A Dominican Adventure
There’s no other way to explain the trip: it was an adventure. I had no idea how much planning, coordinating, and anxiety would go into what was meant to be a family vacation and research grant. I was excited to go. I’d always wanted to visit Samaná, a region steeped in history and culture that felt both familiar and foreign. Born and raised in Harlem, a predominantly Black historic neighborhood in New York City bordering Washington Heights, a Dominican neighborhood, I’ve long been curious about the ways these worlds intersect, not just in NYC but in the Dominican Republic itself. Samaná held a unique place in my imagination, having been intended as a Black nation in the early 1800s when it was all Haiti, following the Haitian Revolution. It was a trip of a lifetime, and I wanted my family to experience it with me. After all, I hadn’t been to the DR in 25 years! It felt like discovering it all over again. Our adventure began early, on Sunday, June 1. We woke up at 4 a.m. and began what...