Saturday Market in Cabarete
Saturday Market in Cabarete There are many wonderful things that I like to do on my Sabados. Sabado inspires activities that give me comfort: Reading, quietly working, swimming, cooking, window shopping and most importantly eating. Every Saturday a friendly local named Les opens up his house and open air court yard to locals for a lovely market. Located two mins past the Texaco gas station east of Cabarete, dozens of local merchants set up tables to sell their goods. From clothing and jewelry, to face creams and puppies, you can often find an eclectic array of goodies. I normally B-line it straight to the German cakes and coffee before using shopping as my excuse to burn off my treat. This market becomes even more magical when you enter through the gates and into the mystical garden. The house has a very open design where people can walk right through into the backyard garden. Weaving through wracks of clothing, German romance novels and bootlegged cellphones, you’ll find yourself next to a pool where vines and rusty lawn chairs have taken over. For 100rd you can normally get yourself a deliciously satisfying brunch and coffee. I’m partial to the BLT’s made with fresh baked bread, but Les often makes curries, cinnamon buns, lasagnas or stir fries. There are other bakers who come with trays of rich cakes and pies filled with fresh fruit, soft cheeses and rich chocolates. Some people come selling their local fruits and veggies, honey or nuts. Anyone can set up a table for 100rd and you have all afternoon to sell and make a profit. As much as I love the food, I really appreciate the atmosphere. I appreciate the friendly community of people I meet. There are often familiar faces, but always new people you can meet from all corners of the world. Sitting at the big wooden table next to the pool drinking my coffee, I hear stories of ex patriots settling in cabaret, or I overhear the latest gossip from two elderly women nibbling on coffee cake. I like bringing people from Extreme to the market because I feel like I’m giving them an authentic Cabarete experience – something special that they might not find on their own. Everyone gets familiar with the party on the beach, or the abs at Encuntro surf beach, but not everyone gets to enjoy homemade rum ball dipped in Santo Domingo coffee with a snoring cat on their lap! Until next time,
DJ Avana at Voodoo Lounge, Cabarete
Voodoo Lounge in Cabarete is relatively new. I don’t know if it was that, or the fact that my Spanish is non-existent and I had only been in Cabarete for two days, but my moto driver had no idea where I was talking about – neither did the three other people he pulled over to ask. “Doodoo?” he said, “No. Voodoo!” “Whodoo?” It went on. I finally remembered that it was on the same street as the pizza restaurant with all of the aquariums. Again, non existent Spanish so that took a minute, but eventually it worked. The crew from eXtreme was already there, and apparently so was everyone else. But it wasn’t crazy, it was a nice crowd, and almost all locals. The people who tend to spend relaxing evenings at home, decided to grace us with their presence. They also already know that a party at Voodoo is probably worth the effort. And they are all over the bottomless mimosas the next day. At first I couldn’t tell if it was a DJ or a CD playing and then it was obvious. People crowded around the DJ booth, Papo showed up. The music was good. Hip Hop I haven’t heard in Philly since the Hipsters invaded. Two emcees from Santo Domingo took the stage, Basico and Eme de Meta. Again, no Spanish so no idea what they were saying they could have been rapping about kittens and jamba juice for all I know but those motherfuckers had flows for days. This was not the first and it will certainly not be the last time that Papo throws a great event. We are all looking forward to Rap N Playa on November 17th, which will feature a killer line up of hip hop groups from Santo Domingo, including our friends Lo Correcto, break dancing and a beach front graffiti battle. Be sure to check out Avana’s music on Facebook, Soundcloud, wherever you get your rocks off. That one track “I speak no English” is hilarious… I feel you hommie. Until next time. _ Dodekah
Circus Retreat Performance at Extreme Hotel
So how do I put this… last night was amazing. Thanks for the show…? You girls were great. Can I put the tip in your bra…? Where did you learn those mean skills?… nope, that all sounds oddly sexual. But then again so are aerial arts and circus performances in general. But if you ask this team of highly skilled, highly talented, and highly ripped acrobats, they’d tell you that it’s an expression, and that creating each act is an extremely artistic endeavor. Circus girls I had the pleasure (ahem – again with the sexy words) of catching Kerri’s brand new show last night. Since the Sweet Retreats†k Team has only been at Extreme for ten days, their routine was still in the works and is still a little wet behind the ears. Of course this actually worked to their advantage. The girls bantered with the audience between sets, asking what everyone thought, and did back flips, walkovers, and handsprings while fluttering around like little birds. It was so natural it seemed like it was how they always interact with people. And when the beautifully elegant knife-dancing-Olga dropped her knife, we were all able to drop our jaws a little farther when she was able to recover with the same grace. circus crew at extreme Their one hour show kicked off with one of Kaiceitos‘ very own doing a graceful strength routine on the hanging