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| San Juan View with La Perla and El Morro in the distance |
We wake up really tired in the morning and it has almost nothing to do with the late flight that we came in. Our car rental went ok, we navigated
San Juan ok, we found the parking garage in Old San Juan relatively fast and we arrived at the hotel,
Hotel Milano, at about 1AM ready to go to sleep. So why didn't we sleep well at night? Well - it was Saturday night and it is party time in San Juan. Even as we walk to the hotel with our luggage we notice the people everywhere going to a club or just enjoying the night outside dressed for a night out. And unfortunately the hotel is close to a nightclub which is blasting loud music all through the night which keeps us awake till almost 6 AM.
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| Room at Hotel Milano | Front of Hotel Milano |
Given that we have no provisions we go out to take a look at the old city and also to find a supermarket close to our hotel room. There are lots of beautiful decorated houses and quite a few stores but all of them closed - it is Sunday after all. We find a cat also searching for food and it seems to have more luck than us. The streets are almost empty compared to the evening with everyone still sleeping or being at church. After a bit of walking we arrive at Plaza de Armas near the City Hall (Alcaldia) where we find a large supermarket, which is open, so we solve our provision problem and can go back to the hotel to eat from the newly acquired supplies.
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| Old house in San Juan | Alcaldia (City Hall) |
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| Plaza de Armas and quite a few pigeons | Cat searching intently...for something |
And then we are off to visit this Unesco Heritage City and it is quite beautiful. We pass by the
Cristobal Colon (Christopher Columbus) Statue and get to the Castillo de San Cristobal. We go first to the garita (soldier sentry post) outside the fortress that extends from the wall into the ocean, it looks scary but it was probably more boring to spend the whole day in this really small enclosure. Before entering the fortress we notice a fashion photo shoot nearby - quite interesting. We then enter the
Castillo the San Cristobal, it is a US National Park so we had our Annual Pass with us. The ranger was really surprised and said that he sees very few of them and discussed with us about the different Western US NPs that he intended to visit and work in.

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| Cristobal Colon Statue | Far away view of a garita |

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| Fashion shoot | Close up of garita |
The fortress is really interesting with quite a few exhibits and lots of visitors. We walk through the rooms where the soldiers slept and trained and then go on top to view the city from above - there are great views all around the fortress. There are also a lot of garitas that you can explore and are very popular for photos.

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| View from San Cristobal | Pyramid of cannonballs in San Cristobal |
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| Coins on a windowsill | Cruise ships in San Juan Harbor |
The castle was also used in World War II and there are a few World War II bunkers that you can visit and even climb into. After exploring the main level we went into the tunnels that were used by the soldiers to move safely from one part of the fort to another and I am sure also to escape the heat which even now seems oppressive. Beneath the fort are also the cells of the former inmates/sailors/captives who were held in the dungeons, there are haunting paintings of caravels and lots of inscriptions on the walls of the cells.
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| World War II bunker | Dungeon painting |
We then walk along the wall to the other important castle in San Juan, San Felipe del Morro Castle. The views and the houses are really interesting and we pass the
La Perla neighborhood which the guidebooks are warning us not to go into so we just glance into it from above - it looks colorful and peaceful. Suddenly the number of people starts to pick up and we arrive at an Arts and Crafts area that we visit briefly and then we enter the nearby
Museo de Las Americas. While we do not see the exhibits we are taking a look at the interior architecture - it seems like there is an event going on and there are a lot of people milling around.
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| Wall near Castillo Cristobal | La Perla |
And then it is a short walk through a nice grassy area that many people appear to use to fly kites and then we arrive at El Morro. It is both similar and different to Castillo de San Cristobal - it looks more imposing but it also seems smaller. We walk across the different floors seeing the cannons and the exhibits and taking in the views in all directions. We also try to exit directly at the bottom but after descending multiple floors we encounter a locked gate so we need to climb all those stairs again which is really exhausting.
