Dinner at Tyson's, In Santo Domingo

Curtis & John from NJ, Ernest & Jose from NYC, Raleigh from Atlanta & Ricardo, Byron & Richard; Tyson from NYC, Amauri, Tyree from NYC, Anthony, Keith from NYC, Duron "the other Mr. Lee" & Kenny and yours truly, David Lee were in attendance at a wonderful dinner hosted by Tyson in his new apartment here in SDQ. The only person sorely missed and much asked about was my Sister "Miz Vicki" who has been under the weather the entire weekend with a cold.

The affair was catered by Byron and Richard and dinner included, Caribbean potato salad, corn on the cob, oven backed chicken and arroz con gandules(Dominican rice and peas), 3 different kinds of cake and the wine and mixed cocktails were flowing.

Located only a block from the Malecon, Tyson's 2nd floor apartment is more like a tropical jungle, as you ascend the narrow steps up to what was once the roof of a 1 story house, where now there exists an exterior patio followed by a covered indoor/outdoor patio garden, then followed by a two bedroom apartment, which has been beautifully furnished by Tyson.

Anthony was kind enough to pick me up and Raleigh, Tyree and I were some of the first to arrive. As guests arrived, one after the other, I was more and more pleasantly surprised to see so many of my good friends from the Sports Bar days.

The entire event was a wonderful end to the Labor Day holiday, which many had celebrated here in Santo Domingo, from the daily excursions on the Conde to the several nights at JD's, which was culminated by Sunday's "Monaga Presents" Labor Day Party. The entire Labor Day weekend was a wonderful time in Santo Domingo.

Until Next Time

I'll see you in Santo Domingo......

Monaga Presents

This Sunday
September 2, 2007
Monaga Presents
A Festive
Labor Day Celebration
At
Jay Dee's Disco Bar
#10 calle Jose Reyes
Colonial Zone
Entrance Fee: 100 pesos
Doors Open at 7:00 PM

Featuring
Exotic Dancers Show
and
Drink Specials from 7-10pm
2 for 1 Cuba Libres
& Bacardi Coconut Rum cocktails
100 pesos
Make it a Date
I'll see you at the party.....

A Holiday in the DR

As my friend Melvin from NYC wrote me an e-mail yesterday and said "wow, you've posted two days in a row!!", well Melvin, hold on, because here is day 3 in a row.

Good morning all, it is a beautiful Monday morning in paradise, a holiday for the DR, although many stores will be open today. Restoration Day is the holiday and here is what the history books say:
"In the Restoration War of 1864, thousands of poorly armed Dominican residents battled Spanish soldiers that had been sent to Hispaniola to dominate them. The Dominicans put up such a fight that in 1865 the queen of Spain signed a decree withdrawing her soldiers from the island. Since this date, the Dominican Republic has been a fully independent country. (Restauracion is a common street name throughout the DR and there are a number of monuments to the war, including a prominent one in Santiago.)


So as I said, it is just another beautiful day in paradise, where life is slow, the weather is warm, the sky's are blue and the seas are too.

Until next time.

I'll see you in Santo Domingo....

Hurricane Update

Well it is now Sunday morning and there has been a little more rain coming thru in bands about every 45 minutes. So I guess we are catching the tail end of Dean as he heads for a direct encounter with the island of Jamaica.

I also failed to mention that my friends Richard and John are here and between Miz Vicki and myself, these guys are being well feed. When "baby sis" arrived at 11:30pm on Friday night, (we thought the hurricane was going to hit us in the wee hours of the morning), she came in with pots of stuff!!!! We had a wonderful chicken & veggie soup for lunch yesterday and I'm the breakfast cook, yesterday I fixed, eggs, pan toast, yucca and sausage. Today for breakfast we are having fried salami, eggs, pan toast and your choice of fresh fruit or frosted flakes. THEY'RE GREAT!!!!! Dinner is a toss up, maybe chicken with sides of green beans and corn on the cob. Yummmmmm

OK, enough about food, I'm getting hungry and folks are still asleep, as "THEY" went out to JD's last night for the post hurricane party, I stayed home and caught up on my beauty rest. I know, I know, if that be the case, I need to sleep for a thousand years to find that beauty rest. Yea right. LOL.