bar, then an areal arts routine by Chloe and Kerri, followed by the circus boys on the beach throwing poi, which are basically burning balls of fire on sticks (ahem). This is actually a pretty big thing internationally, and we welcome poi dancers to our beach side paradise every year. The whole show was done to booming pop-hip-hop-technoey beats. The crowd went wild for the group, and I’m sure I’m not the only one that left vowing to myself that tomorrow I would pick up where I left off with my hand stands and by next week I’d be skipping town in search of some long lost circus dream. The best part about the whole thing is that I totally could have done that. Or so I felt. The sense of place that you get at Extreme is that anything is possible. Wake up one morning and you’re a circus freak – I mean circus pro, and the next day you could be on your way to being one of the first Olympian kite boarders in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. My point is, this type of stuff just crops up all the time here. For all of you who surely share the same dream, Kerri is also kind enough to provide classes to the public for those who would like to learn the aerial arts, tumbling, handstands, trapeze and much more. Although this amazing group will be leaving us shortly, they do retreats twice a year at Extreme! Be sure to check our Facebook page and website for updates on Kerri’s Sweet Retreats at Extreme Hotel. circus crew By: Monica Rush
Dominican Hip Hop Group Lo Correcto
The hip hop collective, Cooperativa Empresarial Lo Correcto, or “Lo Correcto” is a united group of creative individuals who have fought to bring hip hop to the ears of the people in La Republica Dominicana. As most radio stations are overrun with the classic bachata and merengue music, their music offers an amazing urban sound with lyrics that provoke thought and plant the seeds of action. With a sound that has been likened to that of the Wu Tang Clan and Boot Camp Clik, these guys are rewriting what it means to be in the Dominican music scene. The minute I met the group of smiling, dreadlocked Dominicanos, I could sense that they had an amazing collective energy, and a shared understanding of their purpose. The group was borne out of a collaboration of art, hip hop, and expression in the capitol city, Santo Domingo. Before long, Extreme Hotel had the pleasure of hosting the group while they did a media tour on the North Coast of the island. They broadcasted live from Voodoo Lounge on Zulu Radio, and had two live performances in one night here in Cabarete. The best kept secret of their tour? During their mornings and afternoons when most rap groups would be succumbing to the gluttony of a party lifestyle, they were vigilantly rising with the sun, working out every day in our gym, and embarking on a healthier, more conscious lifestyle change. What prompted this? You might say that Cabarete is a meca for the fit and the to-be-fit. It’s where people come to play like they’re young again, and if you want to play like you’re a five year old, it’s best that you can keep up with a five year old. Enter trainer and jiu jitsu coach: Tomas Papo Sone. Papo has been in this game for years, and has been listening to Lo Correcto since ’98 when the group first came on the scene. He invited the group up to Cabarete to get a taste of the carefree beach-side lifestyle. The group leapt at the idea, especially when Papo threw in the promise of getting to work with the Dominican MMA fighter, Alex Garcia (euphemistically coined the Dominican Nightmare). The creative minds of Lo Correcto and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Cabarete worked together to create a week of culture, change, fitness, and action. The result was a whirlwind education for both Extreme Hotel and also Lo Correcto. They brought us cultural vibes from ‘el Capitol’, and we gave them motivational tools and a fitness education.
Master of the Sea
Big surf competition happening this weekend at Encuantro! The master of the sea needs to demonstrate their ability to kill the waves and the wind. “DISCIPLINES There will be four disciplines – surfing, windsurfing and kitesurfing and stand up paddle board (SUP). All disciplines will be judged on surfing waves, jumps and tricks performed during riding the wave and freestyle manoeuvres using the wave. Overall impression is the main focus for judges with weight given to performance on or using waves.” http://masteroftheocean.com/master-ocean-2012 Everyone should go down and cheer on the competitors. We’re also really excited to cheer on some of our local talent and our good friend Nir, a pro kiter from Israel staying with us at the hotel. With competitions happening everyday this weekend, everyone come back to our restaurant Chichigua to talk about the days big competitors and stories. Arturo makes a mean cucumber mojito :) See you there!
Jui Jitsu competition
Jui Jitsui de las costa is pleased to announce the first Jui Jitsu competition on the north cost of the Dominican Republic. It is being hailed as the King of the Coast, and we will be looking for our new Ji Jitsu king here in the ramp at eXtreme Cabarete. With all our home favouirtes training every day, and all the other schools from all over the Dominican Republic coming to compete, this one is going to be big. Everyone is excited for a fantastic event. There are parties, shows, and lots of jui jitsu action planned for the event. We may even get to see Thomas ‘Papo” stone come out and strut his stuff, as we see who will be crowned king of the coast. All are welcome to come and enjoy what is sure to be an exciting event!