El Morro Fortress

If visiting a volcanic Caribbean island happens to be on your “to-see” list, consider the diverse island of Puerto Rico. There are several daily non-stop flights from the US mainland into San Juan airport-no passport needed.  But my favorite way to get to Puerto Rico is by cruise ship.  Imagine relaxing on deck as the sun breaks through the purple-grey morning clouds to reveal El Yunque National Rainforest in the east.  As you glide into San Juan harbor, you will sail past what I think is possibly the most spectacular sight in the entire Caribbean. Rising majestically 140 feet above the sea, flying US, Puerto Rico and Spanish military flags, is Fuerte San Felipe del Morro, commonly called El Morro (meaning “promontory” in Spanish). The largest fortress in the Caribbean, El Morro is the most striking of this city’s fortifications, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean and the San Juan Bay. El Morro was built between 1540 and 1783 to keep seaborne enemies out of San Juan. Among its many wonderful attractions, El Morro features a maze of secret access tunnels and dungeons and a small museum with a detailed history of the fortress. It’s a great place to bring the kids as there is plenty of intrigue and mystery to keep their interest.  El Morro has been designated a National Historic Site.

The fortress is only a thirty minute walk from the port, straight uphill through Old San Juan.  Along the way you will pass small shops, cafes, centuries’ old churches and interesting architecture. Have your cameras ready and batteries charged. Old San Juan is a charming area where the colonial ambiance is well-maintained. From the magnificent 18^th century Spanish architecture to the cobblestone streets and well-kept doorways, a visit to this old city is like a journey back in time. After touring El Morro, allow yourself at least an hour or two to meander your way back through town. Stop for a margarita or have lunch in the tropical courtyard patio at El Convento, a 356-year old former convent turned into an incredible 5-star hotel.

Courtyard Dining at El Convento

It’s difficult to miss this ochre-colored building with its heavy, dark wood entrance; simply walk downhill from El Morro to 100 Cristo Street. There are dozens of helpful uniformed police in Old San Juan ready to assist with directions. For lunch with a local flare, a visit to the El Jibarito restaurant is in order.  Located at 280 Calle Sol, El Jibarito is bustling at lunchtime with families, shoppers and a few tourists who have stumbled upon this Old San Juan favorite.

Puerto Rican Chicken with Plantains and Rice

While my friend ordered the minute steak, I went for a traditional Puerto Rican dish, roast chicken, plantains and rice and was not disappointed.

Rather make it a beach day? A short taxi ride from the port is Condado Beach. Located only ten miles from historic Old San Juan it is a small slice of paradise. Adjacent to pristine beaches, this lively tourism area hosts countless shops, restaurants, night spots, casinos and of course, hotels. A stroll along Condado’s main road, Ashford Avenue, will lead you along an enchanting seaside pathway. The avenue ends at a beautiful intimate beach and the other side reveals the lovely Condado Lagoon. While in Puerto Rico, you must taste the famous pina colada, with or without rum. The pina colada was created in Puerto Rico in 1954. Don Ramon “Monchito” Marrero, who at the time was a bartender at the Caribe Hilton Hotel, came up with the ingenious idea of mixing rum, pineapple juice, coconut cream and ice in a blender to concoct what was to become the island’s favorite drink.  Consider one of the many shore excursions offered by your ship to get a feel for the real beauty of the island. Or simply walk through the narrow cobblestone streets of Old San Juan, leisurely browse or shop and have an authentic Puerto Rican lunch. What ever you decide to do, you will surely enjoy your visit to San Juan.

Before I get back to the other restaurants we liked, I’d like to ramble about our great hotels. It was kind of tough finding just the right hotel for Scott’s 50th. I wanted it to be special, but Scott really likes laid-back charm, so it couldn’t be too snooty. I was looking for something with a rustic feel in a place that would give us easy access to all the things we would want to do and see in our short, 6 night trip. I think I did a pretty good job, but maybe we’ll explore some other options next time.

I knew we had to see San Juan. We’ve been through it so many times, we had to see it up close. I opted to stay 2 nights. I really wanted us to see El Yunque rainforest and do zip-lining so San Juan seemed like a good jumping off point. (As it turned out, we never left San Juan, but that’s another part of the story that starts with the word Mojito.) Then came the dilemma – big or small? old or new? beach or city? I can be so damn indecisive. I knew we didn’t want the big chain hotels, but I checked them out anyway. I was right….no chains. They have great amenities and big, sandy beaches, but we like intimate and we were heading to the beach later in the trip. So I went with Old San Juan and colonial charm.

