Maryann's Take on Puerto Rico, with Photos!
Puerto Rico is a beautiful island. We have toured Old San Juan, the rain forest of El Yunque and the Observatory at Arecibo. As a result we have driven around and across the entire island. In addition we have sailed the waters south of the island and anchored in the Lee of Isle Caja de Muertos en route from Boqueron to Salinas.
Currently we're anchored in the harbor of Playa Salinas, a small town on Puerto Rico's southern coast. It is a surprisingly quiet anchorage given the number of boats here. By quiet, I mean there is not a lot of chatter on the VHF and there does not appear to be an active "cruiser" community here. Having said that, there are several stores and restaurants within walking distance that service boaters, a marine store, a hardware store, the Cruiser's Galley restaurant with wireless internet access and a marina with a laundry.
To see Puerto Rico we rented cars, one in Boqueron and one in Salinas. Although I've enjoyed the conveniences of Puerto Rico, their car rental services leave much to be desired. The car we rented in Boqueron had a piece of window trim fall off while we were driving it. No reason. It just fell off as were we headed east on the autopista. Of course the rental company wanted to charge us for their lack of maintenance. I argued our case, we did nothing but drive the car. Not sure if the charge for the replacement trim will show up on our credit card or not. Probably. Then with the rental from Salinas, the battery died when we were in San Juan, an hour away and on the other side of the mountains from the rental shop. And naturally it happened at 5:30 p.m. when the rental office was closed. Fortunately we were in the Costco parking lot at the time. The folks at Costco were extremely helpful. They tried jumping our rental with two different car batteries. Once it became obvious that the rental battery was not coming back to life, we purchased another one. Good thing we were at Costco where they sell batteries. Then the Costco guys helped install it in the parking lot and didn't charge for their service. So all is good. Right? No. As we left Costco, the air conditioning died! One really wants an air-conditioned car in Puerto Rico. It is hot and very humid here. Ken was not a happy camper. But in the end, we were able to get back to Salinas. The car rental company reimbursed us for the cost of the battery and acknowledged that the air conditioning had gone on the fritz earlier in the week. The thing was, this was the only rental car they had. We had to wait a day for it!
We are ready to go and the weather looks good, only we are waiting on the delivery of a package. So, we'll stay put until our delivery arrives. Then we're headed to the Spanish Virgin Islands (SVI), about 20 miles off the east coast of Puerto Rico. In fact, the Spanish Virgin Islands are part of Puerto Rico. My daughters, Julia and Theresa, are going to join us for a week from April 4th to the 11th. It looks like we'll meet up at Isle de Culebra, one of the two larger SVI islands. Although it's possible we'll be in St. Thomas in the USVI when they arrive. The schedule of a cruiser is not of one's choosing.
Puerto Rico it is worth seeing. As with all of the Caribbean islands, a visit to Puerto Rico is a lesson in history. It is in these islands, close to 500 years ago, the New World and the old collided. Contemporary Puerto Rico is vibrant and reflects a mix of European, Indian and African cultures and heritage as well as U.S. influences.
Old San Juan is charming. Ken and I spent a night at Gran Hotel El Convento, originally a convent built in the 1600's. We wandered down narrow brick streets lined with two and three story buildings. Again, the Spanish wrought iron balconies with flowers were everywhere. Many of the streets were paved with blue colored brick, unusual and attractive. We took in the sights, Fuerte San Felipe del Morro, Catedral de San Juan where the tomb of Ponce de Leon is located and the old city wall.
In addition to seeing Old San Juan, we visited El Yunque, the Caribbean National Forest. The park is home to a lush and beautiful rain forest. And, yes , it rained while we were there. We started our hike just after a shower giving us a true, but not too wet, rain forest experience. From within the park one can look out over the Atlantic Ocean as well as the Caribbean Sea. It is fun to see the ocean from the land and know we'll be sailing across it in a week or so as we head to the Virgin Islands.
And we took in the tour of the Bacardi Rum factory. A huge operation that distills more than 100,000 gallons of rum per day!
