Puerto Rico

I have spent the last few days in Puerto Rico, staying with my roommate from my China trip. Two other people from the trip also came down for Thanksgiving, and another person from the trip also lives here in Puerto Rico, so it was a small reunion of sorts. We've done so much in the last four days that it almost seems like I've been here for week. Our plane arrived on Tuesday and we immediately went to Old Town San Juan where we walked around for a bit and had dinner before coming to my friend's apartment and soon out to check out the night life. On Wednesday we took a tour of the entire island, starting in Ponce where we saw a beautiful house, a giant cross, the old fire station, and the central church. Next we headed to Cabo Rojo where we ate shellfish and some local food, and on to Rincon where we went to a local beach full of surfers that was one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever been to in my entire life. We watched the sunset while drinking Pirates, coconuts as big as our heads. The evening ended, after we got back to San Juan, with tarot readings. Thursday, Thanksgiving, we went sailing and snorkeling before having a delicious Puerto Rican style Thanksgiving dinner. My mom and her boyfriend also came for Thanksgiving, so we got to spend the holiday with them. Afterwards we came back to my friend's apartment and went to the hottest club in Puerto Rico as VIPs. We got home at 4:00 AM and we left the party early. Today we went to the rainforest and swam underneath a waterfall of the Coca river, called cocaine because it is a white stripe that cuts its way through the jungle. We are having a quiet night in tonight because we leave tomorrow morning for Vieques, where we are going kayaking on a bioluminescent bay. I'll return to the states with my friend from UVA on Sunday and hopefully get all my work done before I get home.

It has been such a great experience to see a rather unknown part of the United States and to have had the opportunity to talk about all of the political issues and culture that are unique to Puerto Rico with people who live here as a friend versus as a tourist. This trip has provided a chance to develop the relationships I had with all of these friends and has given me a lot of perspective and positive energy that I know will benefit me when I get back home.

It feels good to have accomplished one of my travel goals, and, since one of the people here was from Colorado, maybe it will open the way to more traveling in the future.