Puerto Rico - Day 4

This day was pretty much the same as the previous day: late breakfast, relaxing time at our suite, and when we were finally hungry again, we got ready to leave for the day. On this day, we returned to Santana Row and visited another open-air restaurant called Bili, named after a rather strong drink they are known for.


In addition to their potent alcohol, their seafood was delicious. We had lots of deep fried food, which is always good, and seafood paella with a whole lobster on top!

After our scrumptious lunch, we decided to head back to the same beach. Again, we ate. We drank. We slept. We played. And took lots of pictures... which was one of the funnest things we did!


The sun had long set by the time we were ready to go. We were once again faced with the difficult question: What shall we eat for dinner on our final night in Vieques? Mucho Gusto! I think we ordered a few of the same things for dinner, but what was worth mentioning (again) is their templeque! This is the BEST dessert I've ever had in my whole entire life!! It's a coconut pudding that was light and not too sweet. Pieces of fresh young coconut were layered in between. On top of the pudding was a layer of condensed milk, and piled on top a gargantuan dollop of whipped cream sprinkled with cinnamon. How good was it really? We ordered one pudding for the four of us to share. Wowed by its incredible taste, we ordered another. When the server returned, we had to order two more! It was soooooooo good!! What a way to end our stay in Vieques. That meal wrapped it up very nicely.

Puerto Rico - Day 3

Vieques is a slow island with not too much to do. On our agenda today was... nothing really. "Relaxation" if I had to really choose something. We had breakfast rather late, as usual. I think it was this day, or actually the day before, that we were introduced to cashew fruit. The caretaker of the inn's little restaurant asked us if any of us had ever tried cashew fruit. All of us shook our heads with puzzlement, not knowing that cashews had fruit. She boasted about its power to heal (it apparently has a lot of vitamin C and antioxidants), the deliciousness of it, and that she ate a few every single day. To satisfy our curiosity, she retreated to the kitchen and brought back this pear/bell pepper-shaped fruit with a cashew stuck to the end of it. The nut reminded me of another type of nut...

Image borrowed from www.artsnuts.com.

She asked us if we wanted to try it. Of course! Why pass up the chance to sample something new?! We each got two or three thin, juicy slices of the fruit. Mmm. After the first mouthful, none of felt it warranted a "m-m-m". It was more like "eck-eck-eck". Tart. Rubbery. Waxy. Weird. NOT good. I ate most of mine because I'd feel bad for wasting the woman's efforts, but a couple of others in our group couldn't get themselves to take another bite. Eating that wasn't easy. Deep breaths preceded every bite.

The fruit wasn't great, but our surroundings certainly delighted us. We sat outdoors every morning, next to the huge tamarind tree that the inn was named after. Our tableware was colorful and cute. Paintings of shutters and planter boxes full of colorful blooms were found on almost every window. Beyond the inn, we could see tiny but lush islands sitting on the waters of the Caribbean.


After breakfast, we wandered back to our suite to nap, read, and hang out. I tried out the hammock, but flipped over and scratched up my elbow. :( Reverting back to something less adventurous, I just sat and read by the pool and the beautiful tropical flowers. The view was beautiful and the weather was perfect. This looks like the backyard of a drug lord or something... So nice.


And my stylish amphibious shoes were still a great hit with my sisters.


Once we had our fill of doing almost nothing, we wanted to get some good Puerto Rican food. Tom, our kayak guide, suggested this one place on what we named "Santana Row", a short row of open-air restaurants and bars facing the beach with strands of colorful lights hanging from the street lamps. This was considered to be the hip part of the island, and we were staying close by.

"Mucho Gusto" was the name of the restaurant. We were seated promptly in the indoor dining area. We ordered Medalla (beer), Puerto Rican gumbo (sooooo freakin' yummy), squid salad (absolutely delicious), some sort of deep fried seafood with lots of batter (much better than the ones we tried our first night in Vieques), and grilled salmon with fried plantains (yum). We were all so grateful for Tom's suggestion. This was the first great meal we've had since landing.


After we devoured our meal, we headed out in search of nicer beaches. But first, we snapped some pics along Santana Row. Couldn't resist. It was rather pretty out there.


The main roadways in Vieques are paved and just wide enough for two cars. But there are roads that snake throughout the island that aren't as nicely maintained because of lighter traffic, fortunately. These are nothing but dirt paths making their way up and down steep grades, with massive potholes that can do major damage if you're not careful. And passing other vehicles is always a bit exciting. Imagine if the car had died on one of those roads. I think we'd still be in Vieques!! Driving on these roads was like a little adventure - out in the middle of the jungle on these perilous roads (OK, exaggerating a bit), and no one knew where we were. FUN! And I was so happy to have driven on these the next day. So fun!!