Aricebo Observatory was worth the winding drive across the mountains from southern Puerto Rico to the north coast. We took the most direct, but not the easiest route there. We were on narrow, winding mountain roads that were in need of repair. Beautiful, but nerve wracking to drive. On the way back, we decided that the longer route might be a better choice. The observatory is home to the world's largest radio telescope. A 20-acre "dish" is nestled between the mountain tops. The transmitting and receiving instruments are suspended 50 stories above the dish by cables attached to three supporting towers. It is quite something. Scientists from around the world come here to use this telescope. Proposals or requests are submitted to the observatory and from these requests use of the radio telescope is granted. Not all requests are granted. I'm not sure how many or what percentage of the requests are successful in securing time with the telescope. It appears that the radio telescope is in use 24 hours a day. And yes, from here the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) goes on.
And here are the photos!
Isle Caja de Muertos, or Coffin Island, off the southern coast of Puerto Rico. A hazy day.
The light house on Isle Caja de Muertos, built by the Spanish. A prime example of Spanish public works architecture.
A street in Old San Juan. It is hard to see, but the bricks that pave the streets are blue.
The walkway located along the harbor entrance at the base of the fort, El Morro.
Another view of the wall that supports the Castillo de San Felipe del Morro (Castle of St. Philip of the Headland).
The entrance to San Juan harbor.
Another view of the fort. The turret is the symbol on the Puerto Rician license plate.
Campo del Morro. Once military grounds, now a park filled with kite flyers.
From above, cannons, weighing up to 10,000 lbs, were rolled down this ramp to the level below.
Another view of the entrance to the San Juan Harbor from El Morro.
A typical street in Old San Juan, narrow with two-story buildings supporting balconies decorated in ironwork.
The radio telescope at Arecibo Observatory, largest radio telescope in the world. See how the dish is nestled in the hill tops? Note the tower on the left side of the photo. Three of these towers support the transmitting and receiving equipment.
Shadow of the transmitter and receiver on the dish.
Transmitter and receiver of the Arcebio radio telescope. This equipment is suspended 50 stories over the dish via cables suspended from three supporting poles or towers.
Currently we're anchored in the harbor of Playa Salinas, a small town on Puerto Rico's southern coast. It is a surprisingly quiet anchorage given the number of boats here. By quiet, I mean there is not a lot of chatter on the VHF and there does not appear to be an active "cruiser" community here. Having said that, there are several stores and restaurants within walking distance that service boaters, a marine store, a hardware store, the Cruiser's Galley restaurant with wireless internet access and a marina with a laundry.
To see Puerto Rico we rented cars, one in Boqueron and one in Salinas. Although I've enjoyed the conveniences of Puerto Rico, their car rental services leave much to be desired. The car we rented in Boqueron had a piece of window trim fall off while we were driving it. No reason. It just fell off as were we headed east on the autopista. Of course the rental company wanted to charge us for their lack of maintenance. I argued our case, we did nothing but drive the car. Not sure if the charge for the replacement trim will show up on our credit card or not. Probably. Then with the rental from Salinas, the battery died when we were in San Juan, an hour away and on the other side of the mountains from the rental shop. And naturally it happened at 5:30 p.m. when the rental office was closed. Fortunately we were in the Costco parking lot at the time. The folks at Costco were extremely helpful. They tried jumping our rental with two different car batteries. Once it became obvious that the rental battery was not coming back to life, we purchased another one. Good thing we were at Costco where they sell batteries. Then the Costco guys helped install it in the parking lot and didn't charge for their service. So all is good. Right? No. As we left Costco, the air conditioning died! One really wants an air-conditioned car in Puerto Rico. It is hot and very humid here. Ken was not a happy camper. But in the end, we were able to get back to Salinas. The car rental company reimbursed us for the cost of the battery and acknowledged that the air conditioning had gone on the fritz earlier in the week. The thing was, this was the only rental car they had. We had to wait a day for it!
