’s a healthy mindset.

The quicker you get into the routine of waking up and actually working normal hours, the better it will be (at least in my experience). Don’t think that you can get stuff done in the evenings. Guess what? Shit happens in the evenings, you’re tired, you need to eat, people come back from the beach and want to talk.

A routine isn’t enough.

A routine can carve out blocks of time, but if you’re still doing Simon’s stupid version of face time then it’s really not helping you at all. I’ve had to build out ‘remote working rules’ for myself. A major one of which is that when I’m in a working space with my laptop open….I’m working. I’m not messing about. If I can be super focussed for 3 hours and get work done that might take me 8 hours of unfocussed time, it means I have 5 more hours in the day to do the other stuff I want to do.

Routine & focus are everything.

Pay for a work space

Everyone wants to be the exception to the rule.

They want to be able to ignore distractions whilst working in a coffee shop. They want to be able to work from a hammock. They believe they have the self control to not engage in conversations that your friends are having at the hostel whilst you work.

Accept that you’re not the exception to the rule.

I didn’t have much choice in the Dominican Republic. The closest coworking space was a 10 minute drive away. I didn’t have a car and public transport felt like too much hassle. So…..I struggled along for 3 months.

I’m in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica now and have paid to use a coworking space for a week (at Selina North). Coworking spaces are fairly common in London and I’ve spent my fair share of time in them.

HAVING A PROPER WORK SPACE IS A GAME CHANGER.

I thought I was the exception to the rule. I didn’t want to pay the $60 a week. I could sit in my room or in the communal area and be productive.

Get over yourself.

The great thing about coworking spaces in beach towns is that everyone is in the same position. They’d rather be at the beach but they’ve got shit to do. They’ve got calls scheduled or projects to deliver. They want to get their stuff done quickly so that they can go enjoy themselves. So the general vibe is “shut the fuck up, I’ve got to get my work done quickly”.

I would conservatively say that having a dedicated space where everyone is working makes you at least twice as productive….conservatively. I’m writing this on a Saturday, in the coworking space with the curtains closed and one other guy who is also doing his thing. Lovely.

Pay for the privilege. You won’t regret it.

It’s not just the lack of distractions. The Dominican Republic was hot between noon and 4pm but just about manageable. If you’re outside in Santa Teresa during the early afternoon you can barely think, let alone work. It is critical that you have a space that has adequate environmental control*.

*read ‘fan’ or ‘A/C’.

Work makes everything better

Okay so I’ve spent a decent amount of time in this article shitting on work in general.

The really interesting revelation is that I don’t now what I’d do without it. Seriously.

There’s a caveat to that. I’m working 2 days a week and have a few marketing projects to do. Let’s call it 4 days a week. However, I’m also trying to build out the amount of content on the With the Sparrows Youtube Channel. I’ve got videos to plan, film and edit which on average takes about 8 hours work per 10 minutes of video time. I want to do 4 videos a month so I’m actually quite short on time.

I don’t say that to sound like a Gary Vaynerchuck fanboy, telling you how hard I’m ‘grinding’. I hate that.

I bring it up because in my relatively short 33 years it’s taken me too long to realise that contrast has a dramatic effect on perception. That’s why the Summer in London is so good. All too often London has sub par weather, so when it is hot and sunny we tend to enjoy it that much more.

It’s the same with working as a digital nomad. Beaches are cool. I like surfing. Girls in bikinis are a nice sight. Having a beer watching the sunset is relaxing. The problem is that it all gets normalised way too quickly and the suddenly you don’t have any contrast. It’s all just too much fun.

I’ve put a good shift in this week. I’ve got my coworking space now and I feel like I’ve completed a lot.

I cannot understate how important that feeling is.

I left the coworking space yesterday at 5pm. When I walked out into the tropical humidity with the sun setting, it was genuinely the first time in 3 months when I had that Friday feeling. I forgot how good that feeling is.

If you don’t work hard, everyday is a Friday, just without the feeling. It’s normalised.

Get your routine down. Focus. Accept that work sucks but it’s a necessary evil to provide the contrast. It makes you enjoy the good stuff that much more. Chase that Friday feeling.

I can guarantee that there will be other lessons to learn but those are the highlights from the last few months. Hopefully they are helpful for anyone looking to start working remotely as a digital nomad.

I’m going to go and wash my mouth out now. I’ve said digital nomad too many times.

20 March 2021 4 comments

Dominican Republic

Guide to surfing in Cabarete (Play Encuentro), North Coast – Dominican Republic

by Simon 20 March 2021

written by Simon

As previously mentioned, the Dominican Republic wasn’t on my immediate list of destinations. However due to the travel restrictions felt across the world at the moment, options were limited.

After a bit of research on countries that were open and then filtering down of countries with surf, the Dominican Republic had somehow bubbled its way to the top of the list. General surf research later (and a decent amount of time watching drone footage on Youtube) and my flights were booked. Crystal clear Caribbean water awaited me.

I ended up staying at Playa Encuentro for 3 months, at a family run hostel called Surfbreak a mere 5 minutes walk to the beach and 10 min walk from the main surf breaks. With 3 months’ experience under my belt – here’s a guide to the various surf spots in Playa Encuentro and the North Coast of the Dominican Republic in general. Hopefully these surf tips are useful for anyone looking at surfing in Playa Encuentro.

Where to stay

Playa Encuentro is a small surf beach flanked by the larger towns of Cabarete and Sosua, roughly 5-10 minutes drive in either direction. It’s in the district of Puerto Plata and only 35 minutes from the international airport in Puerto Plata (although it can be over and hour depending on traffic).

When I was researching the area I was initially looking at staying in Cabarete. Thank god I didn’t do that! The logistics of staying in Cabarete without a car and wanting to surf Playa Encuentro would have been a real killer.

If you’re coming to Playa Encuentro to surf, I would highly highly recommend that you stay somewhere in Playa Encuentro. The surfing window is short and if you have to get up, pack the car, drive 10 minutes to the beach to check the surf you may end up wasting more time than you would originally anticipate. Clearly if you don’t have a car it means having to somehow get in a GuaGua (the local minibuses) with a surfboard – which I saw nobody doing for 3 months, or paying for a motoconcho (a motorbike) to take you there each way. It’s way too much hassle and could become quite pricy.

I stayed at Surfbreak but there are lots of options available. El Encuentro surf lodge is a little more up market but still popular. There are local landlords and AirBnB options around Playa Encuentro as well so you shouldn’t have a problem finding accommodation. Depending on your taste, I’d budget around $700 – $1000 a month for a room. Not the cheapest, but by no means the most expensive.

Fickle Forecasts

This is one of the main reasons I recommend staying in Playa Encuentro. Forecasts can be fickle and inaccurate across the planet but I don’t think I’ve ever surfed a place where the forecasts offer such little value. They’re not completely useless….you can tell when a swell is arriving and get a general view of what the surf is going to be like.

But…

The amount of times that I walked down to the beach and the surf was completely different, for better or worse, than the forecast truly amazed me. The only way to to check the waves was to see them for yourself.

There is a webcam that you can view on Surfline, but this only shows a small portion of the breaks so if the swell is a certain direction you may not be able to see another break coming to life!

Magicseaweed is my go to forecast platform in the UK and Europe but it is generally considered to be the least accurate in the DR (and the Caribbean/Central America). Instead, most people used Surfline or Surf Forecast.

DON’T be put off by forecasts of 20mph winds every morning. The wind will come, but generally speaking the mornings had very little wind.

When to surf in Playa Encuentro (Surf season & time of day)

The surf season in Cabarete and Playa Encuentro is during the Winter months and stretches from October to April although the best swells usually arrive from December to March. I was there from December to early March and we had periodic swells arrive throughout this period.

