Miches

Miches began in the 19th century as a fishing camp. Fishermen from Santa Cruz de Hicayagua, the old name of El Seibo, built temporary shelters on this stretch of Samaná Bay, and over time the camps grew into farming and cattle-raising communities. Settlers from nearby Bayaguana and Sabana de la Mar joined them, drawn by the good land. The coast was first known as Costa de los Uveros, after the sea grape trees that grew thickly along the shore, and the settlement later took the names El Primo, recognised in 1860, and then El Jovero.

In 1883 President Ulises Heureaux made it a cantonal post, and in 1908 it became a común, or municipality. In 1936, under the Trujillo dictatorship, it was renamed Miches in honour of General Eugenio Miches, who fought at the Battle of Las Carreras against Haitian forces in 1849.

With the sea to the north and the mountains to the south, the town was isolated for most of its history, and that isolation held back its economy. For a time it was also known as a departure point for illegal boat journeys to Puerto Rico. In recent years improved roads to the Punta Cana area, El Seibo and Sabana de la Mar have ended much of that isolation, and the coast has begun to attract investment in large, upmarket tourism projects.

Miches is a rural town, and its culture is that of the eastern countryside: fishing families on the bay, small farmers in the hills, and cattle ranching across the pasture between them. Life is built around the church, the colmado and the waterfront, and merengue and bachata are the background to evenings and weekends, as elsewhere in the country. Horse rides along the beaches are now offered to visitors too.

Its place on Samaná Bay ties Miches to the sea. Small boats work the bay for fish, and in recent years local people have begun to offer boat tours, lagoon trips and whale watching. The coast has lagoons, mangroves and forests, and several areas are protected as reserves.

Tourism here is new and still small in scale. Locally run cabins, restaurants and excursions have appeared, and larger resort projects are coming to the coast. The painter Olivia Peguero grew up in Miches. Visitors who greet people, dress modestly away from the beach and ask before taking photographs are generally received warmly.

At the 2022 census the municipality of Miches had about 26,400 people, and about 63 per cent of them lived in its urban areas. It remains an emerging rural community with limited access to markets, low levels of education and few jobs, in a province where, at the 2010 count, about 70 per cent of households lived in poverty.

Farming is the main work: rice, coconut and cocoa are grown, along with root crops such as yautía and ñame, and cattle graze the hills. Artisanal fishing, crafts and small businesses complete the local economy. The growth of commercial fishing and of the population has put pressure on the bay's fish stocks, and runoff from farmland has left silt on the coral reefs.

Tourism is changing this. New roads have brought visitors from the Punta Cana area, local people have opened restaurants and rented out cabins, and resort construction offers jobs that did not exist a few years ago. Days start early and slow down in the midday heat; in the evenings people gather on the waterfront, in the colmados and around the church.

Food in Miches comes from the bay and the farms around it. Fish and seafood landed by the town's boats are fried whole or stewed in a sauce and served with rice, tostones (twice-fried green plantain) and salad. Coconut grows all along the coast, and fresh coconut water and coconut sweets are everyday treats.

Everyday meals follow the Dominican pattern, and rice is among the crops grown in the fields around the town. Lunch is la bandera — white rice, red beans and stewed meat — and sancocho, a thick stew of meats and root vegetables, is made for gatherings. Yautía and ñame, both grown locally, go into stews and are boiled as sides, and mangú, mashed green plantain, is a common breakfast. Beef comes from the cattle ranches of the area.

Presidente beer and rum are drunk in the colmados and on the beach, and strong, sweet coffee is served throughout the day.