november 18, 2008
my great big fat puerto rican week
after a+r's wedding in isabela, i picked up a rental car from the enterprise at the aguadilla airport and drove out to san juan to pick up my friends. for our own reasons, we ended up having to visit three different enterprises (the aguadilla, fajardo, and ponce locations). everyone was extremely friendly and helpful, it was super pleasant and surprising, so i'd definitely look into renting with enterprise again.
having a car to tour puerto rico with is the most fantastic thing, as the island itself is relatively small. apparently you can drive round the whole of the island in about four or five hours. if you do plan on driving puerto rico, be sure to bring a gps unit, as much of puerto rico's streets lack signs. as it was, our gps unit saved us from what would've been countless hours of torture and confusion.
all in all, we went to the el yunque forests, from the tops of which you can see much of puerto rico's tropical lushness sprawled out before you; drove down to fajardo and kayak'd its bioluminescent bay (sadly, no more swimming allowed in the bio bay); passed through utuado on our way down to ponce, home to don q's rum distillery; trekked up narrow mountain paths to the arecibo observatory, then shot on over to the camuy caves (sadly closed for renovation, but we did get to see the sinkholes); and finally landed ourselves in old san juan, which is magnificent with its gorgeous architecture and seaside vistas. old san juan is much like the manhattan of puerto rico, popular and alive, with an unbelievable amount of traffic trying to jam through its narrow streets.
the worst part of puerto rico was being a vegetarian trying to find a decent meal. beware, and make your vegetarian-ness known, as even the beans will likely contain pork or ham. alas, if i were ever to revisit puerto rico, i would definitely not be going for the cuisine. though being a new yorker, i admit to being spoiled by a great diversity of amazing culinary options out here.
additional photography by ltp.
having a car to tour puerto rico with is the most fantastic thing, as the island itself is relatively small. apparently you can drive round the whole of the island in about four or five hours. if you do plan on driving puerto rico, be sure to bring a gps unit, as much of puerto rico's streets lack signs. as it was, our gps unit saved us from what would've been countless hours of torture and confusion.
all in all, we went to the el yunque forests, from the tops of which you can see much of puerto rico's tropical lushness sprawled out before you; drove down to fajardo and kayak'd its bioluminescent bay (sadly, no more swimming allowed in the bio bay); passed through utuado on our way down to ponce, home to don q's rum distillery; trekked up narrow mountain paths to the arecibo observatory, then shot on over to the camuy caves (sadly closed for renovation, but we did get to see the sinkholes); and finally landed ourselves in old san juan, which is magnificent with its gorgeous architecture and seaside vistas. old san juan is much like the manhattan of puerto rico, popular and alive, with an unbelievable amount of traffic trying to jam through its narrow streets.
the worst part of puerto rico was being a vegetarian trying to find a decent meal. beware, and make your vegetarian-ness known, as even the beans will likely contain pork or ham. alas, if i were ever to revisit puerto rico, i would definitely not be going for the cuisine. though being a new yorker, i admit to being spoiled by a great diversity of amazing culinary options out here.
additional photography by ltp.