Blogger's Paradise, part 1

Barry Stein photographing Santiago at night

I will never forget the day I got the call...well, actually it was an e-mail telling me to make a call, but that doesn't matter now. On the other end of the phone line was Barry Stein from ACigarSmoker.com telling me, "Congratulations, you were one of the bloggers chosen for this year's trip to the Dominican Republic." The way the trip would go down was something like this: La Aurora was paying for 10 or so bloggers to come down, tour the factory, see the tobacco fields and participate in a few other activities. Last year's trip apparently was pretty "standard and by-the-book" and there was no reason to think this would be anything other. Somewhere along the line we must have fallen down the rabbit hole...but I'll tell the story from the start.

IN FLIGHT

Classy rooms at Camp David Resort

After braving the insanity of Atlanta traffic, a quick trip through security, and about an hour waiting at the gate, I made it to flight 1309 to Miami. I upgraded to first class and for once had plenty of legroom, even in a window seat. About midway through the flight I looked east out my window and realized I was looking at the Atlantic Ocean, a sight I haven't seen in more than 15 years...and never from the air. I'm loving the new iPad...movies, music and typing all in a small package I can actually open up on an airplane...honestly, I could probably use this in coach. I do kind of wish I could have taken an earlier flight and be hanging out smoking with some of the others right now, but I just couldn't handle the 3 am wakeup time it would have required.

I spotted David Diaz--the Doc from Stogie Fresh--first at Miami International Airport. He was sitting against a pillar with his bags and I realized after a few seconds that he was busy recharging his iPad at the local power outlet. I plugged in my phone, which had been mostly drained by constant tweeting since leaving home, and we struck up a conversation about websites, my work (what I do that actually pays the bills), what the Doc is up to with his software and web offerings. Before long Charlie Minato from The Cigar Feed arrived and soon after that the remainder of the group showed up..they had been the for several hours already and had gone out to a local cigar shop.

The entire group together consisted of Doc, Charlie, Jerry Cruz and Brian Hewitt (both from Stogie Review), Barry Stein, Tom Ufer (Cigar Examiner), Mario (Cigar Explorer), Ben Lee (Nice Tight Ash), Jason Wood (Miami Cigar & Company) and one of Jason's customers that had won a contest.

On the right, our host for the weekend, Guillermo Leon

The leg of the journey from Miami to Santiago proved interesting...in a bad way. Not only was the group broken up into different places on the plane, but I ended up sitting next to a small child whose mother seemed at a loss to control. The girl would not sit still before the plane took off, and after the seatbelt sign went off, there were times I seriously thought about inflicting harm on her. A flying elbow may have solved the problem, but it also might have just ended up with a screaming child and an angry mother. Sometimes you just have to keep it all inside.

Flying over the Atlantic is an interesting experience. I never knew water could be so clear...absolutely beautiful.

Next stop, Santiago, Dominican Republic, a short bus trip to Camp David and maybe I'll finally get to smoke a cigar on this tropical adventure...

CAMP DAVID RANCH

Just one of the many great meals we ate in the D.R.

After a wild ride through seemingly every back street Santiago had to offer, we climbed a rough, winding mountain road to reach our lodging at Camp David Ranch. The rooms were fantastic, offering plenty of space and all the amenities you would expect in a first-rate hotel...except Internet connectivity.

Try as I might I could not get a connection in either the room or the lounge or the patio overlooking the Cibao Valley. So for the first time in many years, I was completely cut off from the world at large--my family, my business contacts, my Twitter followers (the tragedy!)--and I wasn't sure how to take it. I'll admit that it was nice in a way to be cut off a bit from the conveniences of home, but it was disconcerting, too. Those with global phones did not suffer the same fate...as long as they had the means to spring for the international roaming plans.

The Doc is about to give his thoughts on this cigar and libation pair-up!

After getting our stuff packed away (or at least thrown on the bed), we had a nice reception with Guillermo Leon on the patio, and a feast shortly afterwards. As had been promised, we had all the rum and wine we could drink and all the cigars we could smoke. What a change from the states...you can smoke while you eat...you can smoke in you're room...this is the good life.

Dinner featured beef, a traditional flatbread, and salad among other niceties. Before long we were back on the deck, 2000+ feet above the sparkling blanket of lights that is Santiago at night.

Alas, with a 8:30 breakfast and 9:30 bus ride ahead, it was time to call it a day by 1:00.

Coming tomorrow, Blogger's Paradise Part 2: The La Aurora Factory tour, Jose Blanco's tasting seminar, and Friday Night Fights...