The Springer Family hopped on a plane for the Dominican Republic right after Christmas. We chose to go there because it seemed less expensive than Mexico--and we also thought it would be fun to try somewhere none of us had been! Our resort was in Punta Cana and the island is half DR and half Haiti. With all the press on Haiti's earthquake, now everyone knows where that is. (We were fortunate to be gone by that time, but heard that we wouldn't have experienced much if we were there.)

Below are pictures of our resort. There was a bowling alley, 5 theme restaurants, 2 buffets, and a very large pool--not to mention a beautiful beach!

We were able to enjoy 3 excursions. The first was a safari through the countryside to learn about the Dominican area and their people.  We went to see a common house and how cigars and cocoa beans were made. The bottom picture is of a gas station because real ones are hard to get to if you're running low on gas!  We enjoyed an awesome lunch before going to Macao Beach to ride the surf with boogie boards. Another day, we went on a snorkeling trip, and below are the workers on that boat making us some drinks. (Yum!) While DeAnn went to finish her tan, the boys went on a zip line through the jungle. They had a blast doing this! And then to relax at the resort, Tim & Danny climbed the rock wall.

We celebrated New Year's Eve with a wonderful buffet on the beach and a dessert buffet that was huge!!! (Tim was the first to dive into it...)