Adiós Puerto Rico

I really feel like we had the perfect vacation.  We saw everything we planned on seeing, we relaxed, we had fun, we ate delicious food, we met up with more friends, we got tattoos!  I'll leave you with some fun facts!

Sizzlers still exist, apparently, and there are at least 5 in Puerto Rico!  We couldn't pass up the taking a quick pic on our way home!

Your business is not really a business unless it's called Mr. WhatYouDo.  Mr. Frappe?  Mr. Pizza?  Mr. Income Tax????  There was also a Mr. Special, we still don't know exactly what he does...

The food at Luis Munoz Airport in San Juan is delicious!  I had the best octopus of my life, even though Melissa thought it was a lizard hugging potatoes, which is all I can see in the picture now...

I love my best friend.  So much.  I miss her not living closer, but I love that we can get together for both regular visits as well as adventures!  Thanks to her hubby and baby for letting me steal her for the week!

Last, but most certainly not least, I will most definitely be traveling at least one new place every year.  This trip gave me a new perspective on life, in a very exciting way!  Life is awesome, we need to really enjoy it.  Too many people, myself included, get very worked up and upset about nothing.  The littlest annoyance becomes a huge issue and consumes our happiness.  I realized, after coming home, that little things that used to bother me are now just small bumps that are quickly passed over.  I'm going to try my darnedest to not sweat the small stuff from here on out.  Even the big stuff is over eventually, we need to remember to get over it and move forward.

I have narrowed down my life goals to 2 very simple things: all I want is to feel good and be happy.  I hope this feeling lasts forever.  So far, so good...

Rincon, the Grand Finale!

The last few days of our trip needed to be relaxing, so Rincon was our destination!  We got in after dark, and it was an adventure just to find the house!  Holy inclines on the roads!  I was so scared that the car wouldn't make it down a few, Melissa had to talk me through it, but we made it alive!  The house was BEAUTIFUL, everything we could have asked for and then some.  We were so exhausted that we just wanted food and sleep, so our host recommended a restaurant that was just down the road, maybe a half mile or so, Los Pescadores.  Oh my goodness, it was amazing.  Right on the beach, delicious food and drinks, inexpensive, and right by where we were staying.  We fell in love with the various pinchos (fish, pork or chicken skewers).

Mmmmm....pinchos......

The next day, we woke up feeling relaxed and refreshed.  First stop was to the store to get some food to cook for breakfast, then off to the beach we went.  The steps to the beach were just past the end of the driveway...

We pretty much had our own private beach!  It was gorgeous, and not a soul in sight.  We quickly learned where the higher ground was to put our stuff, and from then on, it was time to relax.

Just looking at this picture makes me feel relaxed.  You can hear my brain saying "aaahhhhhhhh....."

We thoroughly enjoyed just lounging around on the sand and in the water.  We brought snorkels and goggles, and had so much fun diving for shells.  I think some of my favorite memories from this trip were the 2 of us in the water, completely relaxed, being our stupid selves, and cracking ourselves up over and over again.  Wait!  What's that!!!  Could it be...?????????

Photo by M. Coates, I was busy defending our beach!

PTERODACTYL ATTACK!!!

The problem is real, people.  Do not go unarmed.  We didn't see any spikes in Rincon to protect ourselves.  Luckily, I found this pointy stick.  We survived unscathed...this time...

Day 2 was a big day.  We had decided weeks before to get tattoos while we were away. We both researched local artists and decided on Skin Vault in nearby Aguada.  I had messaged a bit with the artist, Julian, and felt pretty good about it.  This would be my first, so I was very nervous and obsessive with the design and such. 

I was thrilled when we got there that the shop was spotless, and that Julian was fantastic!  I couldn't have imagined my first tattoo experience going any better anywhere else in the world.  About halfway through my tattoo, he asked me how I was doing, and I replied "So far, so good!"  We all found that amusing, I realize I say that phrase so often in my life, so that's why the blog is titled as such.  So far, so good...