We are ready to go and the weather looks good, only we are waiting on the delivery of a package. So, we'll stay put until our delivery arrives. Then we're headed to the Spanish Virgin Islands (SVI), about 20 miles off the east coast of Puerto Rico. In fact, the Spanish Virgin Islands are part of Puerto Rico. My daughters, Julia and Theresa, are going to join us for a week from April 4th to the 11th. It looks like we'll meet up at Isle de Culebra, one of the two larger SVI islands. Although it's possible we'll be in St. Thomas in the USVI when they arrive. The schedule of a cruiser is not of one's choosing.
Puerto Rico it is worth seeing. As with all of the Caribbean islands, a visit to Puerto Rico is a lesson in history. It is in these islands, close to 500 years ago, the New World and the old collided. Contemporary Puerto Rico is vibrant and reflects a mix of European, Indian and African cultures and heritage as well as U.S. influences.
Old San Juan is charming. Ken and I spent a night at Gran Hotel El Convento, originally a convent built in the 1600's. We wandered down narrow brick streets lined with two and three story buildings. Again, the Spanish wrought iron balconies with flowers were everywhere. Many of the streets were paved with blue colored brick, unusual and attractive. We took in the sights, Fuerte San Felipe del Morro, Catedral de San Juan where the tomb of Ponce de Leon is located and the old city wall.
In addition to seeing Old San Juan, we visited El Yunque, the Caribbean National Forest. The park is home to a lush and beautiful rain forest. And, yes , it rained while we were there. We started our hike just after a shower giving us a true, but not too wet, rain forest experience. From within the park one can look out over the Atlantic Ocean as well as the Caribbean Sea. It is fun to see the ocean from the land and know we'll be sailing across it in a week or so as we head to the Virgin Islands.
And we took in the tour of the Bacardi Rum factory. A huge operation that distills more than 100,000 gallons of rum per day!
Aricebo Observatory was worth the winding drive across the mountains from southern Puerto Rico to the north coast. We took the most direct, but not the easiest route there. We were on narrow, winding mountain roads that were in need of repair. Beautiful, but nerve wracking to drive. On the way back, we decided that the longer route might be a better choice. The observatory is home to the world's largest radio telescope. A 20-acre "dish" is nestled between the mountain tops. The transmitting and receiving instruments are suspended 50 stories above the dish by cables attached to three supporting towers. It is quite something. Scientists from around the world come here to use this telescope. Proposals or requests are submitted to the observatory and from these requests use of the radio telescope is granted. Not all requests are granted. I'm not sure how many or what percentage of the requests are successful in securing time with the telescope. It appears that the radio telescope is in use 24 hours a day. And yes, from here the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) goes on.
And here are the photos!
Isle Caja de Muertos, or Coffin Island, off the southern coast of Puerto Rico. A hazy day.
The light house on Isle Caja de Muertos, built by the Spanish. A prime example of Spanish public works architecture.
A street in Old San Juan. It is hard to see, but the bricks that pave the streets are blue.
The walkway located along the harbor entrance at the base of the fort, El Morro.
Another view of the wall that supports the Castillo de San Felipe del Morro (Castle of St. Philip of the Headland).
The entrance to San Juan harbor.
Another view of the fort. The turret is the symbol on the Puerto Rician license plate.
Campo del Morro. Once military grounds, now a park filled with kite flyers.
From above, cannons, weighing up to 10,000 lbs, were rolled down this ramp to the level below.
Another view of the entrance to the San Juan Harbor from El Morro.
A typical street in Old San Juan, narrow with two-story buildings supporting balconies decorated in ironwork.
The radio telescope at Arecibo Observatory, largest radio telescope in the world. See how the dish is nestled in the hill tops? Note the tower on the left side of the photo. Three of these towers support the transmitting and receiving equipment.
Shadow of the transmitter and receiver on the dish.
Transmitter and receiver of the Arcebio radio telescope. This equipment is suspended 50 stories over the dish via cables suspended from three supporting poles or towers.
posted by Maryann at
8:31 AM |
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