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| Ocean at El Morro | Cannon placements on El Morro's wall |
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| Cannons in a storage room | Impressive fortifications |
After exiting to fortress we watch a live cannon exercise they are doing on the lawn and it almost seems like they are shooting at the cruise ship that is entering the harbor.
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| Reenactment of cannon shootings near El Morro | Hope they are not shooting in this direction |
Then our tour of the city continues toward the coast hiking trail which is just outside the city walls however it is hot and humid so we put in a token effort and then run back to the shade of the city. We continue through the now quiet streets to
Casa Blanca which is the former residence of
Juan Ponce de León of the Fountain of Youth legend and his descendants and is now a museum. Unfortunately it is closing so we just wander through the grounds and then move towards the
Fortaleza which is the official residence of the Governor of Puerto Rico. The narrow quiet streets are really picturesque so we take quite a few pictures as we wander through the city. Most streets in the city are still paved with cobblestones which look great but I am sure are difficult to maintain and make for a bit more difficult walking.
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| Walking trail near city wall | Quiet street |
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| La Fortaleza in the distance | Cobblestone pavement |
Before we turn towards the hotel we visit the
Parque de Las Palomas which for us was simply the Pigeon Park. It has nice houses for the pigeons and also there are lots of people feeding them so of course there are a lot of pigeons most of which are really tame. There are also a few interesting sculptures and we also find a few huge caterpillars that are milling about which we watch for some time. Then as we go back towards the hotel we pass the slimmest building in San Juan, La Casa Estrecha (The Narrow House), and we have to take a picture of it and then we also visit different curio shops including an interesting shop that is dedicated to different forms of art created using
butterflies.
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| Pigeon housing | Slimmest house in San Juan |
We get to the hotel really tired and we go to sleep relatively fast to catch up on the lost sleep before leaving towards the east of the island.
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| View from Ceiba Inn |
Our plan for today is relatively easy and should help us avoid the need to search for dinner. We are supposed to drive eastwards mostly following the coast then to check in early afternoon in our motel to leave all luggage and then drive to the Puerto del Rey marina and take a boat tour with
East Island Excursions to the nearby Vieques island to see the
bioluminescent bay. The tour is supposed to also include besides the passage from the main island to Vieques and the bioluminescent bay tour a dinner at a restaurant in Vieques. We have booked the tour far in advance and confirmed that it will have enough people so it won't be cancelled.
As a result we leave the hotel relatively early after a short breakfast from our provisions and carry our luggage back to the nearby parking lot. At first we are not sure how exactly to pay for the parking but in the end figure it out - pay the parking attendant then run/use the elevator to the car and make sure that in the 10 minutes allocated you actually make it with the car to the exit. We do it fast enough and then it's a matter of navigating San Juan towards the highway that is leading eastward. On the way however we stop near the
Laguna del Condado and take a short hiking trail to view birds in the lagoon, unfortunately there are very few but there are quite a few good sized lizards and interesting vegetation. Also we like the view of the water with the "skyscrapers" in the background.
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| Laguna del Condado with San Juan skyline | Spot the lizard |
After we leave San Juan the traffic eases and we can enjoy the views more as we drive towards
Luquillo where we plan to eat lunch at one of the well known kiosks close to the highways. The weather is cloudy however no rain yet when we arrive in Luquillo so we walk around searching for the most interesting offer. Many of the kiosks are closed but still we find one that has a few interesting things on offer, such as alcapurrias (fritters typically made from green plantain and filled with meat) and arepas (deep fried fritters of cornmeal mixed with mashed yuca root stuffed with a roster of fillings including beef, chicken or shrimp), and take a sampling of them. Everything here is fried so it is difficult to distinguish between the different foods but they are good and eating inside the kiosk with a few locals is also a interesting experience. As we exit we notice a bird that is actually waiting on our car for food and is not happy when we have to shoo him away. We then try to access the beach in the back of the kiosks, unfortunately there is a lot of trash there so we decide to leave the beach for later.