Plant life in the tropics is very different from what we'd see in the Bay Area, as you would already suspect. We saw these trees that looked a little eerie. Very cool.


After quite a lengthy search for a nice beach, we finally came upon something that was on the side of a highway; don't even know if it was a marked beach. The water looked peaceful, the sand clean, and the presence of a family of foreigners made us feel safe. Here, we unpacked all of our gear again and continued our newly found lifestyle of living as if all worries have evaporated into the warm tropical air.


There, my little sister was interested in improving upon her photography. OK. So I asked her to take a photo of me with the beach and skies in the background. She snapped a photo and asked me how it looked. I laughed and told her it was horrible!!

To the left of us lay a bunch of rocks that looked like beached sea monsters, very pointy and rough monsters.


A couple hours have passed, and the foreign family had already packed their bags and left. The four of us were the only ones left on the beach. It was nice to be in solitude but our wary eyes continually scanned our surroundings to avoid any potential trouble. Inevitably, a while later, a small group of locals stopped at the parking area. A couple were lingering while the rest started to make their way down to the beach. I'm sure they were harmless, but we couldn't shake off the feeling of vulnerability, so we agreed to gather our belongings. Within 60 seconds, we were done. The speed at which we packed merited an award. After we climbed back up the short trail and into the car, we all burst into laughter. We were ridiculous.

On our way back, we stopped for some ice cream!


We hung out at the Tamarindo for a while. By the time our tummies started growling, it was already sort of late. It was like night no.1 all over again. Restaurants that looked good were already closed. We came upon a ceviche bar. I love ceviche! We went in and were told that they're out of ceviche. How can a ceviche bar be out of ceviche?! That was funny yet frustrating. A few buildings down, we finally found someplace that looked decent and was still open. Here, we were introduced to "mofongo". From what I remember, mofongo is made by frying plantains, then mashing it up, put into a mold, and fried again. First couple of bites were good, but it became too sweet and starchy after a while. Maybe it's because I'm Chinese, but I'd much prefer regular ol' steamed white rice.


As we were driving back to Tamarindo through Santana Row, we noticed a lot of people milling around the bars. Why not get a drink too? We chose a lively bar with a lot of outdoor seating, ordered some drinks and got really flushed. :(

Mt. Hamilton

My husband and I drove up to the observatory on Mt. Hamilton and took a few photos before being shooed out by the nasty old security guard there.

Puerto Rico - Day 2

When I awoke the next morning, one of the first things I thought of was the argument from the previous night. I wondered if he did complain to the inn's owner, but why dwell on such things?! I was Puerto Rico! Forget about that asshole! Have fun!!

After enjoying our complimentary breakfast, we were ready for the day's activities. What first? To the grocery store for snacks and beverages! As we pulled out onto the main road, we were greeted with a blatant reminder that we were in a rural place. Roaming the narrow road were horses! Three of them! They weren't startled by our vehicle and were used to grazing alongside the road. We drove by slowly and snapped a few pics as a reminder...


After that, we wanted to check out the beaches. Many of Vieques' beaches are named by color, for example, Red Beach, Green Beach, Blue Beach, etc. This was the US Military's doing. I don't know why they couldn't come up with more creative names, but whatever, that's what was on the maps. According to our research, there were a couple of beaches that deserve a visit, so of course we seeked them out. Frommer's suggested a secret gem of a beach so we checked it out. Disappointing.


After driving around and stopping at several places to see if we've come to the correct destination (another Frommer's recommendation), we finally made the right turn and arrived at Red(?) Beach.


This beach, one of their nicest, was alright. There was one thing I liked about it; it was secluded. I guess I've just been spoiled by the beaches of Thailand (specifically Similan Islands), but it wasn't really what I would expect from a Caribbean island. The sand was coarse and strewn with seaweed/kelp, the water was cold, and skies overcast. Of course you make do with what you have right? We plopped our stuff down on a smooth spot of sand and just... relaxed. There was a lot of talking, listening to music, picture taking, reading, a bit of drinking and some exploring. Nice and relaxing.


After about a couple of hours, it was time to head back. We had a busy evening ahead of us.

I'm pretty sure we had lunch, but don't remember where...

Oh yeah, and we received a note from the staff asking us to respect other guests while using the pool. Pft!

