2021 - Puerto Rico

Days 1 & 2

Day one was mainly a day of travel. In these early days of COVID vaccinations, the important thing to know is that Puerto Rico requires a PCR COVID test upon arrival. To be very clear: a rapid test is NOT acceptable. So if you travel abroad (even to an American territory), make sure you get the right test. Additionally, before you arrive in P.R., you have to upload the form to the Discover Puerto Rico site. Doing all of this ahead of time will save you quite a bit of time.

Now, on to the journey... We arrived at the Fairmont El San Juan, settled in, and enjoyed our first meal at RIVA. The 5-course tasting menu was a delight and we would highly recommend it. Since Puerto Rico is still enforcing a 10 pm curfew, restaurants take their last reservations at 7 pm, and the island begins shutting down at 9 pm. The curfew will be moved to midnight starting tomorrow, so we will have more dining choices for the rest of the week.

Today we slept late, grabbed coffee and pastries in the lobby, and worked the crossword together before we headed to the beach. It was a stunningly beautiful day, and we enjoyed the resting/reading/swimming in the ocean. I would like the water to be a little more refreshing (chillier), but Keith loves the warm temps so that makes me happy.

Day 3

There's not much to say about today because we did absolutely nothing but read by the pool and nap. We started the day with a wonderful breakfast at Caña, then back in our room tonight we kept it simple by ordering pizza and starting BLACK MONDAY (Showtime series with Don Cheadle and an amazing cast).

Tomorrow we're heading out to explore Old San Juan.

Day 4

Today was split into two sections: exploring Old San Juan and a night-time bio bay kayaking adventure.

Part 1
We started out looking for a place for brunch in Old San Juan. In these nascent COVID-vaccine days, we would encourage future travelers to get dining recommendations from your concierge because Google led us to at least 10 places that were permanently closed or not open during the hours indicated. The good news is that we created an impromptu walking of around Old San Juan without even meaning to do so. We finally found a small, local restaurant (Deavendura) and enjoyed an amazing meal. We then walked over to Umbrella Street, where Keith sat to enjoy people-watching and gelato while I set out to explore history. [It took us a few years into our marriage to realize is was okay to enjoy different style of vacationing :)].

Castillo San Felipe Del Morro is a beautiful fortress, but it ultimately represents centuries of colonizers behaving badly. From there I visited Santa Maria Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery, in its stunning setting on the sea, then walked through the La Perla district where the music video Despacito was filmed (the music video has been viewed 7.3 BILLION times!). I finally met up with Keith and we headed back to the hotel to get ready for our kayaking adventure.

Part 2

This section needs some backstory: I love kayaking; Keith hates it. Most of the time he is content to let me go and meet up later. But this nighttime kayaking adventure in a bioluminescent bay seemed like it was a once-in-a-lifetime adventure, so he signed up as well. Below is the review I'll leave on Trip Advisor:

TRIP ADVISOR REVIEW:

If you are expecting a bioluminescent bay like you've seen in magazines, this is NOT your tour. That experience is on another island, which requires an overnight stay, and we were not up to that. So why am I giving it 4 stars? Because it was a BLAST! A thrilling "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride without the safety nets.

We chose the night of the new moon so that it would be pitch dark (to better see the algae/plankton glow in the bay), which made the kayaking through the mangrove canals a blind, at times terror-filled journey. We frantically paddled to avoid low-hanging branches that we couldn't see until the very last second, and watched in horror as kayaks in front us us rammed into unseen roots/logs and kayakers coming back through the canals. Then we emerged from the canals into a peaceful, serene bay, lit only by the stars (with a little bit of commercial light on the south side).

The guides explained the ecosystem, what makes the algae/plankton glow, etc. We could see it a little bit when we moved the water with our hands, and could see it even better under the tarp. But barely. Then we paddled around the bay as the guides used lasers to point out the constellations above us. It was beautiful, serene, and absolute heaven.

Then we headed back through the mangrove canals - this time going against the current. Far more thrilling, but with quite a few more profanity-laced rants from the back of my kayak.

To be clear, I absolutely loved it; my husband, not so much.

For people over the age of 15 who love terrifying rides and/or can suffer through them to enjoy serene beauty, this is for you.

I'm very happy that Keith's last kayaking adventure ever was with me :)

Days 6 & 7

See Day 5. Same.

Puerto Rico - Final Reflections

We really enjoyed our stay here because the people are genuinely nice... not to mention live-out loud and full of life. The spontaneous dancing, laughter, and body positivity that we witnessed here multiple times a day should be Puerto Rico's main export to the mainland.

The territory itself, though, is still struggling from Hurricane Maria (even despite the traitor throwing them paper towels - go figure). The Ritz Carlton next door is still closed, and from the beach we could see other hotels literally still boarded up.

Overall, Puerto Rico (like Hawaii) is a once-and-done for us. But, in all fairness, I can't think of a lot of places I'd want to see a second time anyway because there is still so much to see of this beautiful world.