I designed Toasty to be full of sunshine and soul in honor of the beauty and spirit of the Dominican Republic.

Included within the vibrant scenes are some hidden surprises to be found.

Toasty’s Fun Facts about the Dominican Republic:

• The country has a rich and varied landscape with white sandy beaches, modern cities, mountain ranges, lush rainforests, lakes, rivers, waterfalls, and fertile farms.

• A wide variety of food and crops are grown and produced there, including coffee and sugar cane.

• The color blue on the national flag represents liberty, the white represents salvation, and the red represents the blood of heroes.

• The capital, Santo Domingo, is a modern, vibrant city and the oldest in the Caribbean.

• El Monumento a los Héroes de la Restauración is the tallest building in the city of Santiago de los Caballeros.

• The national flower is the Bayahibe Rose (Rosa de Bayahibe), a cactus species with pink-colored petals.

• The national bird is the Palmchat (Cigua Palmera), known for building communal nests in palm trees.

• Laramar is the national gemstone of the Dominican Republic. It is exclusively mined there. Its distinctive blue color and seafoam white streaks evoke the Caribbean sea and sky.