Almost without fail, the only real time to surf in Playa Encuentro (and in the North Coast of the Dominican Republic in general) is the morning. During the swell season it generally gets light just before 7am (first light is about 6.50am) which is what I aimed for. If you manage to haul yourself out of bed to get down to the beach for 6.45am not only will you get the first 45 minutes to yourself, you’ll also likely see some very spectacular sunrises. Here’s a few examples:

You don’t have to surf in the morning just to get some sweet pictures of sunrises.

You have to surf in the morning because of the wind.

Oh the wind. It’s one of the most limiting factors about surfing in the Dominican Republic. It’s a pretty windy place. That’s why it’s so popular with kite surfers and windsurfers alike. Not so great for surfers.

The wind is relentless. Come 9.30am/10am the waves start to get blown out – often earlier, so if you want to surf the best conditions I suggest that you set your alarm and get your arse out of bed.

In 3 months I managed to snag myself 3 sunset sessions and probably the same amount of afternoon sessions. The rest of the time the wind was simply too strong (side onshore). It was fine at the beginning but after a month or so it started to wear on me. I don’t have a problem with surfing in the morning but it did get quite frustrating being cubby-holed into a 2 hour period everyday.

Sometimes the wind is persistent throughout the day and night. When this happens, even if there’s only light a light breeze in the morning the surf can still be quite messy.

Oh how I grew to hate the wind. Maybe I should have picked up kiteboarding because the people I knew that did both were frothing all day long!

Playa Encuentro Surf Spots

The main beach at Playa Encuentro has multiple surf breaks, all within a few hundred metres.

As you stand on the beach in front of Buena Onda surf school, looking from left to right, you have:

The Left & Destroyers

As the name would suggest, the left is a left hander wave breaking across a piece of reef jutting out into the sea. It needs a North swell to really work and there are two main peaks, the inside peak barrels from a steep A-frame take off whereas the second peak is the more user friendly take off, although watch for the rippers coming round the section from the inside!

Mid-tide is usually best, as is the case for most of the breaks at Playa Encuentro.

I hated surfing lefts even though I’ve spent my fair share of time in Bali. This left is different, aside from the inside barreling section, the rest of the waves is reasonably mellow and great for learning cutbacks and turns.

Destroyers is on the other side of The Left and breaks in front of a rock that can jut out at low tide. Apparently it’s a really good wave but I never plucked up the courage to surf it!

Main Peaks & The Right

Directly in front of the surf schools are the main peaks. This is where the majority of people tend to surf so it can get pretty crowded after 8am.

The peak closest to The Left is a right hander that takes off from two defined peaks. The outside peak has a small take off area and wedges up, although if you pick the right waves you can ride a right hander almost all the way to the beach. There is a another peak to take off from but the section is often very fast to make, although again if you pick the right one you can get a much faster, walled up ride. We referred to this as ‘The Right’ but I think it’s usually just called the Main Peak.

As you move East (only about 100m) there is another main peak that breaks left and right. I found this one to be either too crowded or too fickle compared with the other waves. Having said that, this seems to be the most popular wave for local rippers doing 360 airs. Maybe in a few years…

Bobo’s Point

Moving further East (right as you look out to see) you come across Bobo’s Point. I was under the impression that it mainly goes right, but apparently it can also go left.

This really comes to life when the swell is larger and turns more North. It was my go to when Coco Pipe was either closing out or was too intimidating!

You can get some really fast walled up rides before it inevitably closes out or dies out on the inside section.

Coco Pipe

This is the most famous break at Playa Encuentro and where I tended to surf most days. If it’s breaking it’s usually the best wave in the area (at least it was for me).

Best at mid-tide you want to look out for a palm tree without its top (i.e just the trunk) on the beach. If you sit directly opposite that, you know you’re at Coco Pipe.

Coco Pipe tends to have more power and steeper waves than the other breaks at Playa Encuentro so you need to know what you’re doing. Getting caught inside can be pretty gruelling and often involves a sideways paddle to the channel between Coco Pipe and Bobo’s Point. Not ideal considering that clean up sets are pretty regular there!

Despite it’s attractive name, I didn’t see many people make it out of barrels at Coco Pipe. Regardless, when the swell is right it offers both lefts and rights, although the right is probably the better wave.

I spent a number of weeks starting off at the Right and then ultimately paddling all the way to Coco Pipe as I searched for more powerful waves. By my final month I would just get in at Coco Pipe and save myself the paddle. Even at 3ft faces, you can still get some decent turns in and it holds double overhead.

Crowd Factor

Everyone wants empty line ups. The reality is that if you can Google it, it isn’t going to be empty.

I briefly mentioned above that past 8am and the Main Peaks tend to get too crowded. That tends to be the case for all of the break in Playa Encuentro. Early birds catch the waves.

There was an American guy that often paddled out in the dark at 6.30am so that he could get the first 40 minutes or so all to himself. Hats off to him – I tended to go at about 6.50am and still got the first hour or so uncrowded.

On the smaller days there are some defined channels which allows learners to get out to the breaks. I don’t have a problem with learners surfing, after all nobody was good at surfing from day one. We all have to start somewhere. However, this is one of the reasons I avoided the main peaks. Coco Pipe is generally off limits for beginners so if you’re looking to escape the crowds then head over there.

I don’t know what else to say. Surf spots are crowded. People like to surf. The earlier you go, the more empty waves you’ll get.

The crowds are also condensed because of the wind. Everyone knows that the really the only time to surf is pre-9.30am so that doesn’t help. Having said that, it was never crazy crazy busy probably because the DR isn’t known as a world-class surf destination. It’s way worse in Costa Rica.

Learning to surf at Playa Encuentro

The waves at Playa Encuentro break onto a reef, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t learn to surf there. The reef stretches about 100m from the beach, so there’s a lot of space on ‘the inside’ to learn to surf in the white water.

There’s also multiple surf schools offering lessons. I would recommend Buena Onda surf school, run by Antonio and Fabio. They’ll supply you with boards, boots to protect your feet from the reef and sunscreen if necessary!

The period (time between each wave) is relatively short in the DR so people were getting quite tired in the white water. I’d advise getting out to the main peaks as quickly as possible so that you’re not constantly fighting against the current and white water.

Have fun!

The Area

Playa Encuentro itself is particularly small. There’s a few shacks on the beach offering food and coffees, alongside some chill out spots, a volleyball court and slackline for those that are that way inclined.

If you don’t fancy carrying your board down every morning, you can also leave your board at Buena Onda surf school – they charge around $35 a month for this service and open in time for first light.

Playa Encuentro is a sleepy area though. Restaurant options are limited – the best being the food trucks on the main road. That’s not the end of the world though because you can hop in a GuaGua and be in Cabarete in less than 10 minutes where there are lots of food options.

Watch out for the sea urchins!

Where the reef meets the beach there’s a ledge around 5 m wide. Beware, this ledge can be full of sea urchins!

Most of the time the water is clear enough to pick your way along the reef before jumping in. However, when there’s a big swell or tide with more water moving around it can be a little trickier.

I had the unfortunate experience of standing with all my weight on a sea urchin.

It took a couple of hours of digging around in my toes with a needle to get all of them out – they aren’t massive spines but they do get themselves pretty deep in there. If you can I would strongly advise that you bring a good pair of tweezers and needles. If you’re surfing in Playa Encuentro for long enough you’re going to step on one. Just be prepared.

