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!

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...