Puerto Rico, Part 2

~Monday (September 30)

Monday morning, Ben and I got up early to work out in the hotel gym. Every time I work out in a gym, I’m reminded of how much I love the outdoors! J

After our workout, we enjoyed breakfast with the family. I splurged and ordered an everything omelet, coconut farina, watermelon, and passion fruit juice. Island food is the best!

Since Tita and our great-aunt wouldn’t be arriving at the hotel until late afternoon, we had the whole day to kill. We decided to bask in the beautiful weather (90 degrees and sunny most every day!) and enjoy the pools and beach again!

Having fun on one of the breakers at the beach. J

Photo Credit: Betsy.

Mid-afternoon, we cleaned up and got ready to welcome Tita. It was a happy reunion between all of us! She’s looking great for her age (98 years old!)

She had already eaten with our Titi L (her caregiver right now), so we visited with them during Happy Hour. At 6:30 p.m., we left for the hotel restaurant for our dinner.

This evening, I had a sampler. I ate bruschetta, chicken chicharrones, and coconut shrimp. It was all tasty!

For dessert, I had flan for the very first time (hard to believe, considering I grew up in a Puerto Rican family!) It was delicious, but I’m guessing my Abuela’s version is better. J

We went up to bed at a reasonable hour, knowing we had a long day on Tuesday . . .

~Tuesday (October 1)

We awoke bright and early this morning because we were going to Old San Juan! Our excitement was just slightly dampened by the news that the U.S. government had shut down. Because Puerto Rico is a colony of the United States, all the national parks and monuments were closed there as well. L We still went forward with our plans to go to OSJ, but we knew we wouldn’t be able to go inside the fort we wanted to visit. But at least we could see the outside and the rest of the city!

We ate an early breakfast, packed our day bags, and met our driver downstairs. He drove us over to the ferry.

We boarded and enjoyed the short ride over to the city!

Photo Credit: Betsy.

When we arrived, we started the long walk towards the fort. We began sweating pretty quickly, as it was 90 degrees out, with humidity that almost matched.

We passed by this fountain along the way, and some other tourists offered to take a picture for us. They were from the States as well, so we got to chatting about the shutdown.

Still walking along the outside wall of the city.

Photo Credit: Betsy.

 

Since we stopped along the way for pictures and to pet some of the stray cats, it took us 45 minutes to an hour to walk to the fort. We were pretty warm once we arrived, but the beauty takes your breath away. J

Castillo San Felipe del Morro.

The view looking from the fort to the city. We had fun walking around the fort, even though we couldn’t go inside. There were signs posted everywhere reminding us why the park was closed. J

We have a picture from our last trip to Puerto Rico (8 years ago) with all of us kids crammed into the watchtower. As we’ve grown, we don’t all fit anymore! (To explain Josiah’s face, the watchtowers smell *terrible* and he was a bit hot. J)

Photo Credit: Betsy.

Posing outside the citadel doors with our cousin, J.

Photo Credit: Betsy.

As we walked back to the city, we saw a news truck parked. They had been doing some filming at the fort because the city was virtually a ghost town with the government shutdown. They interviewed my Dad and he actually appeared on the 5 o’clock news!

What we had been walking towards was the sherbet stand! We bought cups of coconut, passion fruit, strawberry, and guava sherbet. It was *so* refreshing on such a hot day!

After our refreshment, we walked over to Casa Blanca (where many generations of Juan Ponce De Leon’s family have lived) to look around. It was open, but the tour guide doesn’t work on Tuesdays! So we gave ourselves a self-guided tour of this incredible mansion and its extensive gardens.

Then we headed off to find some lunch. I love the old cobblestone streets in Old San Juan!

My grandparents had wanted to take us to a restaurant they had dined at 2 years ago and loved. But unfortunately it had closed. A taxi driver recommended another restaurant, so we headed in that direction.

But as we walked, a waiter standing in front of a hole-in-the-wall restaurant convinced us to eat there. J We didn’t protest too hard, as we were ready for some air conditioning!

Inside, the restaurant was pleasantly spacious and very attractive. We enjoyed deliciously cool drinks and great Puerto Rican food! I had a chicken empanada with salad and tostones. So good!

Then they surprised my Uncle by bringing out a birthday cake! The chocolate cake was cool, moist, and refreshing and well-liked by everyone. It’s hard to go wrong with chocolate in this family!

We continued walking through the city, stopping anywhere that interested us. We did some souvenir shopping and also toured through a huge Catholic cathedral (pictured above.) This is where Juan Ponce de Leon’s remains currently reside.

Finally, we had to call it an afternoon and catch the ferry. The bus ride back to the hotel felt so good, and some of us conked out right away.

Everyone hit the shower once we arrived at the hotel. It felt so good to rid ourselves of the sweat and dust we had accumulated that day!

Then we went down for dinner. Since we had such a big lunch, we ate light for dinner. We sat in the lounge area with Tita and Titi L and ordered a few trays of appetizers.

Margherita pizza and quesadillas.

Photo Credit: Roma.

The twins with Tita.

Photo Credit: Betsy.

We hit the bed fairly early this evening, as we were exhausted. And we knew that the next day would be full of yet more sightseeing!

To be continued . . .