Other surf spots on the North Coast

The whole of the Amber Coast of the Dominican Republic is littered with surf spots. A well-known but fickle break is La Preciosa, about 30 minutes East of Rio San Juan and just over an hour and a half from Cabarete. Apparently it needs a big North Swell to work – we drove there twice to check it out and it wasn’t working. It’s an incredibly beautiful beach so worth a visit if you are in the area!

Closer to Playa Encuentro there are two spots to the West – El Canal and The Spot. These are accessed via Perla Marina and involve a 10-15 minute walk along the beach. I only managed to surf El Canal which is a long left (it does go right) from a very clear peak. It’s deceptively powerful….there were maybe 15 people surfing it when I was there and 4 people snapped there leashes!

On the other side of Cabarete, near the river mouth is a spot called Mañanero. It’s a bit of a pain to get to unless you have a car so I didn’t manage to check it out. It’s super exposed to the wind so you have to go early morning (like everywhere) but I know a few people that checked it out and they said it was a heavy and often barreling beach break. It’s often bigger than Playa Enceuntro as well.

As I said, there’s loads of spots. La Boca is another one that I didn’t get to see and when we went all the way East to Las Terrenas there’s a right hand point break ay Playa El Coson that looked like it would be amazing on a good swell.

It’s well worth exploring the area, especially if you have a local to show all the spots.

An honest review

As per the video, the big question is whether I would go back and surf Playa Encuentro.

The water is spectacularly clear. There isn’t any real localism and on the whole the people are incredibly nice.

But I don’t think I’ll be hurrying back.

The wind is just too relentless. You could surf most of the time and glassy mornings were regular. It’s just that the amount of days with good swells and low winds were very intermittent.

When it’s good, it’s incredible. Plus I had lots of fun mornings and my surfing improved dramatically over the 3 months. Furthermore, if you kite or wind surf as well then it’s going to be a paradise for you.

I don’t.

The biggest problem that Playa Encuentro has as a surf destination is the consistency. I’ve been in Costa Rica now for 3 weeks and we’ve had more solid days of surf than I had in 3 months in the DR. So as purely as a surf destination…there are better places. If you want a second opinion, check out this article from The Free Surfer.

It’s not all about surfing though. The Dominican Republic as a whole has an incredibly diverse array of things to see and do. A weekend trip to Las Terrenas was a real highlight for me and I didn’t even touch the South of the island. I certainly don’t regret my time in the DR and looking back on it I’m sure I’ll have fond memories of my first 3 months as a digital nomad.

If you’re looking to surf a little whilst also exploring a Caribbean island then the Dominican Republic is a pretty darn good choice. But if you’re there just to surf, I’d look at the Pacific coast of Central America first.

20 March 2021 0 comment

Dominican Republic Excursions

Tips for visiting Paradise Island, a.k.a Cayo Arena, Puerto Plata (Dominican Republic)

by Simon 20 March 2021

written by Simon

The North Coast of the Dominican Republic has loads to offer. It’s not quite the same as Punta Cana in the South West where you almost exclusively find all inclusive hotels and sunburnt tourists. Whilst the North Coast has an international airport in Puerto Plata, it’s more local, less crowded and depending on whether you go East or West, incredibly beautiful.

We were staying in Playa Encuentro near Cabarete/Sosua and were in the market for a day trip.

Naturally we turned to Google to explore our options – we had already done Dudu Lagoon & La Preciosa whilst half of the group had also already hiked the Isabel Del Torres trail to the view point above Puerto Plata.

Cayo Arena was a popular option and the one we settled on. There was some slight trepidation considering the reviews. They range from an amazing experience with crystal clear water (it is called Paradise Island) with great snorkelling…..to an over priced, crowded and overrated attraction.

We decided to risk it.

Getting to Cayo Arena

As per usual, let’s start with the logistics.

Cayo Arena is a small sandbar about a 20 minute boat ride off the North Coast of the Dominican Republic, near the border with Haiti. The area is called Punta Rucia and we left from Playa Ensenada which appeared to be the most popular take off/drop off point.

If you’re coming from Puerto Plata, Sosua or Cabarete there are a number of your operators offering a full day tour to Cayo Arena. Prices tend to be around the $80-$90 USD range and include pick up from your hotel, the boat ride and often a Dominican Lunch (chicken, rice and beans).

We reckoned it would be better to make our own way there. OK Motors just outside Sosua rented us a car ($40 for the day and including insurance) which was incredibly reasonable, especially since there was 4 of us!

The drive from Sosua/Cabarete is about 2.5 hours to Cayo Arena although you really want to make sure you are past Puerto Plata before 7am/7.30am to avoid the rush hour. Get caught in that and it will be over 3 hours.

The roads are, well, Dominican. They’re okay but the closer you get to Cayo Arena, the more windy they get. The last few kilometres are dirt roads and at some points were wished we had paid the extra $15 to get an SUV.

We weren’t on the tour so we had to organise a boat ourselves. The instant we parked there was someone offering us a trip, so don’t worry about capacity! We paid $25 USD each for the boat which again seemed pretty reasonable.

Boat Ride from Playa Ensenada to Cayo Arena

As I said, it’s a 20 minute speedboat ride from Playa Ensenada to Cayo Arena.

Having been a nerd and read far too many reviews of the trip, this was one of the things that seemed to have rubbed people the wrong way. We were there early so the boat ride out to Cayo Arena was relatively calm, although if you arrive any later than 8.30am you can expect there to be some wind chop / waves. I get why people may have thought it was uncomfortable, especially if you’re a little more ‘mature’ let’s say! It’s not crazy, but the sea isn’t glassy.

We had to wait about 20 minutes whilst someone went and fetched fuel for the boat. Furthermore, the engine cut out twice within about 500m of the beach which was a little concerning but they managed to fix it!

The itinerary for the trip was La Piscina Natural, Cayo Arena and then the mangroves.

First up was La Piscina Natural.

La Piscina Natural is a sandy area within a larger outer reef (all submerged but maybe only a 4-6 feet deep). As such, it offers and area for people to swim and snorkel and is just over half way to Cayo Arena.

We wanted to be the first ones on Paradise Island so whilst they took us to La Piscina Natural, we actually decided not to jump in the water and go straight to Cayo Arena.

That ended up being a good choice.

Cayo Arena (Paradise Island)

A few minutes on our 10 man boat later and we were fast approaching Cayo Arena.

The deeper blue water suddenly gives way to crystal clear, turquoise Caribbean water and a sandy bottom. The island itself is only a sandbar so the size will depend on the tide. However, don’t expect a large area. When we were there it was probably half a football pitch. There’s also a few shacks, but by shacks I mean crudely constructed sunshades.

We dropped our bags off under when one of the sunshades, stripped off into boardies/bikinis and straight into the water. It was around 8am and there were only a few other people on the island (including a few guys selling drinks out of a cooler).

The reef creates a natural sand bottom lagoon around the sandbar which is less than shoulder deep so you can wade out into the crystal clear, picturesque water. If you’re looking to snorkel and see fish then you need to either swim at the edge of the reef or depending on the depth, swim over the reef. Be careful of currents though if you’re intending on swimming over the reef.

Generally speaking, it’s a picture postcard destination. Sun, white sand, turquoise Caribbean water. It makes for great pictures and it is a decent place to visit.

There are few things to take into account though if you’re thinking about visiting Cayo Arena:

Get there early

We arrived at Cayo Arena just after 8am and had the place almost to ourselves for about 30 minutes. If we had our time again we would get there an hour earlier, even though that means a very very early wake up and leave from Playa Encuentro!

There are two major reasons as to why I would say it’s worth getting up super early to be the first ones on Paradise Island:

The Wind

The North Coast of the Dominican Republic does have a lot of wind and Cayo Arena is no exception. The sandbar is 20 minutes out to sea so there isn’t really and land to block the wind.

