There was an affordable getaway deal through Jetblue for round trip airfare and hotel for Puerto Rico, so I booked it right away, for me and my pal, Irena! It was only for 3 nights, but it was still great to get away. We stayed at the Caribe Hilton right outside Old San Juan, on their private beach! It is a beautiful hotel. Fortín de San Gerónimo del Boquerón is closed to the public, but you can still see it from the hotel. The next day we went sailing and snorkeling through Traveler to Icacos Island. First, they picked us up and we drove to Fajardo about 30 minutes away from San Juan. Then we climbed aboard the Catamaran (all 45 of us!) and sailed to Icacos Island, also about 30 minutes away. The waters were not that rough as I am prone to motion sickness, and I was very happy about that. We snorkeled around the warm Caribbean Sea and saw some of the reef along with the Grunts (yellow striped fish) and Gray Angelfish. On Sunday we explored Old San Juan. We visited the Castillo San Cristobal first. This fort was built by the Spanish in 1783 and has a lot of guerite or sentry boxes, which are look out points into the sea, and also provide protection. Also on my itinerary was the Castillo San Felipe del Morro, which was named after King Phillip II of Spain. On the map, it looked like a 20 minute walk from Cristobal fort. It was 92F out, and I wanted to take the free trolley or a taxi. Irena wanted to walk, so I reluctantly agreed and my shoulders got burnt! I was not thrilled about that. What the hell was she thinking?! I did put on sun block and I did reapply, but it all came off due to me sweating everywhere! We didn't spend too much time here since it was a small fort and it was very hot outside. Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery is next to del Morro fort. It is a beautiful cemetery next to the water, with a lot of famous Puerto Ricans buried here. We also walked around Old San Juan, and ate veggie mofongo and cheese custard. That cheese custard was the best dessert I ever had! On our last day, we woke up early and walked to Bateria del Escambron (Escambron Battery). We also discovered the local beaches close by, where we saw people swimming, biking and running. It was a short weekend trip, and very hot (92F, everyday!) We also lucked out with the weather; there was a hurricane along the East Coast (Hurricane Hermine) and it didn't rain at all in San Juan. We had no problems at all- except we argued about who was going to buy the bug spray. I did get bit, only once, and it was very small, near the armpit region. Mosquitoes will find a way to bite you, no matter where! So I have to spray everywhere next time I go back to Puerto Rico.
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My short blog topics include: photography, music, science, crafts, vacation photos, movies, events in NYC, and of course stop motion animation.
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