San Juan, Puerto Rico

Welcome to our first TRAVEL TUESDAY! Today we'll travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico. This was my very first port of call on Princess Cruises. I joined the ship here in 1998 and didn't really know what to expect from this West Indies Island. It soon became my favourite place to explore. I have the photos and souvenirs to prove it! One of my stores t buy gifts for family and friends was Spicy Caribbee. I was so happy to find it online now, I haven't ordered from the site but ALL of their products are amazing: 

http://www.spicycaribbee.com/catalog/category.cgi

San Juan is known as "La Ciudad Amurallada" (the walled city). San Juan was founded in 1521. In 1508 Juan Ponce de León founded the original settlement, Caparra, now known as Pueblo Viejo, behind the almost land-locked harbor just to the west of the present metropolitan area. If you're taking a cruise and you port in San Juan, you'll be able to walk everywhere in Old San Juan.

San Juan is a major port and tourist resort of the West Indies and is the oldest city under the U.S flag. The metropolitan area known as San Juan has 3 distinct areas: Old San Juan, the Beach & Resort area, and other outlying communities, the most important: Río Piedras, Hato Rey, Puerta de Tierra, and Santurce.  San Juan is the largest home-based cruise port in the world. Twenty-eight vessels use San Juan as their home port, and each year new cruise ships either originate or call at the port.

If you like to take photos or just wander in and out of small shops this is the place for you. The streets are paved with cobbles of adoquine, a blue stone cast from furnace slag. With 400 carefully restored 16th and 17th century Spanish colonial buildings, the buildings are a beautiful explosion of colour that wouldn't work in Vancouver, but in Old San Juan as the sun sets and deepens the colour on the walls of the buildings, it's unbelievable.  This neighbourhood is approximately 465 years old and was originally conceived as a military stronghold. It's 7-square-block area has evolved into a charming residential and commercial district. 

Rich in history and culture, I would walk to El Morro Fortress, any chance I got. The word itself sounds powerful and this six-level fortress certainly is. Rising 140 feet above the sea, its 18-foot-thick wall proved a formidable defense. It fell only once, in 1598, to a land assault by the Earl of Cumberland's forces. The fort is a maze of tunnels, dungeons, barracks, outposts and ramps. El Morro is studded with small, circular sentry boxes called "garitas" that have become a national symbol. The views of San Juan Bay from El Morro are spectacular. The area was designated a National Historic Site in February, 1949 with 74 total acres. It has the distinction of being the largest fortification in the Caribbean. In 1992, the fortress was restored to its historical form in honor of the 500th anniversary of the discovery of Puerto Rico by Christopher Columbus. I found this fortress to be much more interesting as a photographer. You could sit on a bench and watch the sun and shadows move through out the day. Every new shadow created a brand new photograph.

Castillo de San Cristóbal (San Cristóbal Fort), it's the smaller fort to El Morro, a strategic masterpiece, it features five independent units, each connected by moat and tunnel; each fully self-sufficient should the others fall. It's a World Heritage  and National Historic Site, administered by the U.S. National Park Service. Built in 1634 (completed in 1771), was considered the Gibraltar of the West Indies. San Cristóbal was supported by a massive system of outworks which provided defense in depth and is is one of the largest defenses ever built in the Americas. It rose 150 feet, covering 27 acres of land. As if its size and height weren't sufficient to intimidate enemies, its intricate modular design was sure to foil them. Open daily from 9am to 6pm. San Cristóbal was featured in the movie Amistad (1997). On the weekend you can go to this fort and buy some ice cream and sit on the grass watching the families picnic and fly kites. (It's the best place to fly a kite!) I guess this would be like our sea wall or Stanley Park in an urban setting. 

I used to be so afraid of cemeteries that I had to close my eyes every time we drove past one. When I saw Cementerio De San Juan I couldn't not go in to pay respect and photograph the beautiful tombstones and the circular chapel dedicated to Mary Magdalen. To see the history in this cemetery and the dates on the tombstones this cemetery means so much to the people of San Juan, to share in the history meant so much to me. The most notable place which you can see from looking above the grounds is a circular, red-domed chapel, which dates back to the late 19th century. The cemetery is located between El Morro and the rocky cliffs above the Atlantic and is considered one of the most picturesque of burial grounds anywhere in the world. When I travelled back in 2000 it was kind of hit and miss with the gates being open so if you can't get in at least you can see the grounds from the pathway from El Morro.

Away from Old San Juan I travelled to Piñones Reserve, a sub-tropical moist forest. We spent a day here the walking/hiking is easy (I was in a dress and flip flops not hiking appropriate!) We did get a little lost, but in the end we did find our car again! I don't know if I would go back I think I was so nervous about seeing spiders or snakes I couldn't enjoy myself but there are many tropical forests in Puerto Rico.

Finally, a few of us took a day trip to Arecibo, where the Arecibo Observatory is located. The observatory is one of the world's most powerful radar radio telescopes, and the largest single-unit radio telescopes in the world. It collects radio astronomy, terrestrial aeronomy, and planetary radar data for scientists around the world. The telescope was featured in the movies GoldenEye (1995) and Contact (1997). To me it looked like a giant Jiffy Pop Popcorn maker! Cool to see but it's a long drive from Old San Juan and there isn't to much to see once you're there. 

There are also a lot of famous people that were born in Puerto Rico some are: Benicio del Toro, Erik Estrada, Frankie Muniz, Freddie Prinze, Jr., Jennifer Lopez, Jimmy Smits, Joaquin Phoenix, John Leguizamo, Michelle Rodriguez, Ricky Martin, Roselyn Sanchez and Rosie Perez.

I loved every time we docked in San Juan and I had the day off!  The offical languages are Spanish and English with Spanish being the primary language. The people in Old San Juan are very used to tourists with all the cruise ships, and this was one port I always felt safe walking around in. Some of my favourite restaurants were: Amanda's Cafe - across from El Morro the best sangria in the Caribbean and you can watch the sun set on the fort. Nothing better than that! Butterfly People Cafe - great menu. Cafe Berlin - perfect place to grab a snack and drink when you've been in the sun all day. I want to go back there are so many places I have not seen or photographed! I would suggest if you want to experience everything Puerto Rico has to offer spend at least a week there. You won't regret it! 

When walking back towards the water and dusk is falling you can hear live music in the summer, down at the waterfront a band is playing a bomba and people are dancing in the open air square. When ever I hear the music of Buena Vista Social Club (They are from Cuba not San Juan but I like them better then Ricky Martin who is from San Juan!!) I think of San Juan. I know I will go back one day, I have a few more places I haven't seen to check off first, but this I always felt as my home away from home.

~ Amy