World Travels: Puerto Rico 2013

Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.

I would like to take this chance to share some of my vacation pictures that I took during my winter break.  I went to Puerto Rico for about two weeks with my wife and we had a great time.  We visited San Juan, Isla Culebra, and Vieques.  The island was better than we expected and we hope to will go back. 

First, I want to say that San Juan was a fun place.  We stayed in the district of Old San Juan, where the action is.  This neighborhood is full of old Spanish architecture, awesome views of the Atlantic, parks, old buildings, cathedrals, plazas, statutes and fountains.  It's a great place to start out a vacation.  We stayed at the Fortaleza Guest House, which is a hostel in the city.  I have always enjoyed staying at hostels, as the prices are generally good, there are often shared cooking facilities, and many travelers are budget minded and adventurous, like myself.  In fact, we were able to meet a few other travelers to share a van to catch a ferry to the Island of Vieques, which is off the east coast of Puerto Rico.



But before I go into the amazing time we had on Vieques, I want to talk more about San Juan.  San Juan is the home of a few old Spanish forts as well as a huge park area that is the playground of the city.  At night my gorgeous wife and myself would make our way to the park and enjoy coconut 'ice cream' and watch the sun set.  The view of the large ships making their way into the city was breathtaking.  While those back in the northeast were inundated with snow, we were enjoying a warm evening sans coat!

Puerto Rico is home to 4 (3 ABA) Law Schools!

 

I have always been curious about going to law school in Puerto Rico.  Now that I have been there, it is hard to imagine much better places to go to law school.  In Puerto Rico you are never far from the beach.  Imagine, learning the law during the morning, only to exit the classroom and relax on one of San Juan's amazing beaches!  Doesn't that sound great?  The only problem, for me at least, is I don't know Spanish.  San Juan's law schools (which are unranked) are only taught in Spanish.  However, if you know Spanish, this should be a place you are considering for law school.

The Law Schools in Puerto Rico are:

• Eugenio María de Hostos School of Law, Universidad de Puerto Rico
• Interamerican University of Puerto Rico School of Law (ABA)
• Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Law (ABA)
• University of Puerto Rico School of Law (ABA)

Now, towards the Islands

 

After enjoying ourselves in the city, we made our way to the ferry terminal in Fajardo to go camping on the island of Vieques.  That's right, I said CAMPING!  We would be camping out on a beach in the middle of winter!  Can you believe that?  And we would be spending only $10 a night for the pleasure.  We brought our tent and some gear with us and, instead of paying for an expensive hotel, we would be enjoying nature and having the time of our lives!  Upon reaching the beach, we were impressed with the sand and sea before us.  We set up camp and headed into the nearby town of Esperanza for some snacks. 

I really enjoyed being on the Island of Vieques.  While it was hard for a strict vegetarian/vegan such as myself to get by at times, it was worth the hassle.  Being out in nature, surrounded by palm forests and the beach was what we needed.  While on the island we took the chance to snorkle and visit a Bio Bay, which is a bioluminescent bay full of all sorts of small microbes that light up the water and everything in it.  While snorkeling I saw a Barracuda!  Crazy, huh?  I had not snorkeled for a few years, since in Thailand, where I saw some eels and other strange fish.  I forgot how amazing the ocean's underworld was.  I am looking forward to doing some more of that this summer when I visit the Red Sea.

After spending a few nights in Vieques, we made our way to do some camping in Culebra.  Culebra is quite a different place than Vieques, but still it was amazing.  The town, Dewey, is small and picturesque.  A short taxi ride away is the campsite of Flamenco Beach.  This beach is considered one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.  There are old tanks that have been left by the US military from when they occupied the island.  Now the sea is reclaiming one of them.  The other is located toward the center of the campground. 

Camping on the islands.

Costs on Culebra are higher than Vieques, but camping is still the most economical bet at $20 a night.  Everyone on the island was very nice.  We stayed close to the ocean and bought a couple of hammocks, which we hung up and slept in.  Sleeping in a hammock in January while hearing the sounds of the ocean a few yards away is just amazing.  One night I woke up to deer next to my hammock.  What an experience!

We spent about a week on Culebra, having an amazing time before heading back toward San Juan.  Our last night in Puerto Rico was spent exploring the city and visiting the old fort.  We had a heck of a time and can not wait to go back!  We did not get to see the El Yunque rainforest, and that is definitely on our agenda for the future!   

Our plane tickets to Puerto Rico were quite cheap.  The whole trip, for two people, for 13 days on the island, with airfare from NYC was under $1550!  Not bad for the chance to see a part of the world we had not seen before. 

Budget for Puerto Rico 2013