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| Luquillo kiosks | Testing the food |
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| Visitor on our car | Behind the kiosks and close to the beach |
We move on and decide to try a different beach close to the NE tip of Puerto Rico and close to the
Reserva Natural de Las Cabezas de San Juan. The road is becoming more narrow the closer we get and also curvy so we slow down to ensure we have time to react if somebody is coming at speed from the other direction. We arrive at the official beach but unfortunately it is closed so we go further and notice a few cars parked close to the road and we assume that it likely is another spot to access the ocean. We walk to the beach and take a few pictures but we do not get far as suddenly it starts to rain hard - we run to the car with all the other families on the beach but even though it is a short distance we arrive drenched at the car.
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| Clouds above ocean right before rain | Path near the ocean |
It is already early afternoon so we drive towards our hotel, the
Ceiba Country Inn, so we can check in change in dry clothes and go on the boat tour. The road to the inn is narrow and picturesques as we ascend in altitude through the rainforest. We find the inn easily, it has great views and a very friendly dog and few cats. We like the inside painting of a flower on the wall and also the fact that we have a hammock outside to relax. Before leaving for the docks we decide to call to ensure everything is fine and are surprised when they tell us that the tour has been cancelled due to rough weather - we decide to try for the next day but now we are without food quite far from civilization and the inn doesn't have a restaurant.
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| Entrance to Ceiba Inn | Painted wall inside the room |
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| Front of the room | Hammock - really tempting |
In the end we decide to drive towards Humacao,a nearby city, that we hope also has some stores where we can buy some provisions. After about 1h drive we get to the city and find that it has a supermarket where we buy provisions and a shopping mall where we buy some food from the food court. Before driving back we explore the area further and find an interesting park dedicated to a local cacique (head of the Tainos/Native Americans) named
Jumacao who fought against the Spanish after trying to negotiate with them. The park is quiet and has nice flowers and some sculptures but after a few pictures it starts to rain again so we return to the car and to the inn for the night. With the rain ending there is a chorus of frogs outside and we feel like in a jungle as we go to sleep.
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| Jumacao monument | Flowers near the monument |
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| El Yunque Rainforest and trail |
Compared to the previous accomodation the inn offers breakfast in the morning so we eat the different fruits/cereals on offer and wonder at the different things inside the dining room including a huge turtle shell. The breakfast includes a variety of fruits fresh from the property like small bananas, mangos, kiwis and guavas as well as fresh made banana bread. Outside we play with the "official" pets especially a very tame cat and a dog that were waiting at the entrance of the inn. After packing and loading the car we call the Bioluminescent Bay tour again to find out whether they are going out today and the answer is no - as a result if we want to visit a bioluminescent bay during this trip we have to go to a different bay as we are leaving the area and drive west along the coast for the day towards Hatillo with a sidetrip to
El Yunque, a protected tropical rainforest.
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| Breakfast at Ceiba Inn | Friendly dog and cat |
Our trip towards El Yunque starts close to Luquillo, and the side road immediately starts going up and it is narrow and busy. The vegetation also starts to change and not after long we enter the tropical rainforest. Unfortunately it is cloudy and misty and we cannot see a lot further than the highway. We hope at least that it will not rain as it gets cooler the higher we go. Finally we enter the park and almost immediately we stop to take a look at the La Coca waterfall close to the road. It looks nice but we cannot understand where all the tourists are coming from as there are just 2 other cars in the parking lot until we notice another larger parking lot after the waterfall with a couple tour buses.