As I said in my previous post, Dean was pretty much a dud, but that is ok, as I've had a wonderful time spent with wonderful family and friends.

Until next time.

I'll see you in Santo Domingo.....

Hurricane "WHO"???

Well for us here in the Santo Domingo area, Hurricane Dean was a DUD!!!! We got a few minutes of rain, lots of clouds, some breezes and cool temperatures. Being the first hurricane of the season, we got all excited and went to the supermarket and bought a ton of food and candles and even a couple of hurricane oil lamps. OK, this time it was no big deal and next time we will be ready. Overall, the day has been one of the most pleasant this summer, like I said, low temps (mid 70's), soft breeze, sprinkles of rain, but we spent most of the day out on my balcony. My sister Miz. Vicki came over to stay with me for the hurricane, as her apartment is only 2 blocks from the ocean and she wanted to be a little more secure from the impending winds and storm. Well.....she and I spent wonderful time together and without the storms.

So....Thank You to all who called and e-mailed your concern for us ex-pats here in Santo Domingo, we are doing fine, so much so, that we are headed out to the clubs tonight to celebrate with a post hurricane party.

Until next time

I'll see you in Santo Domingo....

Dengue Fever

Craig Poole, MSN, RN, sent me the following information.
Thank you Craig, I'm sure this will prove to be very useful to many.


Dengue Fever
by
Alan Spira, M.D., DTM&H

Somewhere in Tanzania, maybe it was in Uganda, a lucky mosquito found its prey, zoomed in on its target and stole some blood from an unlucky human. This bite began innocently enough - happening during the day, not causing much of an itch - but several days later it lost all pretense of innocence. Lethargy, an unusual amount of tiredness, was the first sign that something was going awry. It was soon followed by a headache behind the eyes that throbbed and pounded, with a sensation of pressure like a kettle brewing and boiling. A fever, mild at first, but later intense with sweating, came bundled with ferocious muscle aches. These aches were rooted deep in the calves and back, and felt like being punched from the inside-out. The once-dinner-for-a-stray mosquito became apathetic and lost all appetite. What on earth could this be? Malaria? Typhoid? What, what, what?

A funny pink rash showed up soon after. It didn't itch, it didn't bleed, it didn't hurt. It just spread - over the chest, belly, and back. It, along with the fever, lightened after two days but just two days later returned with even greater dramatic force. Ah, I think we have enough clues and a diagnosis now...

Dengue Fever (pronounced 'Dhen Gey') is a viral infection common throughout the tropical regions of the world. It is spread by the day-biting Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, and the poor sap above happens to be yours truly. Epidemics occur roughly every three to five years, and a worldwide pandemic is happening now. Among the areas most affected recently are India, Viet Nam and the Caribbean. Cases happen in Mexico often, and even in South Texas. This virus has four flavors, called serotypes, which are creatively named 1,2,3 and 4. Getting infected with one serotype does not protect you against the other serotypes; in fact, getting a second dengue infection, particularly with type 2, leads to an even worse infection. This manifests as either Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever or Dengue Shock Syndrome, which can be fatal. These are particularly dangerous in children, who suffer the most and who are at the greatest risk of dying from dengue. Still, most cases of dengue are benign (not-serious), ending after approximately 7 days.

Dengue has a short incubation period - often days, usually less than a week. The signs and symptoms of dengue include a sudden, rapidly climbing fever, a severe headache, nausea & vomiting, loss of appetite, rash and deep muscle and joint pains. The disease is nicknamed 'breakbone fever' for these last two symptoms. The rash usually shows up 3-4 days after the start of the symptoms and begins on the torso, spreading out to the face, arms and legs.

There can be a few days respite but the fever and rash often recur, and this is known as the 'saddleback pattern'. With Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever the blood cells are crippled and bleeding develops - in the gums, the skin, the intestinal tract. With the shock syndrome the blood vessels don't work quite right, and the blood pressure drops precipitously; as a result the blood fails to meet the metabolic demands of the cells in the body - which is the definition of shock.

Well then, what can we do about it? There is no vaccine and there is no cure, so if one contracts dengue, the treatment is 'supportive' - which means rest, plenty (and I mean plenty) of fluids, acetaminophen (Tylenol), and hospitalization if the hemorrhagic fever or shock forms develop.