There was already a decent amount of wind by the time we got there, and it got progressively worse. Having spent 3 months in the DR, this happens almost everyday. If you get there at 10am you will be in for a super windy visit – windy to the point where it just won’t be as enjoyable.

The People

Cayo Arena is a tiny little sandbar. There isn’t a whole lot of real estate to accommodate large crowds. A few small boats is fine because they often only carry a single group (like us) and you can spread out across the lagoon.

BUT.

Around 30/45 minutes after we arrived, a big tour catamaran landed at Cayo Area…..and unloaded at least 50-75 people. We left 5 minutes later.

There simply is not enough space on Cayo Arena to dump that many people on. They may have spread out, gone swimming or snorkelling but people started playing music loudly, drinking, shouting (to fid each other) and generally spoiling the picturesque surroundings.

Seriously, get there as early as humanly possible. I think the first boats leave at 7am, aim to be on the first boats. As soon as the big tours arrive you are screwed.

That’s also another reason not to get one of the larger organised tours. If you get picked up in a coach, you know that you’re probably also going to be ushered onto that big catamaran. So you have no choice! You’ll be stuck with a load of other people that will be one Cayo Arena at the same time as you….

The Mangroves

The great thing about hiring your own boat is that you get to leave whenever you want. No waiting around for people, not strict schedule.

The large tour arrived on Cayo Area. We all looked at each other ad unanimously decided that now was the time to leave.

10 minutes later and we were entering the mangroves.

Our boat driver (*pilot? skipper? captain?) was incredibly adept at speeding through the twists and turns of the mangroves, adding to the experience. I had never actually been in mangroves so really enjoyed this part of the trip.

We stopped in a little lagoon, had a little snack and were on our way. The trip through the mangroves was a nice little addition to the trip!

Is Cayo Arena worth it?

Honestly, I got off the boat thinking that the 2.5 hour drive for a 2 hour round trip probably wasn’t worth it. The rest of the guys thought it was and now that I’ve had some time to reflect, I’m glad we went.

If we had arrived only 30 minutes later than we had, it definitely would not have been worth it.

It cost us less than $40 all in to hire a car and a boat, between 4 of us. I can’t express enough how much I would recommend doing the same. DON’T use the tours, you will regret it.

The drive is a little longer than I would have liked, but all things considered, Cayo Arena (or Paradise Island) is worth the visit if you staying in the North West of the Dominican Republic.

20 March 2021 0 comment

Dominican Republic Excursions

Dudu Lagoon – Crystal clear water and zip line

by Simon 20 March 2021

written by Simon

Need a break from the beach, the waves and the sand? Dudu Lagoon is a beautiful little getaway in between Rio San Juan and Nagua, on the North Coast of the Dominican Republic.

For you surfers out there, it’s a quick drive from La Preciosa.

It’s an ecological reserve with two lagoons which you can swim in. It’s not particularly well-known (or sign posted) so we managed to have the lagoon to ourselves for an hour, which was a little surprising considering it was the middle of the day.

It costs 300 Dominican Pesos to enter (about $5) which is well worth it!

The main entrance opens up into a peaceful garden of sorts with a couple of seating areas, a restaurant and a nice sculpture of a motorbike made out of odds and sorts.

Starts at 1:17

How to get to Dudu Lagoon

We were staying in Playa Encuentro so we stopped off at Dudu Lagoon on our way to Las Terrenas in the North East. It’s about an hour and 45 minute drive from the Cabarete/Sosua area and less than 15 minutes from La Preciosa beach.

The closest beaches to Dudu Lagoon are Playa Diamante or Playa Los Cocos. It’s not all that well sign posted, i.e there’s only one sign when you get there. We actually went past it because it says “Dudu Lagoon 200m” but that just meant it was 200m down a dirt road.

It’s pretty easy if you just download Google Maps and save the location and is just off the main road going along the coast (route 5).

The main lagoon

When you see pictures of Laguna Dudu you usually see the main lagoon. It’s an oval shaped lagoon with turquoise water and surrounded on all sides by a 10m+ cliff. On top of the cliff there’s trees and vines that hang down, making it a nice secluded (and quiet) spot.

The lagoon itself is about 50m wide and maybe 75m long – which was bigger than I thought it would be. Apparently it’s 32m deep which makes sense because you can’t see the bottom even though the water is really clear. That might be a bit intimidating for people that don’t like swimming in deep water but there’s lot of ropes to hang on to so just jump in!

Honestly, I was a little apprehensive due to the risk of Bilharzia in fresh water found in the Dominican Republic but there aren’t any muddy edges to the lagoon so with absolutely no medical or expert knowledge, I deemed it safe ;).

The water is colder than the sea but it’s hardly ‘take your breath away’ cold. At midday in the DR it was perfectly refreshing! There’s a few leaves and vegetation floating on the the service at points due to the trees on top of the cliff, but not enough to ruin the clarity of the water. Swim out into the middle of the lagoon and enjoy the tranquility.

Definitely bring swimming/scuba diving goggles! I’ve always had an irrational dislike of trees or ropes in water, which wasn’t ideal because there’s a lot of trees that have seemingly fallen from the cliff and settled in the lagoon underneath you. I got used to it pretty quickly though and it was interesting to see.

Dudu Lagoon Zip Line

There’s a zip line from the top of the cliff across the lagoon – although you can’t make it all the way to the end. Instead, after hearing the horn from the guy operating it, you let go of the zip line half way across and free fall into the lagoon. I’ve read that it’s 10m, although by the time you’ve gone down the zip line it’s probably more like 8m (plenty high enough). I’ve also read that it’s a 5-6 second free fall – that’s not true. You’re in the air for maybe 1-1.5 seconds….the nerd in me looked that up and a 6 second free fall would be well over 120m!

At 50 Dominican Pesos per jump (just under $1), it’s hardly expensive so a couple of jumps is a must-do. You don’t even need to sign lots of paper work and go through a boring tutorial. Just quickly sign a waiver, pay your 50 pesos and your jumping/zip lining/falling within minutes.

We were a group of 5 and everyone had a jump – I swam out with my GoPro to get some footage of people’s free fall and entry into the water, you can see it in the video at the top.

The Cave at Dudu Lagoon

After we’d had our fill in the main lagoon, we dried off, climbed the stairs and crossed the garden to the other side. Down another flight of stairs and we’re greeted by two different lagoons….and some very loud music, Dominican style. I never really understood why everyone plays music at full blast in the Dominican Republic but hey, when in Rome. Considering how peaceful the lagoons were it seemed a bit strange to be blasting out Reggaeton.

You can only swim in one of the lagoons which is in a cave that’s about 20 metres deep. The water is even clearer here because there’s less vegetation that falls into it and there’s small schools of fish swimming around. It was a little busier than the main lagoon, probably because you could get drinks there and relax in the cave.

The other lagoon is a no-swim area, although I think you might be able to hire kayaks and paddle out. It looks more like a lake/large pond than a lagoon and it’s connected to the cave (underneath the bar playing the music). There’s a little wooden platform from which you can see all of the fish and a lot of turtles as well. Again, check out the video to see those little dudes.

A nice half day trip

We didn’t eat at the restaurant so our trip lasted just over an hour. A couple of friends did eat at the restaurant and then got ill, but that’s anecdotal and it could have been anything so don’t want to put you off eating there!

I don’t think it’s a full day trip. You’ll swim in the lagoons for an hour, maybe have a drink and then leave. It’s really peaceful there (except for the music at the cave) so if you’re in the area you have to make a stop.