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| First view of the rainforest | La Coca Falls |
As we continue driving up the traffic starts to subside as the road actually dead ends at a rockslide further up in the mountains. Our destination is the end of the road where the
hiking trails towards El Yunque Peak start. The parking lot is a bit hidden but we find it ok and after ensuring we have multiple ways to fight the rain we start on the Mt Britton trail. To our surprise the trail is paved as it climbs towards the El Yunque peak but we understand relatively fast that it is a must as else it would be really a mud track given that everything is wet and there are puddles everywhere. But at least it does not rain. and we make good time through the forest. The one thing that really is different from our expectations is the quiet. Always in the movies you hear lots of sounds in the tropical rainforests but here the silence is deafening. We barely meet any people until the trail exits at a service road that climbs towards El Yunque Peak. After about five minutes on the road we make a short detour to Mt. Britton Tower - we feel almost transported to the medieval era when we see this tower appear from the forest and fog and we look around to make sure no knights are appearing from behind the tower. We climb to the top of the tower but we cannot see a lot as even the close-by trees are barely visible.
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| Mt Britton tower in fog | Foggy view from top of tower |
We continue on towards El Yunque Peak while keeping an eye on the sides of the road trying to find the Roca El Yunque trail. We pass a few radio/phone towers one even with an SUV with workers in front of it but no trail. Finally we turn around and ask the workers and they direct us to the trail which is behind the tower and past the truck - we would never have found it as we wouldn't have thought that we have to cross the radio tower yard to get to the trail. The trail is short and the rock looks interesting, you can guess that the view would be impressive if you could see anything besides the fog. At least we see a few nice red flowers (bromeliads that we have previously only seen in flower shops) and interesting root formations and in general the rainforest is impressive and spooky in the fog.
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| Impressive roots | Parasitic flowers |
Returning to the paved service road we finally arrive at the El Yunque tower that we climb dutifully to peer into the fog with no more luck than at previous viewpoints. This time however it starts to rain seriously so we go inside and try to wait it out with no luck as the rain continues uninterupted. In the end we open our umbrellas and go outside and make the decision to try the El Yunque trail back that might be faster. This trail is not paved and as we descend we suddenly start walking in a small river, after a few minutes we are drenched again. The umbrella is no help so we put our rain ponchos and now look like two yellow/green aliens walking through the rain. As we descend there is no one around and it continues raining as the trail also becomes muddy. However we descended to much to actually return back to the top so we continue down. And then we meet 2 people coming up the trail in the middle of the rainforest while raining with no rain gear and who are not wet at all as far as we can tell. At least that keeps us busy on the reminder of the way down as we try to guess what or who they were (best guess: real aliens :)). Finally we get back to the service road and then on paved trails back to the car. As we start driving down the rain stops - it was really localized to El Yunque with no rain at the lower elevations. Therefore after changing into drier clothes we stop at a street kiosk on the way down to buy more fried foods similar to the ones in Luquillo and we also see the only "wildlife" in El Yunque - a few chickens crossing the road.
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| Trail or creek? | Why did the chicken cross the road? |
It is getting dark outside so we drive without stopping towards Hatillo, our stop for the night. But first we have to pass through San Juan and given the changes in highway exits and the rush hour that takes quite some time as sometimes we could have walked faster than our car was going. We almost felt like in Los Angeles if we wouldn't have the weird experience of the police cars always driving with the lights on. Initially it is really scary but then we notice that they are always driving with the lights on not only when they intend to stop someone so we continue bravely even after one actually gets behind us (supposedly the official reason for the "always lights on" policy is that this way criminals know that police is in the area and they behave). After passing San Juan the going is faster and we arrive at Hatillo where we stay at the
Parador El Buen Cafe (the definition of a parador in Puerto Rico is a local owned accomodation, typically small or one-of-a-kind frequented by guests looking to enjoy the local customs and charm). While it is neither that small or one of a kind it offers a large room which is all we need as we need to dry a lot of our stuff. After eating a dinner from the provisions we bought a day prior we prepare for the next day and then fall asleep.
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| Front of Parador El Buen Cafe hotel with nearby cafe | Inside of room |
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| Christmas spirit in November | View of the cafe from the window |
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| Light hole in Camuy Cave |
Today we decide to start the day by eating breakfast at the nearby cafe, El Buen Cafe, which is right across the street from the parador and seems to be very popular with the locals. After sitting down it takes a bit to get understood as the waitress is speaking only Spanish but with the help of a couple at a nearby table we make ourselves understood and the food is quite good.
