La Isla del Encanto

As I begin this post, the flight back to NYC is about to take off from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The last four days have been a parade of sunshine, good food and drink in good company. After being grounded for two years, it was a joy to take to the skies once again.

The events of the weekend trip were set in motion two months earlier. 

My sister was traveling to California. She arrived late night here on the east coast. I woke up to an email at 2:17 in the morning. She wanted to pass word to our parents that she had arrived.

Her next sentence: See if you can get PTO for the following dates:

12/2-12/6. We’re going to Puerto Rico. We’re doing this. That was all the motivation I needed to move forward. 

With the time blocked off and approved, I bought the flights to Puerto Rico. I felt so much joy seeing the receipt from the purchase. A feeling that had been lost was found, the feeling of euphoric joy.

The hardest part about traveling is the waiting. The days ticked on by, knowing that I had vacation time beginning at Thanksgiving. But I had something to look forward to and that would sustain me until the day of our departure. Between this and Authentic’s release, I was on cloud nine.

Then midday on the eve of Thanksgiving came. With the last bits of work done, I could finally relax. 

It was a low key Thanksgiving with just the four of us. With a lot of food and wine to be had. A week later, 35 would become 36. In the midst of all the birthday wishes on the 1st, I looked ahead to the day after. 

The morning of the 2nd dawned.  Our bags were packed and we stepped outside. A darkened sky greeted us as we traveled down the Brooklyn Queens Expressway. This route is one that I’m all too familiar with as it leads to JFK Airport. I still smile every time that I cross into the airport terminal. 

As the day broke, the call for boarding. After two months waiting, it was time to fly to San Juan. The last flight was almost two years ago to Mexico City. The last time we stayed in San Juan was December 2017. But it was only for a night and a day as we embarked on a southern Caribbean cruise the following day.

Morning became afternoon as we landed. The cold weather replaced by warmth. In a sign of the pandemic we’re currently in, I had to scan the QR code that I had to register with the government of Puerto Rico to provide my vaccination status. Except that I had trouble scanning the code due to not having access to Wi-Fi. But I was able to get everything sorted out. Waiting at the entrance of the terminal, my sister’s friend and college roommate, Carmen.

We wouldn’t stay in San Juan for long. After lunch, it was time to set out for our destination in Rincón. The town is on the westernmost corner of the island. We had to pass through the towns of Arecibo, Camuay, Quebradas, Aguada and Aguadila along the way. With traffic, we arrived in Rincón just after sunset on Thursday evening. It would be an early night after a long day of travel. 

As Friday dawned, it began on the lower balcony of the condominium. Just after 6am, the sun rose over Rincón. I could see the beach on the far horizon, festooned by palm trees. A dark sky gave way to shades of pink, blue & white. It wasn’t the first time that I’ve had a balcony to greet the sunrise with as was the case in Toronto back in 2016 and Tomar during the Portugal trip in 2018. 

The other advantage to where we were was the location. The public beach in Rincón was literally across the street from the condo. Rincón by the seas, indeed. 

But before the beach, came brunch. 

We ended up at The English Rose. Getting there was an adventure by itself, as it sat on top of a hill and it was a twisting, turning journey. The view was worth the trouble as the restaurant overlooks the pool and the rest of the guesthouse below. A sight to behold early in the morning. 

Sitting still has never been something that I’m good at. 

But it’s something that I could get used to, when sitting by the sand watching the waves crash onshore. But as the afternoon wore on, the skies began to darken. So we grabbed our stuff and waited out the rain in the condo.

A brief shower later, a spectacular sunset on the upper balcony. With charcuterie and Prosecco, happy hour had arrived. As day turned into night we drove into the town center for dinner. 

Saturday, our plans were in flux. We wanted to see what else our surroundings had to offer. A morning drive around the neighboring beaches.

The first one was Playa Maria. But the rocky terrain meant one thing, surfers paradise. So we kept going to Playa Gomez, the same terrain. Beach #3, Sandy Beach. The conditions were just right. The blue skies matched the deep blue seas.

As we took a stroll through town, the skies turned stormy. But thankfully, the skies cleared for our birthday dinner.

That night, we had reservations for the restaurant, Estela. And we made up for the fact that our birthday was a low key celebration. Two bottles of Riesling over delectable food and desert. We forgot that the party buses were booming their sounds during dinner. 

Sunday was a low key day with my sister having her online class. We planned to head back out to the beach, but the afternoon rains said otherwise. But the rains cleared up just in time for us to catch a spectacular sunset at the lighthouse, El Faro.  For a moment, the bliss made me forget the possibility of power outages that night. But the lights stayed on. 

Monday. 

We were in agreement, none of us wanted to have the trip end. It was the perfect motivation to go across the street for one last beach trip. The waves and the last of the six pack of Estrella Damn beer helped put my mind at ease. 

It was time to drive back to San Juan. 

But not before one last lunch in the town of Camuay. The views of the beach sitting on the patio of El Fogon del Abuela was a good as the strip steak had for lunch. 

With time to spare, we visited Carmen’s parents upon arriving in San Juan. It was a lovely time as I hadn’t seen them since their graduation from college in May 2007. The shots of coquito, coconut liquor helped take the sting of flying home. 

Reality began to set in as we arrived at Luis Munoz Marin International Airport. But the sun splashed memories lingered in my mind instead. 

The glimmering lights of NYC welcomed us home later that night. 

Even in the midst of a pandemic, this was as normal as life has been. 

I wish I had more time to stay, as I was hoping to meet up with my friend, fellow Authentic co-author and Made To Do This colleague Lali. As the question came up each time that I mentioned that I was traveling to Puerto Rico.

I missed the joy of traveling and the last four days reawakened that love of exploration. Here’s hoping that there’s more exploration in the future. I hope that I will come back to the island in the future. 

As I close out this post, there’s one thing left to say:

¡Te quiero, Puerto Rico!