Unique Places in San Juan

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June 16, 2009 – Today we had so much fun at the El Yunque Rainforest which is just about a 45 minute drive from the city of San Juan.

There are three offers at the Marriott concierge for the El Yunque Forest: a half day visit for $53, add the luquillo Beach for $70.20, or Have a hike and swim at La Mina also for $70.20. Naturally, my family chose the one with beach (just about $5 less for the kids I think).

Since this is the rainforest, expect RAIN. And yes, we did have rain on and off but it was fun and we just bought our raincoats at the forest gift shop. The greenness of the area is just purely amazing --- lots of green and very different from the dryness we have where we live in Arizona. So, the twins had fun walking the single trail…It is just one trail and it is about 1 mile and very easy to follow although it may be slippery in some areas. But if our 5 year old twins can do it, you can too! Wheelchairs may not be wise though…

The forest has 28,000 acres of wilderness (11, 331 hectares) and is another one of the sites included by Theodore Roosevelt to list of worth-preserving state parks. It was in 1493 when Columbus first saw it, and now it remains much the same except for some additional trees from Asia. They have added lots of bamboo to avoid erosion. Our guide Jose also showed us a tree which was familiar to us in Asia – the Ilang-Ilang. You also see lots of Sierra palms.

You don’t see tigers, monkeys, apes…and no scary chupacubras as well. But they do have lizards and snails and lots of birds (hawks as well). The green parrot is on the endangered list and used to be a million on the Puerto Rican islands but now it has been decimated to just a few and our guide has never even seen it. You just see pictures of it.

UPDATE! UPDATE! UPDATE!

Here is a video of the Jumping Family enjoying the beaches
and the rainforest of PUERTO RICO
to the tune of the Flintstones theme song, haha:

PUERTO RICO RAIN FOREST AND BEACHES

Bacardi Plant: Located in Catano, this plant is the largest distiller in the world. Yes, you heard right!! The Bacardi Company is a family owned business in its 7th generation and the Bacardi's are hands on owners. Take the tour which lasts about 45 minutes, interesting the things that you can learn about this company. The Bacardi Rum is a well guarded secret and only about 20 people have the knowledge and are sworn to a lifetime contract with Bacardi. Heavy stuff, huh. Pictures are not allowed inside the buildings during the tour.

The other 77 municipalites - You should try to venture out to the other towns, where you will really get a feel of this beautiful island.

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In a pinch? Need to check your e-mail? San Juan offers free WiFi provided by the Puerto Rico tourism company. As you get near the Tourism Company you will see signs (like the one pictured above) on the light posts. I found that I had to get pretty close to the Tourist Company for it to work. This area is located at the following address

135 W 50th St # 22
New York, NY 10020-1201

It is located by the statue I pictured above, near the start of the El Morro water trail.

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I found the Banco Popular building listed in an article in the December 2010/January 2011 issue of Budget Travel 20 Best-Kept Secrets of San Juan, Puerto Rico so as we were on our way back to pick up our luggage from storage we popped in and we were told to go up to the museum on the 3rd floor, the Sala de Exhibiciones Rafael Carrión Pacheco. The article said that the museum showcases "island-centric exhibits, such as an exploration of area coffee plantations and a 38-foot scalemodel of the old city" but what we think we were looking at (all of the exhibits were in Spanish) was the scalemodel of the old city with the proposed light rail system for Old San Juan.

The 11 story art deco buidling is located at Calle Tetuán 206. The museum is open from Tues.–Sun. from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. and is free to visit. Be sure to have a look at the outside of the building as well as have a look into the lobby from the 3rd floor viewing area.

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El Yunque is unique in the Caribbean and in the National Park/Forest system of the US. You should stop at the Visitor's Center first to find out about the park.

I wanted to see the flowers, foliage and animals. I didn't get to see the endangered parrot. I did get to see some of the land snails. You can hike and swim in the pools at the bottom of waterfalls. (Get a map of the hiking trails at the visitor's center.) Go to the Caribbean National Forest page on VT for the narrative of our visit.

We saw a breadfruit tree. There were hibiscus and ginger flowers (photo 3), and traveler's palms. Marian told us there were more than 75 species of ferns.

Unfortunately it is really hard to get there. You either have to rent a car or take a tour. There is also a lot of traffic on the roads.

This is from the National Forest website.

How to get there from San Juan

Take the Airport Expressway, Hwy. 26 (Baldorioty de Castro Ave.) and follow the signs directing you east to Carolina; once you are on the expressway, follow it to the end (approximately 22.5 kilometers/14 miles). At the final exit (Carolina) stay in the left hand lane until you merge with PR Road # 3. Continue on PR # 3 for approximately 20.9 kilometers/13 miles until you see the signs for "Palmer-El Yunque." Turn right at the traffic signal and follow the road through the village of Palmer until you see the sign for PR Road # 191. (Hint: there is a restaurant called "Noname", painted a bright-turquoise on the corner!) Turn left on PR # 191 and follow it for approximately 4 kilometers/2 miles until you see the El Yunque National Forest sign (photo 4). The entrance to the El Portal Rain Forest Center is on your right-hand side just after you enter the forest.

I've been debating whether or not I should write this tip but as it might be of interest to some people, I thought I'd post it anyways. The San Juan Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino was originally built in 1964 and in the 1970s, it became known as the very luxurious Dupont Plaza Hotel. On New Year's Eve 1986, three employees who were involved in a labour dispute set fire to the hotel, hoping that the news would keep tourists away and cause trouble to the owners. However, the fire caught quickly and soon spread to the hotel's lobby and casino. Most of the spectacular rescue operation was caught on tape and televised later on. Unfortunately, 97 people died in the fire that is still described today as one of Puerto Rico's most tragic events.

The building was completely restored from 1990 to 1995, when it reopened as the San Juan Marriott Resort. It has regained all of its former glory and today it is still one of the most popular and prestigious hotels in the Condado area.

Built in the 17th century, Fort San Geronimo was originally part of San Juan's line of defense, along with El Morro and Castillo San Cristobal. It is located at the entrance of the Condado Lagoon, next to the Caribe Hilton Hotel and in front of the Condado Plaza. It was attacked several times, including during one decisive battle against the British troops of Admiral Henry Harvey and Sir Ralph Abercromby in 1797. The little fort was heavily damaged during the 2-week battle but it proved to be so instrumental in defeating the British troops that it was quickly repaired by the Spanish forces. Today, Fort San Geronimo is owned by the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture, but it is at present too damaged to be visited. Different projects are currently on the table to restore and secure the building to make it accessible to the public.

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The Luis Muñoz Rivera park is located in an area called "Punta de Tierra", stretching between the Condado area and Old San Juan. Created in 1929, it is the oldest urban park in all of Puerto Rico. It was named in honour of Puerto Rican poet, journalist and politician Luis Muñoz Rivera (the father of Luis Muñoz Marin), who is to this day remembered for the important role he played in securing political autonomy for Puerto Rico. Since on most days we chose to walk from our hotel located in the Condado area to the historic district, it was very pleasant to walk under the shade of the park's big leafy trees. It was fairly quiet on weekdays, except for when they were hosting an event at the park's huge pavilion. I wouldn't say it's necessarily worth going out of your way to see the park, but if you happen to be walking in the area it's definitely worth checking it out.