After breakfast we check out and head inland towards Arecibo Observatory. As soon as we leave the main road the roads become narrower and twisty and there is more nature around us compared to the coast where it is almost town after town. The only animals that we see though are a few cows on a nearby field.
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| Businesses in Hatillo | Cows near mountain road to Arecibo |
The dish at
Arecibo Observatory, our first goal for the day, is well known from multiple movies like GoldenEye and Contact and Sci Fi books but we are interested in it also from a scientific viewpoint. After arriving at the parking lot there is a short but steep climb to the visitor center and the viewpoint for the dish. The museum at the visitor center is quite interesting and after looking at the different exhibits we step outside for the view of the dish. It is huge and impressive even though it has a greyer color than we expected due to the regular rain showers. Another interesting tidbit that we learn is that special shoes are needed when entering the dish to clean and repair in order not to damage dish.
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| Arecibo description | Arecibo view |
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| Equipment and tower at Arecibo | Special shoe for working on the dish |
After leaving the Arecibo area we drive to
Rio Camuy Caves Park one of the major attractions in Puerto Rico. There are lots of locals and a few tourists from Europe so after standing in line for tickets for 3/4h we are happy that our timed ticket is in only 1/2hr. The tour starts with a train ride from the visitor center almost to the bottom of the sink hole from where we hike to the cave entrance. The vegetation is luscious but it is difficult to enjoy it given that you have to follow the guide closely to hear any comments she might be making. Luckily we were also provided with a recording with headphones that we use quite often to supplement what we hear from the guide.
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| Camuy Cave trail | Entrance to the cave |
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| Tour group | View of the entrance from inside the cave |
The trail goes around a cave with multiple light holes and even a viewpoint of a river far beneath the cave. Another highlight is a section where we see a few bats. After returning while waiting for the car we see a fenced area in which it almost looks like someone is intentionally cultivating mushrooms. Overall the whole tour takes about 1.5 hours and at the end we are beat so we decide to eat lunch near the car in the parking lot (like a lot of Puerto Rican families also seem to be doing).
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| Light hole view from cave | Cave trail to bat area |
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| Raining through the light hole | Culture of mushrooms |
After the cave we want to make one more stop in a mountain park,
Bosque Estatal De Guajataca, but unfortunately the road is closed due to repairs so we drive through to our next accomodation
El Combate Beach Resort. The room is quite comfy and after settling in we exit to eat dinner at the nearby restaurant Annie's Place where we order a typical Puerto Rican dish the mofongo. It is quite an interesting concoction with meat stuffed in a plantain and it is good but in the end we are chased by the mosquitoes back to our room to rest for the night.
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| Combate Beach Resort Room | Mofongo at Annie's Place |
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| Cabo Rojo cliffs |
Our schedule for today was mostly a rest day with some sampling of the nearby beaches. However due to the fact that we missed on the bioluminescent tour at the beginning of the trip we decide to change our plan and go in the evening to a tour in a nearby bioluminescent bay in
La Parguera.
But first things first ...we have to eat breakfast and the buffet is good especially as it seems like we are the only people in the hotel. It is also the only place where the Wifi connection works for us so we use the time in the restaurant area to catch up on news and emails.
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| Combate Beach Resort | Breakfast at Combate Beach Resort |
After breakfast we dress down for the beach and take the trail from the hotel to the beach. It passes a part of the
Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge with a few lakes and quite a few trails that crisscross the area. As we explore the area we find a large frog that seems to be content to be photographed from all directions and is not in the least interested in us.
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| Trail system description | Lake near hotel |
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| Placid frog | Shallow lake |
Of course there are also birds, quite a few ducks and a few black necked stilts and a great egret but they are more shy and seem to move further away as soon as they spot us.
