Dominica - An Introduction

Since we are getting ready to move to our new home for 16 months, I thought I would share some information for you about Dominica so you can get familiar with where we're going to be. I know I had never heard of Dominica before this adventure, so I'm assuming many of you haven't either. And if you have, maybe you can enlighten me.

So here's a look at what I've found through my research!

First of all, it's not the Dominican Republic. I was guilty of that, too.

It's pronounced Dom-in-eek-a. 

Location is fairly important to know. It's about an hour and a half flight from San Juan, Puerto Rico. The island is 29 miles long and 16 miles wide.

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The capitol of Dominica is Roseau. It is on the south end of the island. We will be living in Portsmouth, which is on the north end of the island. There are two airports on the island, but we will be flying into Melville Hall Airport. Apparently the ride from the airport to Portsmouth can get a little rough. So here's hoping we don't get carsick!

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English is spoken there. But there is British English, African, French and Carib (native Dominican Indian) influence.

They use Eastern Caribbean currency - or EC. 

Dominica is known as the "Nature Island" because its untouched landscape. Tropical rain forests cover two thirds of the island. 

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There are even eight volcanoes in the mountainous country.

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There are natural waterfalls, hot springs, boiling lakes and more.

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Diving is a popular pastime, as it is one of the top ten diving locations in the world. Hiking is also popular, with many trails available to explore. There are opportunities to see sea turtles and go whale watching. 

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And they have black sand beaches!

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71,000 people live in the country - 4,000 live in Portsmouth. There is one major 'highway' in the country connecting Portsmouth to Roseau. It takes about an hour to drive between the two cities.

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It is very warm and humid in Dominica. Rainy season is from July-November and dry season is December-June. When it rains several days in a row, the water will turn brown. Apparently it is still safe to drink, but I don't think we'll be taking chances on that one. Dominica is also in the hurricane path. So we will be paying close attention to that during hurricane season.

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Our apartment, Comfort Zone, will be very close to campus and to Picard Beach!

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There is a IGA grocery store that is about a five minute walk from our apartment as well. From what I've learned, they have most of the same food items at the States, however it's not always guaranteed to be in stock. 

Electricity is prepaid. We will buy the electricity from the IGA in advance. We then take the receipt back home, and enter our receipt number onto the meter in the apartment. We will be able to track how much electricity we use. It's not as expensive as it was in Freeport, so that's good news, but it is still more expensive than it is in the States.

So that's a look at Dominica! I know once we get there, I will have so much more to share.