Beyond the touristy town of Punta Cana in the southeast, the country becomes a vast natural landscape of vibrant greens and blues, unmarred by large-scale tourism or commercial hotels.
Meals also usually include malum, a salad of chopped leafy greens and coconut, crispy poppadoms (a large circular piece of thin, spiced bread), dal (a type of lentil stew), coconut sambal (a spicy condiment), home-made chutney and of course, fragrant steamed rice.