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| Black necked stilt | Great egret |
The Playa Combate beach is beautiful and very quiet with only one more couple on a stretch of sand that seems to extend for miles. After finding a secluded spot we relax for a couple hours before returning back to the hotel.
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| Ocean with two resting seagulls |
Quiet beach near the hotel |
The second beach that we want to visit is
Playa Sucia. The road towards it is paved initially but becomes dirt after a bit while remaining navigable till the parking lot. Before going to the beach we decide to first visit the
Los Morrillos lighthouse. It is a short climb with nice views of the beach, lighthouse and the headlands across the coast.
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| Playa Sucia from a distance | Los Morillos Lighthouse |
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| Cloudy mountains in the distance | Headland in the distance |
When we get close to the cliff's edge there are beautiful views in both directions of the coast and quite a view of rocky outcrops.
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| Beautiful cliffs near the lighthouse | Another view of the cliffs |
As we descend towards the beach we notice an iguana that ambles towards the water and then swims first to a log to rest and then continues on across the lake. It is quite interesting as we were not aware that they are able to swim such long distances.
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| Iguana resting | Iguana swimming |
Playa Sucia is quite beautiful and it is also popular with locals but it is large and it is easy to lose the crowd. To our surprise as we walk we even see coconuts on the beach like in a postcard Caribbean beach. It is quite hot and humid but the water is cold and tempting and we walk along it till the end of the beach.
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| Coconuts on Sucia beach | Sucia beach |
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| End of the beach | Looking back from the end of the beach |
Returning to the car we drive back to the hotel but on the way back stop a few times to view the preserve and the lakes. There are two lakes that are more impressive one full of dead bushes and Cabo Rojo Salt Flats with historic salt processing pans.
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| Dead bushes in the water | Cabo Rojo Salt Flats processing pan |
In the evening we drive to the nearby town of La Parguera to see if we can find a cruise to the bioluminescent bay. We shouldn't have worried as there are sellers in the parking lot already so we buy tickets for the tour and given that there still is time we go to a downtown restaurant and eat again mofongo as well as empanadas and flan.
The tour is unexpectedly like a carnival cruise with very loud music and lots of locals, likely we are the only tourists on the boat. It takes about 1/2h to get to the bio bay and while initially we pass quite a few brightly decorated houses in the bay there is no light that can impact the viewing. The boat has 4 viewing glasses at the bottom and you can see the light created by the microrganisms as the boat slowly passes through them. It is however faint which as what we expected as this is the least luminous of the three bio bays in Puerto Rico. And then after 1/4h in the bay the ship returns to the harbor and we return to the hotel where we crash after the long and interesting day.
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| Bioluminescent bay tour boat | Decorated house at night |
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| Parque de Bombas in Ponce - possibly the most colorful firehouse ever |
Today is our last day in the Puerto Rico countryside as we drive back to San Juan completing our tour of the island.
We start by driving the
extraterrestrial highway which we don't know much about but is quite interesting after we do a bit more research about it as we find out that there is an intention to build an UFO landing site nearby as there are a lot of UFO sightings. Another interesting sight while driving to our next point of interest is a house in boat form..or is it a boat that has become a house?!
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| Extraterrestrial highway - Puerto Rico style | Houseboat - more or less |
The first stop for the day is at
Guanica Dry Forest which is actually quite green and probably dry just in comparison to the nearby rainforests. We park however to our surprise a ranger starts to shout at us that we parked wrong and should park differently even though we are the only car in the parking lot and there are no lines to tell you how you should park. At least this way we can ask for a map which is a precious commodity as later the ranger disappears and there is no other way to get a map. The trails are mostly old roads and the markings at the intersections are hit and miss but we get to our goal - a viewpoint of the valley below.
