About Puerto Rico
Destination: Puerto Rico
Highlights: Beach, Bay, and Culture
If you like pork, you’re in luck. The small town of Guavate is famous for their lechon, a spitted, roast pig.
Puerto Rico is famous for its beautiful tropical beaches. Less well-known and more unique are its bioluminescent bays, which glow as you canoe or swim through them… or its amazing food, from the roast pork of Guavate to fresh fish, shellfish, and some of my favorite desserts!
Our tour focuses on elements of Puerto Rico’s life and natural beauty. We start out in San Juan, the nation’s capital and largest city, where old meets new. For example, Old San Juan houses historic colonial forts and architecture, but it’s also a center for trendy restaurants and nightlife. And in Santurce, the historic marketplace is now a market by day but open air nightspot by night, where locals gather for beers and live music.
This fish was both a cooking lesson for the group and a history lesson. Named El Desobediente, the dish honors protestors from Vieques who engaged in civil disobedience to eject a U.S. military base from their small island.
We also use San Juan as a home base for day trips around the island. For nature-lovers, just to the east are the trails and waterfalls of El Yunque, a mountain rainforest. To the west, we’ll visit cave formations, seaside rock formations, and a coffee farm. And to the south is Guavate, famous for food and weekend partying. The road through town is known as La Ruta del Cerdo, “Pork Road,” in honor of the town specialty, roast suckling pig on a spit.
We’ll also catch a small charter plane to Vieques, a tiny island with a number of beaches and the best of Puerto Rico’s bioluminescent bays. If you visit during the week and in the off-season, it’s not uncommon to get a secluded beach all to yourself. And I try to schedule trips for the time of month when the bay’s at its best, sparkling and glowing every time you pass your hand or paddle through. We’ll also learn about the island’s history, including the nonviolent protest movement that became a famous anticolonial struggle.
Liz lies at the edge of Cueva Ventana, a cave that terminates in a huge “window” over a lush valley. (as always, click for a larger version)
For the end of our trip, we’ll actually stay in Old San Juan, with easy access to one of the city’s best salsa spots. Of course, if you’re more interested in other nighttime options, I’m happy to help you find them! I’ll probably also sneak in a stop at my favorite bakery sometime before the end of the tour. Besides baked goods and sandwiches, they serve the best octopus salad I’ve ever tasted.