Sabado Gigante!

It's Saturday and I'm doin' it big in DR. Well, as big as you can do it on one leg. Let me run down the day for you. After getting up and doing my first round of rehab exercises and icing in the easy chair that they have positioned in the corner of my room here at the Renaissance Jaragua Hotel and Casino in Santo Domingo, I had a light breakfast of juevos, papas, y empanadas. The sun was shining and I hadn't been to the pool yet, so that would be my next order of business.

I'm not allowed to swim or even submerge my leg in water yet, but nobody said that I couldn't lay next to the pool with my leg covered by ice bags. Icing never felt so good. First of all, it was about 90 degrees at 11am and very, very humid. Under those conditions, you don't even have to suck it up and fight through those first two minutes of adjusting to the cold ice bags against your skin. Add a strawberry, ice cream and rum concoction and a view of not only the pool and the surrounding palm trees, but also the Caribbean Sea and it becomes very clear that this is indeed the way to adhere to your recovery program. I was sure to slather up with the SPF 30 sunscreen and bring my polarized Maui Jim sunglasses even though the sun kept dipping behind the very expansive, billowy, white cloud cover.

I let my leg thaw out and then put the ice bags on again as Bob Marley blasted through the speakers and I enjoyed my surroundings. It seems as though Bob has written the soundtrack for the sea (at least the tropical sea) as nothing makes you feel the ambiance of windblown palm trees, sunshine, and crashing waves like he and the Wailers telling you to get down with the Kinky Reggae. As you can see, I was in no hurry to leave. But, alas, all good things must come to an end. My ice bags finally turned to water and my stomach started tuggin' at me for lunch.

Some of the employees at the pool bar suggested a spot about 3 blocks back in the neighborhood behind the hotel called El Conuco. Good call! The indoor/outdoor dining area was brightly colored and decorated with tropical birds, some drums and the colorful characters that were waiting on the tables. As usual, I ordered way too much food because I just want to try everything. I probably should've skipped the yucca with onions because my grilled steak with grilled onions was plenty. I forgot to mention the sancocho which I think is now, officially, my favorite thing to eat here. In fact, I'm going to go home and try to re-create this salty beef stew type soup in my own kitchen. Most of the restaurants here serve a small portion of it whether you order it or not. The candied papaya that I had for dessert was absolutely what the doctor ordered to top this late lunch off.

Saturday night proved that my hotel was indeed the place to be. In addition to the various conferences taking place in the ballrooms, and the nightly hustle and bustle of the casino, there was a sold out concert taking place in el Teatro Fiesta located at the rear of the casino. Folks came in droves and best in their elegant best to see Emmanuel, a Mexican crooner who must've been wildly popular around these parts. Walking out and catching a taxi, I noticed the multitude of cars parked any which way they could along the road leading away from the hotel. Later on, as the concert ended and folks made their way on to Santo Domingo's version of Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles (aka Adrian Tropical), the fashion show was on once again. Actually, I'm perhaps not being fair to Adrian's by comparing it to Roscoe's because it's people watching, and even its food, easily outdistances Roscoe's.