Sugar in La Romana

Sugar is a vital part of the Dominican economy, though tourism and other activities make it no longer the dominant force it once was. The group recently spent a day in the eastern city of La Romana. As home to the largest and most modern sugar refinery in the Caribbean region, La Romana is appropriately named, meaning "scales" after the Roman weights used to weigh sugar for market.

During the six-month harvest season, sugar cane is harvested by braceros, then delivered by truck to the refinery. We watched the refining process from start to finish. Afterwards we spent a few moments on the roof of the refinery, enjoying the view of La Romana.

Did we land in a 16th century Italian village? Later in the day we drove just out of La Romana to the tourist attraction and artists' colony called "Altos de Chavon", which is also part of the history of sugar in the Dominican Republic.

The Gulf and Western corporation once owned the sugar mill in La Romana as well as vast tracts of land. They ran up a huge tax debt to the Dominican government. After years of negotiation, finally agreement was reached that Gulf and Western would make a cultural contribution to the country, resulting in the construction in the late 1970's of Altos de Chavon which conveniently complements the nearby resort complex of Casa de Campo.

It is home to one of the finest collections of Taino Indian artifacts and houses a world class school of design, which has a scholarship fund enabling young Dominican artists to attend. One of the most impressive structures in the complex is the ampitheatre, where performances by musicians such as Juan Luis Guerra (Dominican recording artist) are held. Here three Goshen students take the stage.