20 March 2021 1 comment

Dominican Republic Travel Tips

5 Key Travel Tips for the Dominican Republic

by Simon 19 March 2021

written by Simon

In early 2021 I spent 3 months in the Dominican Republic. I’m no resident but I do feel like 3 months is long enough to provide a bit of travel advice for anyone looking to visit the DR.

Tip #1 – Airport

Customs and immigration areas aren’t exactly playgrounds in any country. They are akin to purgatory. An area where everyone is in desperate need of a shower, feels dehydrated from their flight and often regret not changing into more suitable attire on the plane.

I flew into the Dominican Republic’s capital, Santo Domingo. Unsurprisingly, their customs/immigration was no different. I was one of the first people to get to immigration from our plane and it still took me over 1.5 hours to get through. There were perhaps 200 people behind me who I would guess took closer to 3 hours to get through.

Maybe there was an influx of planes at that particular time. Whatever the case, the desks weren’t fully staffed and there were only two immigration officers processing what would have been hundreds of people.

There’s a limited amount that you can do to prevent the wait. What I would say is:

Make sure you’ve gone to the toilet before the plane lands so you can avoid the hassle of trying to explain to people that you’re not skipping the queue when you return.
You can’t just barge your way through the plane. There is an etiquette to getting off a plane, you let the people in the rows in front leave before you do. There aren’t any rules once you get off the place though. Do not dawdle. Walk fast. Overtake 20 people on the way to immigration and you might save yourself 45 minutes.

Once you get through customs, just be prepared for the chaos. Again, there may have been a particularly large amount of flights arriving when I did but it was the busiest arrivals area I’ve ever seen. It was hot and sticky. My bag was heavy. I just said yes to the first taxi driver that approached me. I didn’t even negotiate. I wanted out.

Tip #2 – Electronics & Tech

Oh the heartache this has caused me.

As per the video, I’m no tech expert or electrician so I can’t tell you if it’s amps, volts, current or some other terminology.

All I know if that some things charge and others do not. I’ve met a lot of other people that have had the same issue. Apparently the plugs are only 110 (amps? volts?) so you need a suitable charger. I have a UK plug adapter which works for my laptop and phone but doesn’t for my electric shaver or my portable speaker. It says it’s charging, but then they die within seconds.

Worse, my phone refused to charge for 2 months. As soon as I plugged in the charging cable it said it had moisture in the port. I wasn’t the only one, a few others had this issue.

My remedy was to buy a wireless charger. The problem was that I had to test out 3 different chargers for that thing before it worked properly! So that sort of went against my hypothesis that it was the UK chargers….

It’s reasonably humid but not so humid that I would expect that to happen and yes I tried leaving it in a bag of rice and also in the sun. Eventually it worked fine, but that was 2 months down the line.

Do I have the answer for you? No. Suffice to say that you should expect some technical hiccups with all of your various electronics in the DR!

Tip #3 – The Dominican Republic has mutant mosquitos

Mosquitos in a tropical country, que surprise!

I’m no stranger to the tropics and mosquitos but I swear the mosquitos in the Dominican Republic are next level beasts. They are absolutely relentless.

I made the terrible mistake of not using repellent for the first few days. What followed was 2 weeks where I couldn’t sleep for more than an hour at a time. I would genuinely wake up scratching myself like a junky.

As far as I know they do have malaria in the DR, but they seem to be more wary of Dengue Fever. From all accounts Dengue is something you really want to avoid.

My mistake annoyed purely on the fact that it is so preventable. The main mosquito repellent brand in the DR is Off! and they also have a few brands of mosquito rings that you light and they smoke away for a few hours. I would highly recommend that you use both. When it rains here there are so many mosquitos that just one isn’t quite enough.

I would also bring some lightweight trousers and long sleeve tops. It may seem like overkill but it really was uncomfortable!

#Tip 4 – It’s not always sunny

Okay, so most of the time it is sunny. It’s the Caribbean after all.

When it rains though, it really does rain.

I brought a soft shell jacket that I use in London. It’s light and does the job when you’re caught in a quick shower. Sustained rain and it starts to fail.

Well……the ‘showers’ here are a little different to those in London. I got caught multiple times in these showers, often for less than 5 minutes, and I was soaked through.

I wish I had bought a good lightweight anorak and packed that instead. It’s the same amount of space, same weight, but much better performance. You might look like a bit of a nerd in one but it’s a raincoat. Any fool can get wet. I’m the fool.

Tip #5 – Transport Options

I approached the Dominican Republic in the same fashion as I would going to South East Asia. That was a mistake.

Private transport is no way near as cheap as it is in, say, Bali. Taxis are nearly European prices – I paid $150 dollars to get to the North coast from Santo Domingo but even to go 5 minutes down the road is likely to run you $7-$8.

The reason for the prices is because most people use the local buses/mini buses to get places. As an example, you can take a Caribe Tours bus from Santo Domingo to Sosua/Puerto Plata for $12. Or you can take a GuaGua (local minibus service) from Playa Encuentro to Cabarete for $0.50 (30 Dominican Pesos). The final option is a motoconcho which I did for the first few weeks. You essentially just jump on the back of a motorbike. Playa Encuentro to Cabarete would cost $3 (150 pesos) but after seeing a few accidents I decided that GuaGuas were by far the best option.

Hiring a car will cost you $40 minimum and that’s for a small car, I would take an SUV if you have the chance. A motorbike is usually $25 – $30 a day.

Of course you can get better deals for longer term hires but overall I found that unless you hired a car, getting around isn’t all that easy. In hindsight I should have bought a motorbike for $500 and sold it back but bear in mind that the roads are pretty darn dangerous, especially on the weekends with DUIs.

19 March 2021 0 comment

Ramblings Travel Tips

Is Business Class worth it? A view from a first timer (Iberia A330 Business Class)

by Simon 19 March 2021

written by Simon

Let’s face it. The faster check-in, lounge and separate boarding are just the accoutrement to the main course. It’s all about that lie-flat bed and not having to claim your arm rest before you have an elbow stand off with your neighbour.

For my whole life, business class was somewhat unattainable. For a number of reasons:

Firstly, growing up I didn’t have wealthy parents who paid for it.

A little later, I never had a corporate gig where I had to travel for work.

Even when I maybe had the money to pay for it, I simply couldn’t justify it. Business class is often three to four times more expensive than a normal flight. The last time I checked a flight, it was £800 to fly economy and £3000 to fly business.

I like to view things in terms of opportunity cost. To start off with, what could I do with £2200? The answer is quite a lot. More importantly though, if someone had come up to me and offered to pay me £2,200 to sit in a seat I’ve been sitting in my whole life, would I take it? That’s rhetorical question. I was blissful in my ignorance.

As I said, it never really made sense to me. Considering that my legs are like stumps it’s not like I have a problem fitting into cattle class seats.

This flight was different though. For £200 I could upgrade my flight. £22 an hour to have a lie flat bed? Sure, I’ll bite.

To set the scene it was an Iberia Flight from Madrid to Santo Domingo. Nine hours on an Airbus A330. Time to see if business class is really worth it.

Check-in and boarding

As an economy flyer I’ve always had a bit of a chip on my shoulder about the treatment of business and first class flyers. Sure, I understand they’ve paid a premium for a better service. It’s just the way the airlines seemingly idolise them.

Separate check in area.

Fancy lounges.

That’s what I got. Actually, I only got a separate check-in and boarding area. My upgrade didn’t qualify me for lounge access which was fine because I didn’t have time anyway.

Needless to say the upgraded treatment was pleasant. No standing in a check-in line having to shuffle your luggage a metre at a time as the line creeps along. Nobody in the business queue. Straight to the front. Lovely.