The tattoo was exactly what I had pictured, even better if that's possible!  The compass represents both travel and finding direction in life.  The arrow represents moving forward and that in order to more forward, sometimes you have to be pulled back first, like an arrow before it sails.  The combination of these 2 symbols is really powerful for me right now in my life, and I wanted the tattoo somewhere I could see it, so it's on my left forearm.  I absolutely love it, I thank Melissa for being there with me so I couldn't chicken out, and I thank Julian for putting this beautiful piece on my body.  

After we were both done, it was food time!  I had the best meal of my trip in the town of Rincon.  

It was skirt steak stuffed with sweet plantain mash and caramelized onions.  It was amazing.  And our waitress was the Puerto Rican version of Snooki, it was very entertaining.  We spent our night back at the apartment, sitting and reading, and packing for our trip back home.  It's amazing how relaxing that is, when both of us rarely take the time for ourselves at home.  I'm working on making it part of my daily routine, it does a body and a brain good to end the day with a good book!

Saying goodbye was rough!

El Yunque

We left San Juan, rented a car, and headed to the rainforest for the day.  El Yunque is the only tropical rain forest in the US National Forest System.

Word of caution:  If you frequently experience motion sickness, take something before you head to El Yunque.  The way it works is that you drive along a very long road with lots of twists, turns, hills, and potholes, and pull off at various parking areas to see the different areas and take the various hikes.  

My lovely partner-in-crime almost got carsick, thankfully Dramamine kicked in and we were able to continue our trek!  At the beginning when you drive in, there's a visitors center.  It's nice to stop in, but most importantly, talk to whomever is there at the front desk.  They'll explain how it works and give you a very helpful map.  We helped a few people along the way who were about to make a mistake that would cost them many miles and hours to straighten out.  Will explain later below...

The first stop was the Yohaku Tower.  After climbing almost 100 steps to the top of the tower (not too many, but all in a spiral, hello dizziness!), you have amazing views of the rainforest.  

After that, we headed to a few more different spots.  There's another tower way at the top of the rainforest, but it's a very long uphill hike there, and we were convinced we would die if we attempted it, so we gave it a pass for this trip.  Maybe one day, but that day is not in 2016....

One of my missions was to get photos of the coqui, the small singing frogs of Puerto Rico!  We didn't get any actual sightings of a real coqui, but their images abound the island!  I also got a really cute book for my school as well as a plush coqui that sings!  It really is awesome when all you hear is the call of the coqui.

We did decide to make the hike to La Mina falls.  Now, there are 2 different trails that lead there (as we were warned by the man at the visitor center).  One is steeper but more scenic, the other is an easier walk but less fancified.  Due to my knee not being happy, we opted for the one that would get me there without having my knee cap pop out of my body and quit on me.  WARNING!!!  Do not take one trail there and decide to take the other one back!  We were warned about this, because the parking areas are very far apart (not to mention far apart elevation-wise as well).  While we were at the falls, we overheard a couple talking about how they were going to just keep going up the other trail to go back.  Melissa, being awesome, stopped them and convinced them that that would be a bad idea.  

The hike felt really long, not too strenuous, but it was hot and hilly.  I was determined to make it there and go in the water.  We succeeded!!!  I really wanted to go under the actual falls for an emotional cleanse of sorts, but once I got in the water, I realized how slippery the rocks were.  I decided that I made it far enough, and didn't feel like having to be airlifted out of there because I fell on my knee.  So, here's a picture of me in the water with the falls behind me!

I consider it to be a success!!!  That rounded out our day at El Yunque.  From there, we headed to Rincon...

Relaxation and Fun!

After a very, very busy day, we were all ready for some relaxation.  We headed to Escambron Beach.

 Nothing could have made us happier than lying in the sun, relaxing with some good books.  My other friends were in San Juan, too, and staying nearby, so we all met up for a few hours at the beach. The water was beautiful, very fun for snorkeling.  We saw many beautiful fish and sea urchins.  A few days later, my friends returned there again and saw a huge barracuda!