El Convento is an old, refurbished convent right in the heart of Old San Juan on Cristo Street. It has a beautiful courtyard where the light flickers in at different angles depending on the time of day. Even in the pouring rain, which greeted us upon our arrival to PR, it was enchanting. Our room was small but well-appointed. Great big, dark furniture, deep hued upholstery, flat screen t.v. and Bose sound system. The air-conditioned sleeping area was sealed off from the entryway by a glass door keeping all the humidity out. Amazing!

Every afternoon, the hotel hosts a wine & cheese party on the terrace over-looking the old San Juan Cathedral and a cool plaza in front of the Children’s Museum. Whimsical statuary dots the plaza and the terrace is framed by bright bougainvillea. The wine, cheese and fruit selections were delicious. The pool, just above the terrace looked nice, but with all the rain, we never got to enjoy it.

The location was perfect for exploring Old San Juan and the El Morro Fortress. It was uphill a bit, but nothing the average person can’t handle. There are a couple of great restaurants in the hotel with a nice little bar and a very tiny gym. I’d recommend this hotel for a couple, but not a family. For more charm and quirk -check out The Gallery Inn. With the kids, it will probably be Numero Uno at the beach.

After San Juan, we headed west to Rincon where the surfers go. That hotel search was a tougher project. It was so hard to figure out whether the cute, funky places were going to be clean. I checked all my usual sources (Tripadvisor.com, Fodor’s Forums) but really never felt comfortable with my choices. Then I decided to check out the upscale Horned Dorset Primavera in the south end of Rincon. HDP is one of the Relais & Chateaux properties. Doesn’t that just SOUND snooty? Well, it really looked nice in the website photos and the folks on Tripadvisor rated it #1, so I held my breath and booked it. It wasn’t rustic or charming but it had a quiet sort of Colonial Caribbean feel and I loved the idea of our own private dipping pool.

Our room wasn’t just a “room”, it was an apartment. We decided it would be the perfect place to retire. Downstairs was a small kitchenette with a refrigerator, espresso machine and ice maker, a bathroom and enormous living room. Off the living room was a patio with a small dipping pool, all ours. Upstairs was an enormous bedroom with a 4-poster king-sized bed and a sitting room. There’s another bathroom with the biggest tub I’ve ever almost drowned in. They don’t allow children under 12 and there are no televisions or radios so the whole place is as quiet as a morgue. I use that simile purposely – I don’t think we saw or heard more than one or two people the whole time we were there.

The hotel grounds are right on the beach and the restaurant and lounge sit over the sand. We spent an afternoon on the lounge terrace, sipping mojitos while Scott let me win several games of Gin Rummy. We never saw anyone at the beach – ever. We only saw one or two couples at the pool and they were buried in their books. This place is truly an escape from the rest of the world.
Sadly, we wanted to be a part of the world, so we didn’t spend much time there. We are explorers so we were off in the morning, combing beaches for shells and the elusive blue sea glass, surfing, scuba diving and hunting down the best pastellitos and empanaditas. Next time we’ll try something closer to the surfing beaches like The Lazy Parrot or Calypso Cafe Apartments.

El Convento – 100 Cristo Street, Old San Juan
Horned Dorset Primavera – Apartado 1132, Rincon

Cheers!

Leslie

So I took Scott to Puerto Rico for a surprise 50th birthday trip. We’ve always wanted to go there since we’ve stopped there on the way to other Caribbean Islands, but never actually stayed there. This was a relatively short trip since we left our kids with grandmas so we only had a couple of nights in San Juan and four more in Rincon on the west coast. Today I feel like talking about food since I’m hungry! I’ll talk about San Juan.

After a busy day exploring El Morro Fortress we found El Jibarito. They served equally delicious food. This time I had the Mofongo with a typical Puerto Rican stew and the strongest rum and coke I’ve ever had in my life. Cringe. I had to wait for the ice to melt and then ask for more Coke. The waiter said he made it the way he liked it…….he’s got strong guts. I loved this place for both it’s food and atmosphere. It’s not right in the center of everything but you can’t miss it when you find it. The outside is a wonderful shade of green and the interior walls are filled with amazing local art. You could sit there for hours – but if you drink too many rum and cokes, you may not be able to walk out!