This leaves us with prevention, the most sensible option (well, really the only option). To prevent contracting this nasty little virus, let's learn a little more about its flying harbinger of ill. The Aedes mosquito likes to bite in the morning and afternoons, often indoors or in the shade. The mosquito, Aedes species, is a day biter; so during daylight hours, in areas where mosquitoes are present, protect yourself by properly using anti-mosquito measures. These include wearing repellents, such as DEET (20-30% is safe and effective) and spraying clothing with permethrin (spraying mosquito nets and tents is important, too). Alternatives include Neem oil from India, which can be drunk as a tea or worn as a lotion. Avon's Skin-So-Soft is good, but wears off too quickly to be practical. Mosquito coils do work; Vitamin B and garlic, I am sorry to report, do not work. Wearing clothing is usually a good idea, especially long sleeves, long pants or skirts. To keep from over-heating and from aggressive mosquito punctures one should wear loose-fitting clothes.

Most cases happen in urban areas, and usually at altitudes less than 4,500 feet. Aedes mosquitoes like to breed in standing water such as may be found in empty tires, flower pots, artificial ponds, etc., especially after rains. These are quite common in tropical urban areas, even around hotels. The local authorities may try to eradicate the mosquito population with spraying but these pesky aviators just keep coming back for more. Protect yourself!

Should you travel to an area where dengue is possible? Absolutely. Just remember to pack common sense with you, and protect yourself against mosquito bites. While there is no guarantee against contracting it, the odds are definitely in your favor of escaping unharmed.


The mainstay of treatment is supportive therapy. Increased oral fluid intake is recommended to prevent dehydration. If the patient is unable to maintain oral intake, supplementation with intravenous fluids may be necessary to prevent dehydration and significant hemoconcentration. A platelet transfusion is rarely indicated if the platelet level drops significantly (below 20,000) or if there is significant bleeding.

The presence of melena (blood in stool, usually indicated by dark stool color) may indicate internal gastrointestinal bleeding requiring platelet and/or red blood cell transfusion.

It is very important to avoid Aspirin and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications. These drugs are often used to treat pain and fever, but in this case, they may actually aggravate the bleeding tendency associated with some of these infections. If dengue is suspected, patients should receive instead acetaminophen preparations to deal with these symptoms

Prevention is the best thing, use of mosquito repellents a must.


History:

Fever
Abrupt onset, rising to 39.5-41.4°C
Accompanied by frontal or retro-orbital headache
Lasts 1-7 days, then defervesces for 1-2 days
Biphasic, recurring with second rash but not as high
Rash
Initial rash transient, generalized, macular, and blanching; occurs in first 1-2 days of fever
Second rash occurring within 1-2 days of defervescence, lasting 1-5 days
Second rash morbilliform, maculopapular, sparing palms and soles
Occasionally desquamates
Bone pain
Absent in DHF/DSS
After onset of fever
Increases in severity
Not associated with fractures
May last several weeks
Most common in legs, joints, and lumbar spine
Miscellaneous symptoms
Nausea and vomiting
Cutaneous hyperesthesia
Taste aberrations
Anorexia
Abdominal pain (severe in DHF/DSS)
Physical:

Fever
Signs of intravascular volume depletion
Hypotension with narrowed pulse pressure (see Picture 1)
Delayed capillary refill (see Picture 2)
Hemorrhagic manifestations
Positive tourniquet test
Petechiae, purpura, epistaxis, gum bleeding, GI bleeding, menorrhagia
Rash
Hepatomegaly (inconsistent)
Generalized lymphadenopathy
Causes:

Dengue virus types 1-4
Aedes aegypti mosquito vector
Human-mosquito-human cycle
Found in tropical regions, especially Southeast Asia

The Passing of Our Friend "Cliff"

The entire "Ex-Pat" community of Santo Domingo
Extend their heartfelt Sympathy to the Family of Cliff
Who passed away suddenly last week here in Santo Domingo
Cliff was a great supporter of all activities and clubs
Here in Santo Domingo
During his time in SDQ he contributed to many good causes
A resident of Santo Domingo for the past year,
Cliff is from NYC and Canada
His wide smile and good nature
Will be sorely missed.
God Bless You Cliff