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| Entrance to Guanica Dry Forest | View of the forest from above |
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| Guanica trail | Viewpoint view |
There are a few birds that we see but what we hear most and feel are the mosquitoes which convince us to keep the pace throughout our hike. The plant life is quite diverse also with cacti, parasite plants and lianas seemingly everywhere. It is also quite hot also (south side of Puerto Rico is hotter and drier) so we are happy that we have enough water with us for the hike.
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| Embedded cacti | Forest growth |
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| Parasite plant | Lianas |
The next attraction that we intend to visit is the
Tibes Indian Ceremonial Park which houses one of the major archeological discoveries made in the Carribean. It is quite difficult to get to it though as we have to pass through the nearby city of Ponce which has lots of one way streets in its downtown area. And when we arrive to our disappointment it is closed even though it was supposed to be open as it is the Friday after Thanksgiving. So after walking along the fence to see if there isn't anything visible from the outside we return to Ponce to visit its downtown area.
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| Tibes Indian Ceremonial Park - it is supposed to be open.. | ....but is not |
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| Lizards can at least enter | Curious dog |
We already know how difficult the driving is in downtown
Ponce so we settle on a parking spot in the central square without looking for something cheaper on the side streets. The central area is interesting with quite a lot of old well maintained buildings including the
Parque de Bombas fire station which is the major attraction in Ponce. We also take the time to visit a few of the tourists shops to buy some souvenirs.
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| Downtown building in Ponce | Parque de Bombas iconic building |
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| Central hotel in Ponce | Street vendors |
The other major downtown attraction that we visit before returning to our car is the
Ponce cathedral whose history starts in 1670 and is quite large and impressive.
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| Another colorful building downtown | Ponce cathedral |
After leaving Ponce we are famished but luckily our last stop for the day a
lechoneria near Cayey should cure that. After staying in line for a short while we hit a problem as the girl behind the counter does not speak English but with help from a lot of people behind us in the line who give us advice we come out with a lot of varied food made from different pig parts. It is actually enough both for dinner and the next day lunch and dinner.
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| Lots of food at the lechoneria | Mix of pork meat from the lechoneria |
We arrive at the
Hampton Inn relatively late and while it looks nice from the outside it is under construction inside with a lot of work and hammering going on. Our room is far from the noise though and looks nice until we notice the termites in the bathroom. In the end we are too tired to care and fall asleep relatively fast.
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| Hampton Inn Isla Verde | Room at Hampton Inn |
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| Desk inside room | Flower arrangement |
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| Isla Verde Beach |
We have almost a full day left in Puerto Rico before our plane leaves toward the mainland in the evening and we decide to spend it by checking the close by Isla Verde beach and the nearby boutiques. On the way to the beach we have to stop though as we notice two rock doves enjoying the water and bathing...they are really funny.
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| Pigeon as water birds | Pigeons grooming |
The beach is quite large and it has more people than the other beaches we have seen in Puerto Rico. But of course it is Saturday and we are near San Juan so it is understandable. After a few minutes on the beach it is getting hot so we decide to visit the nearby air conditioned shops and boutiques. There are quite a few high rises and most of them are either apartments or condos for sales and rent.
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| High rise apartment buildings near the beach | Lonely condo complex |
We also find a quiet neighborhood park where we take a short walk and notice quite a few mushrooms and huge lizards...not sure if there was a relationship between these two facts. This is also a good spot to view the airplanes leaving the airport which we do for a while before retreating again to a nearby shopping complex to do some window shopping.
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| Mushrooms in the park | Airplane leaving the nearby airport |
As it gets late we take our rental car back to the airport and after passing through security still have time to look at a few airport shops before boarding the plane for the flight back to mainland.
Overall Puerto Rico was more than we expected with quite a bit of variety in a small area and even though we spent a week on the island it feels that we barely scratched the surface of things to see and do. We haven't gone to a coffee plantation, we haven't done any snorkeling, we haven't kayaked in the bioluminescent Fajardo Bay and we haven't visited the inland mountains enough - just to list a few of the things that we missed and intend to do when we will return.
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