Anyway! An adventure was awaiting. We had booked a tour to first go kayaking through mangroves and then check out a unique and magnificent spot, Mosquito Bay. After meeting up with our tour guide Tom, a white guy with a blond ponytail, a slight surfer accent, and really cut shoulders, we were led to a hidden opening where we would board our kayaks and unknowingly start the extreme workout that was in tow for us. I paired up with my older sister, while my friend and little sis shared a kayak.

Off we went. We rowed along a wall of mangroves on our left and the open bay on our right. Mangroves are beautiful and creepy. Their sturdy roots grow above the water, many times intertwined with each other, and are topped with a headful of little green leaves.

I've gone kayaking numerous times, but never have I ever had to exert so much energy! Paddling through the mangroves should be relaxing and tireless, but it becomes quite frustrating if your paddle gets stuck between the meshed roots in narrow waterways. This happened to me and my sister several times. People in kayaks close by helped us as we tried to maneuver ourselves out of our little pickle. Thank goodness for them!


Those moments were frustrating and tiring, but my energy was completely drained as we rowed out of the mangroves and toward the open sea. Sea water was rushing into the bay as we were rowing out, which made for some grueling rowing. Our guide warned us to stay close to shore, otherwise, you may face the possibility of getting pulled out to sea by the current. But not too close! You may risk getting slammed into the rocks! As we rounded the rocky cliff, we finally saw the beach where we would shore our kayaks. It was so close, but getting there wasn't easy! We would ride the wave in, but then it'd carry us out. This called for some mean paddling, my friends. Finally! The base of our kayak hit sand, we clambered out, and trudged our way onto the fine sandy beach. My arms felt like jell-o, and I was hung-gry! After all the kayaks were beached, Tom served us our meal, vegetarian pasta salad. He hacked open a coconut and we all took sips from it. That was good to tie me over, but I needed more food. We all hung out for a bit and watched the skies change to hues of pinks and purples. It was a beautiful sunset. As the last shades of purple faded into the black skies, each kayaking pair were handed a glow stick. We would use these sticks to guide us to Mosquito Bay.


This particular night was a moonless night, the best conditions to visit Mosquito Bay. It sounds horrible like it's infested with mosquitoes, but it's not. The water here is full of micro-organisms that glow on contact.

Rowing back into the bay was a thousand times easier than rowing out for the current pushed us along. We continued paddling across the now pitch black waters below the pitch black skies, trying to follow the blinking light that was Tom's kayak. We started bumping into other tour groups so knew we were close to our destination. Someone else noticed it first. I heard excited oohs and aaahs from another pair and I look into the water. The environment here is truly breathtaking. As you glide through the water, you can see a trail of tiny little lights following you. Every time you dip your paddle into the water, a splash of lights appear and just as quickly fades away. I dipped my hand into the warm water and cupped a little water in my palm. There was a few sparkles, but soon disappeared.

Tom told us we could swim in the water if we wanted to. Just make sure the kayak is tethered to his. As people started jumping into the water, of course, Mae with curious nature, took that opportunity as well. I was reluctant to go, but with a little coaxing from my little daredevil friend, I slipped off the kayak and into the water. Wow. The water was warm like bath water, and with every little movement, a burst of light would appear and trail off to nothing. I'd lift my arm from the water, and hundreds if not thousands of lights blinked at me. It was magical. Something I could never have imagined, but am so glad I experienced.

Since it was so dark, I wasn't able to take any photos of these incredible moments, but here are a couple from the site where we booked our tour. www.biobay.com These photos weren't manipulated in any way. This is how it actually looks.

After much time enjoying ourselves in the warm glowing waters, it was time to row back to shore. When we got back, we thanked Tom and all of our tour mates for such a wonderful time. Everyone was so nice and helpful. It wasn't only in the mangroves where we encountered some difficulty, but in Mosquito Bay, things got a little hectic as there was so much movement from the people and the kayaks. Some got hit in the head, another fell off... I think my little sister got kicked in the face while trying to help someone who was having trouble getting back into the kayak! It was a little insane.

The four of us climbed back into our car in our soppy clothes. All but Mae. She was smart enough to bring an extra set. By now, it was pretty late. I don't remember if we tried looking for a restaurant that was still open, but I recall not having any dinner that night. The three of them snacked on cookies and chips. I think I had an oreo or two, but they were stale. We were certain we'd be famished the next morning since we haven't had a real meal since that morning. After showering and rinsing out our soiled clothes, we chit-chatted for a while. We even exchanged wardrobe. They got a good laugh out of my wonderfully fashionable water shoes.