San Juan, Puerto Rico, Jan 2021

Dominicana to Puerto Rico

So, the trip to Cuba got cancelled on a short notice and instead of Cuba, I ended up in Puerto Rico. I was totally unprepared for visiting it. I did not read guidebooks or look at the map. I did not plan to go there at all. In any case, the trip starting point was the capital city, San Juan, where the international airport is located. I decided to play it by ear after I got to San Juan.

Before leaving Dominicana, I found online an inexpensive hotel but did not make a reservation in case something happened to my flight. In the pandemic times, one cannot be sure to reach their destination as planned.

The taxi from the airport to San Jorge Hotel was $15. The hotel was practically empty and I easily got a room for 2 nights.

After a good night rest, I had free coffee at the hotel (because of COVID, they no longer served breakfast) and walked toward the center. All attractions were on the Old Town ‒ I heard that much about San Juan. I soon came across a good café where I had breakfast, then continued walking.

A city bus caught up with me. It was going in the right direction. The bus fare was $0.75 but I only had $5 bills and the driver did not give change, so he told me not to worry about paying and to ride for free.

The Old Town was crowded. The majority of tourists were Latin Americans. I could not tell if they were Puerto Ricans or came from other countries. Spanish was the main spoken language around although Puerto Rico has two official languages – Spanish and English. After all, Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory of the United States, Puerto Ricans are US citizens and the local currency is the US dollar. The status of Puerto Rico is confusing. It is a part of the United States but it hardly has any rights. For example, Puerto Rico is not represented in the US Congress. Puerto Ricans had 6 referendums to become the 51^st US state and every time they voted ‘yes’. However the US Congress so far has not recognized the wish of Puerto Rico to be a proper state. The last referendum was in November 2020.

The Old Town is not a big area; it takes half a day to see it all. Here are a few highlights from my sightseeing.

The small chapel on the photo below was built in 1753. I found different versions of what exactly happened there but all of them are about a young rider, Captain Baltazar Montanez, who lost control of his horse and plunged down from the cliff. Somehow, he survived the fall and later built this chapel to commemorate his miraculous salvation.

I walked back to the hotel past a small, clean, and sandy beach Playita del Condado located where Ashford Avenue meets the sea. The rest of San Juan is nothing interesting – abandoned buildings and trash on the streets.

After dinner, I made plans to go to the eastern part of the island on the following morning and to stay in Fajardo. I booked an apartment on Airbnb and was going to rent a car to drive there since intercity buses are almost nonexistent in Puerto Rico. When my husband heard that I wanted to drive myself to Fajardo he did not like that. It would be too dangerous for me to drive in an unfamiliar area. I should book an Uber ride instead. It felt wrong but I did not want to argue and followed his advice.

When I showed up at the apartment in Fajardo next day, my host Alfredo was shocked. He told me that I’d not be able to get around without a car and immediately took me to rent one. No cars were available at the rental agency in Fajardo. Alfredo drove me to a different city which was halfway back to San Juan where I just came from, before we could find a car for me.

Taking Uber for $54 was not a good decision, money and timewise. As the result, I paid twice for the same day and lost time looking for a car. In addition, the agency charged me an extra $60 because I rented the car in one place and needed to return it at a different location – the airport.

Fajardo, Puerto Rico