One can find the most intriguing treasures on the streets of La Romana, Santo Domingo and in fact every town or village in the entire of the Dominican Republic, whether it’s some kind of mystical transport solution, or in this case something interesting for sale.
This week’s ‘Only in the Dominican Republic’ photo was sent to us by Ivonna Sosa, one of our favorite members of the Casa de Campo community and was taken on the main road of La Romana – just a five minute drive outside of Casa de Campo.
In the picture we can see the man is trying to sell what looks like and what I am sure he would have us believe is a phonograph from the year 1904 at the bargain price of RD$7,000, which is about US$180. It is undeniably a beautiful piece, but is not exactly the kind of thing you would expect to see being sold on the side of the road in La Romana. In fact it is such an odd thing to see for sale on the side of the road there is even the possibility that it is real – after all he may have just found it or maybe even inherited it.
I however believe it to be a 100% genuine replica! Why? Well I have a few reasons:
1. I saw a man trying to sell the exact same piece about a year ago in the same place in La Romana – believe me I remember because we stopped, had a good look at it and were rather tempted to buy it!
2. I just went on Ebay and searched for phonographs – all similar pieces are being sold for about US$850
3. My head just keeps asking me ‘Really? Really?’
To be honest, replica or not, I’m still tempted to buy it – although I’m sure by now it has already been sold and the man has disappeared off into obscurity and is possibly even creating another replica as we speak. It may not be the best business plan, but you have to admire the innovation – its refreshing to see more than just phone chargers and cashews nuts being sold on the side of the road.
We want your photos and/or stories! If you have any photos of classic DR scenes or even bizarre photos or stories, we would love to hear from you!
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