That’s where I was hit with my first surprise.

I was flying from London Heathrow to Santo Domingo, via Madrid. The problem was that my flight to Madrid was economy…..and my luggage was 2 kilos overweight. I sort of assumed that they would be lenient considering that the weight allowance for the main portion of my journey would accommodate my 25 kilos. Maybe the perceived business class arrogance had already seeped into my being?

TL;DR A 100 euro fee later and I was through check-in. Thanks Iberia.

Boarding in Madrid produced my second surprise.

Calmly standing in the boarding queue for business, I was quite content, if not feeling a little bit smug. Until a woman seemingly decided that I couldn’t be in the right queue, perhaps from my more normal appearance, and simply joined the queue right in front of me.

The queue wasn’t exactly long so I didn’t say anything. In my mind though it felt like a snub, a confirmation of the smell-your-own-farts smugness associated with the wealthy. Imposter syndrome was strong with me that day. The separate gangway didn’t help. It felt like segregation. “Welcome person who can spend 4 times as much on a flight as a normal person. We’ll make sure you don’t even have to see those peasants”. CLEARLY this isn’t completely true and likely unfair for the queue larger. It was chaotic at the gate and it was probably an innocent mistake. I couldn’t shake that feeling though.

The Seat

So there I was, feeling a little bit weird about the whole experience.

Until I got to the seat.

Let’s face it. The faster check-in, lounge and separate boarding are just the accoutrement to the main course. It’s all about that lie-flat bed and not having to claim your arm rest before you have an elbow stand off with your neighbour.

As I said in the video, it’s a strange one. The chances are that you’ve walked past first/business class multiple times. You’ve had a good look at the seats, you already know how much space they have and you definitely know they lie flat. So you know what you’re getting. You have a bed at home. You know what it feels like to lie down.

I entered into my new seat armed with this knowledge and yet I was still amazed.

The space and privacy is unreal.

No longer did I have to Tetris my stuff into the pouch in front of me. No longer did I have to find space near my feet for the blanket and/or bag.

I didn’t even have to worry about my feet smelling when I took my shoes off.

I just spread my shit out. Some went into the little cubby holes in the main console. Some went down the side of my seat. The rest went on the foot rest.

No champagne was served, but that didn’t bother me. Champagne is wasted on me, I’ve never been a fan. Anyways, I was too busy watching the tutorial video on the seat’s functions.

The third surprise…and subsequent disappointment

To my amazement, the seat had a massage function.

Like a child playing with a new toy I frantically searched for the button.

I pressed it….and was immediately brought crashing back to earth. It’s ludicrous to call it a massage chair. It barely moves. There’s some sort of bar built into the lower portion of the chair that moves up and down about 4 inches. There isn’t any oscillation to talk of, just an up and down movement. It does press into your back slightly, but no more than an inch.

I didn’t expect a massage function so had it been a good massage chair, it really would have blown my mind. Instead I turned it off wondering why they would even include it.

The lie flat bed

Onto the main course.

As expected for a noob like me, as soon as the seat belt signs were turned off I had to get this baby to ‘lie flat’ position. Shoes off, blanket at the ready I pressed the button that people pay a premium for.

The seat reclined. The bottom pushed forward. The back reclined further. The seat pushed forward to make more space. I was now past 45 degrees, past the position of a recliner in front of your TV.

Within seconds my seat had joined the foot rest in front of me and I was in my own little bed in the skies. A view out of the window to my right and the console to my left preventing any view outside my own private space on the plane.

A quick adjustment of the tray table to upright position and swung outwards and the cabin was complete. To call it a cabin does an injustice to the true cabin found in first class nowadays (from what I’ve seen on Youtube) but again, like a child, this was my own little cabin.

I would actually go back to a more normal seat position and wouldn’t sleep till later. To state the obvious, when I did go to sleep it was the best sleep I’ve ever had on a place. Who would have thunk it?!

Hairgate

Onto the food and I should probably start with a caveat. I’m no foodie. I like good food, but I can also be remarkably unfussy when it comes to food. In fact, I tend not to have an issue with plane food. I’ll happily eat it!

Iberia served the business class food in a box, which I don’t think is typical. I presume that it was for health reasons given the current global issues. I don’t even know if economy got the same food, I imagine not.

A few wraps, salad, cheese and crackers. Fairly normal stuff and actually quite tasty. Not much to comment on here except it would have been nice to have the normal food – which I think is served on proper plates and not a cardboard box. Given the circumstances though, there probably isn’t another option for airlines.

Surprise #5

I did have a hair on my wrap which wasn’t ideal. I tend to shed hair at a remarkable rate myself so I understand. Plus it wasn’t a short and curly so after a quick removal, the rest of the wrap was down the hatch.

Should I have complained? Possibly.

Did I complain? No. I couldn’t see how I would benefit from the outcome (except perhaps a new wrap).

Would I pay for a full rate business class flight?

How was the experience as a first time business class flyer?

Excellent.

I knew what I was getting and it was even better than I thought it would be, which was one of my worries. I’ve been perfectly happy with my various economy seats throughout my life. Chalk this down to my ignorance, or my stature. Whatever the case, I ran the risk of finding out how much greener the grass was.

Would my exposure to the front of the plane mean that I wouldn’t be able to go back?

Nope.

Don’t get me wrong, if I get another offer to upgrade a flight for a couple of hundred pounds, I won’t even think about. It’s lie flat time baby. The problem comes when you’re having to shell out a couple of thousand pounds for the privilege. Put it this way, that’s multiple custom shaped surfboards to add to my quiver. It’s a nice camera. It’s what I would call a good budget for a 2 week holiday. Would I swap any of those for more comfort for 9 hours? Not a chance.

19 March 2021 1 comment

Dominican Republic Ramblings Travel Tips

Travelling to the Dominican Republic

by Simon 18 March 2021

written by Simon

The Dominican Republic wasn’t on my travel list.

Images of all inclusive resorts full of sun burnt Americans and Europeans tends to give me cold sweats.

Turns out I wasn’t the only one. The majority of the people staying in Playa Encuentro on the North coast hadn’t considered ‘DR’ before. Like me, a quick Google search of countries that were open for travel (and where you could surf) and flights were booked. No quarantine, no PCR test needed to get on the flight or enter.

Visas were fine for 30 days with a British Passport and extensions seemed incredibly relaxed. $37 dollars for an additional 60 days and what appeared to be an ability to stay as long as you wanted if you carried on paying the ~$20 dollars a month.

The Dominican Republic suddenly looked like a pretty damn good option.

Flights to DR

You’ve got multiple options when it comes to flights. There are 3 main international airports in the Dominican Republic: Santo Domingo in the South (the Capital), Punta Cana in the South East (the all inclusive Mecca of DR) and Puerto Plata in the North West.

The problem was the connections. Playa Encuentro is only 30 minutes from Puerto Plata but the flights connect in Miami which was off limits at the time. It also involved a 16 hour layover which wasn’t ideal.

I ended up settling for a flight via Madrid, to Santo Domingo with Iberia. I figured a couple of hours layover in Madrid and a night in Santo Domingo, followed by a 4.5 hour journey North was the best option for me. I also booked a flexible return ticket in case I hated it and needed to move on quickly. Return flights from London Heathrow with the flexible return ended up being just over £900. Not great, but not the worst at such short notice.

The great thing was that business class upgrades were crazy cheap. I’d never flown business before and for an extra £200 it seemed like a no brainer. I’m glad I did it, and I also regret it. The ability to lay flat on a bed was, well, a different experience. It didn’t even feel like you were on the same plane. The problem is that I was happy in my ignorance. I now know what it’s like and I don’t want to go back.

