26 November 2018

puerto rico | old san juan

we scored perfect weather on the day we explored old san juan and started off the day with gorgeous views from Fuerte San Felipe del Morro (one of the large forts on the island). Throughout the day we also toured Casa de Blanca (the original governor's residence when Spain first conquered PR), Catedral de San Juan Bautista (second oldest cathedral in the Americas) and Hotel El Convento (a restored 17th century convent turned hotel). B found a yummy place called Stuffed Avocado for lunch which serves avocado bowls (these need to become a thing in the U.S.!) and we stopped for an afternoon iced coffee at Caficultura. Since it's a tropical climate (and at the end of their rainy season), rain storms popped up most afternoons and we got caught in them twice while our raincoats sat back in our Airbnb (you don't feel like carrying them around most of the day while it's hot and sunny!).
we wrapped up our last evening on the coast with local live music and well-kept buildings on one side of the street and La Perla (the only poor community left in San Juan- the inhabitants refuse to move and give up their property to rich tourist companies) and the ocean on the other.