TAHAL had a project in the Republica Dominicana, and I rented a room in Trujillo's kept woman's home. He gave her a big house where she lived surrounded by several criadas. It was a beautiful house, built of coral-cement. The State's sources of income were the lottery and alcoholic beverages. People were deeply Catholic and friendly to Israelis. I fed on fried plantains and fish in the street.
On my last tour in New York, we lived in City Island. In the long trips on the train to Manhattan, I always talked to strangers, mostly in Spanish. Caribbean people were relaxed and friendly, but Afro-Americans were tense and "acomplejados" (neurotic). The trains were old, noisy, and jumpy. Third world class.