Anyway, that’s a different topic.

There’s loads of options for flights, some are direct, some need a layover. Depends on your budget….obviously. I also found out that there are direct flights from Frankfurt if you so happen to be in Germany.

Flights from London:

Travel Options to the North Coast of the Dominican Republic

Let’s skip forward.

Flights are flights. They’re not exactly a stay in a 5 star hotel, but they’re also not as torturous as people make them out to be. Your mouth gets a bit dry. You need to fart a lot. Your coccyx feels like it’s being ground to dust after about 6 hours.

Skip ahead. I’m now in Santo Domingo having spent well over 1.5 hours in customs and passing through the busiest arrivals area I’ve seen.

I’ve woken up in a cheap hotel with a free breakfast that was of the quality you would expect from such an establishment. Salt, Pepper and hot sauce was required.

As far as I know, there are 3 main travel options to get from Santo Domingo (or Punta Cana) to the North coast of the Dominican Republic, namely the Cabarete, Playa Encuentro, Sosua area (Puerto Plata province):

Private Transfer

Definitely the most expensive way to travel although if you’re in a group it may be convenient. I got in touch with Coco Tours who were offering $190 in a shared mini bus. They do offer private cars as well but this ramps up the price.

Taxi

This is the option I chose. It was $150 which is way more than I would usually spend but the idea of being in a cramped bus for 4.5 hours during a global pandemic was a little off putting. Word on the street is that prices can range between $150 and $200 depending on what taxi company/driver you choose.

Bus

Definitely the cheapest and I actually used the bus going back to Santo Domingo – I wish I’d used it to get to the North Coast. The main bus company is Caribe Tours and they leave from their central bus station in Santo Domingo. Price for a 4.5 – 5 hour bus ride….a whopping 800 pesos which is about $14. This is what I would recommend – the seats were big and comfortable and the bus was nowhere near as packed as I had feared.

Arriving in Playa Encuentro

Playa Encuentro itself is relatively small. Its smack bang in between the larger towns (take ‘larger’ with a pinch of salt) of Cabarete and Sosua. Upon arrival in Playa Encuentro the taxi driver’s sat nav didn’t take us to the correct place so it’s probably worth downloading the map or taking a screenshot of your exact location.

I decided to stay at Surfbreak which is a family run surf hostel – it’s only private rooms with no dorms, like most places in Encuentro. There is another well known hotel called El Encuentro Surf Lodge, but its about double the price. You do get what you pay for though.

I know a few people that stayed at Gipsy Ranch which is very affordable, but let’s just say that it has a certain vibe to it. You may like it but everyone I know ended up leaving pretty sharpish.

Having said that, there are a lot of other options including a whole raft of AirBnB places as well.

So this was going to be my home for the next 3 months. A 5 minute walk to the beach and 10 minutes walk from the surf spots. A small but liveable room in a quaint hostel. Tropical weather, incredible sunrises. Better than lockdown in London.

18 March 2021 1 comment

Remote Work

I Love London, but I’m leaving

by Simon 31 January 2021

written by Simon

Unprecedented times.

In my view, the most overused phrase of 2020. It’s true, but still overused.

Either way, I love London. When I first moved to London in 2010 someone told me that if you’re bored in London it’s completely your fault. Even if you’re broke. There are countless things to do that don’t cost anything. Of course, if you’re not broke there are even more things to do.

It truly is a global hub. A multi cultural melting pot.

It’s also been my home for a decade now. I have a flat here. Most of my friends are here, my job was here and I don’t regret my time here at all.

But it’s time to go.

In my previous post I talked about the tale of the crocodile. An inflection point for me where I didn’t want to just go through the motions in London. I wasn’t wasting time, I was still having a lot of fun but I was worried about falling into the trap of ‘just existing’. It genuinely worked me. I didn’t want the years to pass and regret the safe life I had lived.

Remote work opportunity

To provide a little context, I have a marketing agency in London so I’ve always been tied to London because of the office location. In 2019 I’d tested out working remotely for a week in Barcelona and it was the most productive I’d been for quite some time. It was also the most free I’d felt in a long time. I had planned on working remotely for at least 2 weeks every quarter.

But funnily enough, you slide back into your old routine. And time flies.

In 2019 I worked a grand total of one week abroad. One week out of a planned eight.

No bueno.

2020 rolls around and the whole world seemingly finds themselves working remotely. I know that’s not strictly true, but it got me thinking. If everyone is working remotely, and companies are still performing, surely this is going to be something that will take hold. Some employees will like this set up and start to demand that a portion of flexible working be included as part of their employment contract. It’s far from an original thought – there were (and still are) lots of people and media talking about the ‘future of work’.

I wanted to capitalise on this. I accepted the fact that my motivation to lead my company out of this period was not as high as it could have been. The team, my shareholders and myself would be better off if someone more motivated was in charge. It would also rid me of the single anchor holding me to London.

This was in my plan in a few years when my agency was hopefully bigger and more stable…Covid-19 just accelerated it. Remote consultancy work would likely be easier – or at least the remote part wouldn’t put off potential employers.

It was certainly a more risky time to leave, but it was also the best opportunity I would have for a number of years. Push the button, just go.

The thin veneer of digital nomads.

I’ve always had mixed feelings about the digital nomads that you meet, and I’ve met countless. My holidays tend to revolve around surfing and surf destinations are seemingly irresistible magnets for digital nomads.

On one hand there is the obvious jealously. Here are people that get to earn money whilst travelling, enjoying sunset beers on a beach, on a Tuesday. They get to live in shorts and t-shirts. They get to live in places that you only get to travel to for maybe 2 weeks a year (and pay a premium to do so).

On the other hand, there was the more pragmatic side of life. What job security do they have? How much do they actually work/earn? Most of them just seem to be drinking all the time. Do they have a mortgage, savings or a pension? What happens when they return to their home country? Will they be able to get a decent job? Previously, all of these factors had prevented me from seeing it as a viable route. There appeared to be a significant underlying risk profile that was veneered over by pictures of parties, babes and sundowners.

I’m glad that I did my time in the city. I have a skillset and a profile that I like to think is attractive to certain companies. As such, becoming a digital nomad should (in theory) be less risky than if I had done it at 25. I won’t labour this point because I intend on writing an article/making a video that dives into this in more detail.

The point is that I didn’t look upon digital nomads with pure jealousy. There was a considerable amount of trepidation as well. However, Covid-19 had flung that door wide open. The risk was lowered and I couldn’t resist.

Quit your job, travel forever. Kind of.

That’s what people see on Instagram. That’s what they envy.

People do that, but they are probably Instagram influencers. I’m not one of them, nor do I want to be.

Cody Ko puts it pretty well:

Instead, I simply want to be able to work a fairly normal job, just not in an office and not in London. Surfing in the morning would be preferable.

How long will it last? The plan is a handful of years at least. Moving every 2 weeks doesn’t appeal, so ‘slow travel’ is the route forward (at least for now). Getting to put some roots down in places offers a completely different experience than your more typical holiday one.

So to summarise, the craziness of 2020 accelerated me leaving my business, packing up and heading to sunnier climes. The intention is to use my experience to work as a consultant and still build for the future, instead of just going on what would essentially be an extended time travelling.

I’ll be documenting the places I go on this blog and my Youtube channel which I hope will be useful for anyone looking to either travel to the places I am, or even start working remotely themselves. I genuinely don’t think there’s been a better time to start planning this type of working arrangement.