After a few hours in the sun, we were hot and hungry, and it looked like a storm was about to blow in.  We packed up and headed out.  Of course, we got caught in the rain.  Luckily, we were by a cool building in a park that offered us shelter until the worst passed.

Soaked and starving, we made the trek back to Miramar, and stopped at Pizza e Birra Miramar for lunch.  It was scrumptious!  We then went back to our apartment to dry off and rest a bit before meeting back up with my other friends that night for dinner.

I love my friends so much!

We ended up back at La Barrachina, and the food was delicious!  I am so happy that we were all able to get together, we had so much fun together!  After dinner, we spent a while walking all around Old San Juan again, having so much fun laughing all the while!  I was sad that we only had one day with all of us together, but I think we made the most of our time and thoroughly enjoyed one anothers company.  

This was our last night in San Juan.  The next day, we were off to rent a car and journey through the rainforest...

How much can we fit into one day?

The answer: A LOT!!!  Sunday was our day to explore the forts and Old San Juan.  The weather was very hot and humid, but we were glad that the rain stayed away as this was the day we did the most walking.

Castillo San Felipe del Morro

Lucky for us, it was the last day of National Parks Week, so we didn't have to pay an entry fee to visit any of the forts.  We began the day nice and early at the Castillo San Felipe del Morro.  We must have beat all of the cruise tours and such, because we happily didn't have to deal with many other people.

 

Photo by M. Coates

Photo by M. Coates 

We were famished by the time we were done climbing up and down all of the levels at El Morro.  We were going to go to a well-known touristy restaurant for breakfast, but there was an hour wait.  I'm happy we left!  We stumbled upon The Carthage Express and had a delicious (and inexpensive!) breakfast of mallorcas (which were on my list of things to try!) and some fresh fruit.

Mallorcas are sweet, soft buns.  We had ours as a sandwich with ham, egg and cheese, dusted with powdered sugar.
Nom nom nom...

With full, happy bellies, we took off to explore Old San Juan.  The buildings are all really neat colors, with gorgeous iron work around the windows and doors.

 We walked through the vast majority of Old San Juan.  On our way down Paseo de la Princesa, we walked through a street science fair.  It was pretty cool to see different projects and experiments set up on the street for everyone to see.  Once you reach the water, you come to the monumental Raices Fountain.

The walk continues through a beautiful tree-lined area.  Fun fact!  Pelicans land in trees!  I've never seen a pelican in a tree in my entire life!  I'm still amazed about how they didn't fall over!

Webbed feet...in a tree?!?!?!?!

Then, we came upon my favorite historical aspect of Old San Juan.  Not many people know this, but Puerto Rico had a HUGE problem with pterodactyls.  There would be constant pterodactyl attacks, they would grab people right off of the street!  In order to combat these creatures, massive spikes were erected throughout the city.

These are for when the pterodactyls come to roost

I shit you not, there were HUGE spikes all over the city.  What else could they be for besides pterodactyls?  They're too big for pigeons.  Speaking of pigeons, there was this one cool park that actually had built in homes for the pigeons in the walls.

Think of all that pigeon poop!

While wandering around, we walked past a restaurant that was on my must-do list!  La Barrachina- the birthplace of the pina colada!

I was surprised for 2 reasons: 1- there weren't as many people as I thought there would be here, and 2- the pina coladas were delicious!  Nice and strong, but not too strong, and not watered down.  Hooray pina coladas!!!  Our bartender was also awesome and funny, definitely a great time to cool off a little bit before heading back out into the sun.

Our last main stop for the day was at the Castillo de San Cristobal.  By this point, I was so hot and tired, but determined!  This fort was smaller, but just as beautiful as El Morro.  

After we were done, we couldn't walk any more.  It was time for a taxi back to our apartment to cool off and relax until dinner later that evening.  One of Melissa's former colleagues has connections to a restaurant called Pamela's Caribbean Cuisine right on Ocean Park.  Everything was amazing, from the service to the drinks to the food to the location.  What a great way to end a very, very busy day!  Drinks in our hands, food in our bellies, feet in the sand...