31 January 2021 0 comment

Ramblings Remote Work

Let’s get this started

by Simon 29 January 2021

written by Simon

The likelihood is that you don’t know me and I don’t know you.

I’m not promoting this amongst my friends & family which, whilst probably being a mistake, means that if you’re reading this you may have simply stumbled upon it.

Perhaps it was through another article on the blog and you’ve decided to read the first post.

Whatever the case, thank you for being here. I’ll try not to ramble too much. Here’s a breakdown of this article if you want to skip ahead at any point:

Who am I?
What’s the point in all of this?
What do you get out of it?
What’s my plan?

Who am I?

Well, my name is Simon and although I often act like a child, I’m in my mid-thirties.

I like to say yes to things that others wouldn’t.

I’m not considered overly sociable, but can be when needed.

I don’t know how to use a semi-colon. I overuse commas.

I’ve spent the last 10 years in London working mainly in marketing and for over half that time running my own marketing agency.

And I decided to leave.

I don’t want to pretend like I was stuck in the rat race, depressed & lonely. Sure it might add more contrast to the narrative but it simply wasn’t the case. Did I love my job? No. I’ve never loved a job, I’ve always viewed jobs as a means to an end. There is always something I’d rather be doing than working. But did I hate it? Absolutely not. It was challenging, it opened doors and provided me with a comfortable lifestyle.

So why did I leave?

As stereotypical as it may sound, I’ve always wanted to live abroad. I grew up in different countries and over the past few years I’ve started to get itchy feet. I had planned to step out of my agency in the next few years as this was the sole factor in my life that anchored me to London. So this was sort of an inevitability. Couple my itchy feet with a dip in motivation (work wise) alongside the Covid-19 related lockdowns and it felt like it was the best opportunity to accelerate the timelines.

The tipping moment was a random thought that took hold one day. To use a film reference, it was like the underlying concept of Christopher Nolan’s Inception. I couldn’t shake it. This was the thought:

The tale of the crocodile

A crocodile is in a river.

It’s there.

Waiting.

Eventually an unfortunate animal comes to close and the crocodile eats. As far as I know, the process is then repeated. Perhaps it mates as and when the time is right. I’m no crocodile expert but that doesn’t matter for this tale.

I started to think whether a crocodile gets bored waiting. Eventually I settled on the conclusion that a crocodile doesn’t have the intellectual capacity to be bored. It operates on instinct. The croc isn’t really ‘thinking’ like a human thinks, because it’s not capable of it.

In essence the crocodile is just existing.

It waits. It eats. It moves. It waits. It eats. It moves.

Life is great at turning people into crocodiles.

I was on the underground one day and looked at the people on it. They looked like crocodiles. In my mind they were heading to work to fulfil their duty. They would then head back home to eat again, watch Netflix and sleep. Perhaps on the weekend they would go out and party, or meet friends. But Monday would inevitably come and the whatever process they followed would then be repeated for the next 7 days. Weeks turn into months, months turn into years.

Of course, this is not only untrue but also unfair. A commute on London’s underground is dead, uninspiring time. If you’re ever going to see someone look bereft of any hope, love or happiness, the underground in rush hour is the place.

I knew that everyone on the tube that day wasn’t a crocodile. They probably had interesting lives that they were perfectly happy with. I still couldn’t shake the thought though. In some Machiavellian way I was mentally shitting on everyone else to make me realise that perhaps I was in fact the only crocodile.

This all sounds overly self deprecating. I love London, it’s a great city and I wasn’t just existing there. The tale of the crocodile had such a grip on my because I feared it coming true.

Now was the time to change. To fight against just existing. To prevent me turning around one day and wishing I’d just done it.

It’s suddenly turned from insufferable self loathing to a sickening cliche….

I sold some of my stuff, I stepped down as managing director of my agency and I became a digital nomad. At the time of writing I’m in the Dominican Republic. I’m surfing in the morning, working during the day and relaxing in the evening.

It’s still a process, just one that I’m enjoying more than London.

What’s the point in this?

Let’s start with the name.

With the Sparrows.

At some point in early 2020 during the first lockdown we had in the UK, I kept waking up at around 3.30am and couldn’t get back to sleep. After a couple of days of this I decided to venture out for a walk. I wasn’t doing anything but laying in bed after all.

Eventually this evolved into me waking up at around 4.30am and going for a 2 hour walk every morning, incorporating running into this routine intermittently. I got to be active, to think and to spend some along time every morning before the vast majority of London was even thinking about being awake.

I saw a lot of sunrises. Some of which were spectacular.

After proudly sending the pictures I took to friends, the suggestion came up that I make an Instagram page. That way they can see them if they want, instead of me incessantly sending them WhatsApps at 5am.

Long story long, there is a phrase to describe getting up really early: “At Sparrows’ fart”. It seemed appropriate.

With my digital nomad journey including lots of dawnies (surfer speak for sunrise sessions) it meant that the name could easily be used for this new venture.

That’s an interesting story Simon, but seriously, what’s the point?

Firstly, I intend on travelling for a number of years. Privileged or not privileged, that’s a hell of an opportunity. It’s a pretty good time to start a vlog/blog.

Secondly, I realised that a had maybe a handful of photos from my last few trips. Yet when I made a video edit of a surf trip to Newquay it was so much more visceral. It conjured up memories in a completely different manner. I want videos of this part of my life.

Thirdly, my profession is marketing. I truly believe that video is the future of marketing (even more than it is already). It gives me a project which will expand my skillset.

Finally, I want it to be something that forces me to explore more. To document things. To make the most of my time.

If it goes somewhere then great. If it doesn’t, I’ve learnt a new skill and I have videos that I can share with family and reminisce with in the coming years.

What’s in it for YOU?

Hopefully a lot.

I didn’t create this vlog/blog to feed my ego. This is not going to be a ‘day in the life’ style channel.

Instead, I wan’t to provide information that I would actively search for before travelling somewhere. Information that I would find useful. I’ve already met a lot of people that have confirmed my suspicions, especially amongst surfers. They want to familiarise themselves with the area before they even arrive.

So I want to base my vlogs and articles on being useful to others.

Here’s what you can expect:

Travel options and accommodation (including prices)
Surf spots
Issues that I experience in different places (see here for the Dominican Republic)
Things to see and do
My experience working remotely as a digital nomad

I appreciate that there are already people that do this, but honestly I don’t think they do it very well.

For example, and this may sound trivial, but very few people actually just show you a map. They don’t provide a birds’ eye view of areas and explain what transit times are or let you visualise the pros and cons of certain places to stay. I can buy a map, I already have a drone so this is something that I really want to incorporate. Again, it’s something that I would find really useful and hopefully others would too.

There will be b-roll of sunsets. There will be surfing clips. There will be blue water. There will be videos that are more #wunderlust than overly helpful.

But that is not the focus of the channel. I can’t compete with that.

I don’t want to be an influencer. I want the channel to be popular because it helps people and provides genuinely useful information. And you can hold me to that.

What’s my plan?

It’s pretty simple.

For my first year of working remotely I aim to work enough to pay the bills, but not much more. A sabbatical of sorts. I want to surf more, and hopefully get a hell of a lot better at it.

I want to get this vlog/blog off the ground.

Ideally, I want to work a 4 day week. I don’t think that I could do nothing. I want to have projects that require critical thinking, continual improvement and create a routine. However, when my working day is over (and on a 3 day weekend) it means that I’m instantly in what is likely to be a tropical location.

It’s all fairly embryonic at the moment. As Mike Tyson famously said, “Everyone has a plan, until they get punched in the face”. I like that. Stay flexible. Still have a plan but be prepared to change it at a moments’ notice.

More to come.

29 January 2021 1 comment

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