Puerto Rico

So my blog might end up being a little all over the place, I started with my trip to St. Croix a few years ago and now I'm pressing fast forward to my trip to Puerto Rico a couple weeks ago. Its okay though, I will be sure to put all my in between on my blog as well. Now lets get to it! So for my birthday I wanted to go somewhere I've never gone before and like I told y'all before, I am a water baby!! So one of my very best friends and I were brainstorming on where to go, neither of us have been to Puerto Rico and the deals on flights, places to stay and things to do were unbeatable (links are under Travel & Excursions, Viator and CheapOAir). So we booked it! We get to PR on a Friday night and we had a couple drinks before getting on to the plane so we rested a little on the plane, get there and I end up with a migraine! I downed some water, took a nap and was up ready to vibe. We stayed only blocks away from a lot of different food spots, grocery store, and things to do so we could walk a lot of places. We get up and head to dinner at a local spot called Bebo's Cafe, I had the grouper tacos and a pina colada. We decided for the first night to rest because that next day we were headed to the El Yunque Rainforest!! We had an amazing guide that was booked via Viator, the guides name was Vincent. They pick you up at a local hotel, either if you stay at one or one closest to your VRBO (also link under the Travel & Excursions for my discount). As you travel towards the rainforest the guide starts telling you about the history of Puerto Rico, the history of the rainforest and how it go its name and explains the native people of Puerto Rico. This tour was informative and so much fun! Once we get to the rainforest it is a short trip down but tedious nonetheless, we get to our first destination and it is a natural waterslide! At first we were kind of nervous but I was so ready to climb up and get to sliding! Of course I had my GoPro on my to catch it all (link in my Amazon storefront under Shop Till You Drop). That GoPro has been on countless trips with me and has caught so many great moments. Anyway, back to the subject. We finish with one slide and then its off to climb through the rainforest some more. As we are going through it was SO slippery! We are trapsing through and people are slipping and falling left and right! We finally get down to the next destination where there is another waterslide and also rope swings to climb up onto this rock and swing off into the deep end of the water. There were fish swimming everywhere, people having fun, there is also a shallow part for those that aren't the best swimmers. After finishing up with the rainforest, the guide then heads over to Luquillo Beach. There are so many local restaurants, bars, and shops there to eat, drink, and have an amazing time! You must go through one of these shops or restaurants to get to the other side to the beach. Once you get to the beach though!!! The water was clear, the waves were small, the vibe was great, locals were having small gatherings, people were just out there having a great time. We dove right into that beautiful water and just started to float around and absorb all of the natural beauty that surrounded us. We got to spend 2-3 hours out there and then we headed back home to get ready for the night. Anytime we got into an Uber to go somewhere we would ask the locals their recommendations, because who better to ask than someone that lives on island. Before we got there we did our own research of course and saw that La Placita was a whole vibe and the place to be for nightlife and when asking the locals they recommended the same. So as the night came near and we were rested from the rainforest, we headed out. First we went to Distrito T Mobile, which yet again, did not disappoint. There was live music, different restaurants to eat at and different bars to grab drinks. I'm also an art junky, so I love to see local artists work. There were murals, sculptures and so many different artistic things out there to look at and take pictures of. We ate, enjoyed the vibes and then it was time to head to La Placita! This area is a whole beast within itself. You get there and there are people everywhere, there are bars and clubs everywhere, different types of music at every corner, and there are BLOCKS of this going on! So we are walking through, checking the scene out, we go into a few places, dance drink and just absorb everything Puerto Rico and La Placita have to offer for the night. The people are amazing on Island, we didn't run into a rude person and I love that! Onto the next day, we didn't have anything planned so we decided to explore Old San Juan a little and eat brunch at Kaffe Haus. When I tell you the food was amazing! My mouth is watering just thinking about it. We ate, drank mimosas and then walked around a little. We finished up there and headed to Condado beach, this area is great because it has a beach side with the waves and has vendors over there that you can rent a beach chair and umbrella from. Then you can go across the street to the calmer side where you can get Kayaks and paddleboards, things like that. Now the next day was my birthday, we had the tour of the Casa Bacardi. That was so awesome, the tour explained from the beginning of Bacardi to the present day. How they make it, where it came from, and the different tastes. So they have two different tours you can do, the one we did was the rum tasting one. They give you a welcome drink when you get there and then you head around to view the different areas and what they are. You end at the rum tasting, this is where you try 4 different rums and the last one gets paired with a 55% proof chocolate that is really amazing with the rum that its with. Once we finished there we headed back to Old San Juan to really dig deep into the history, we toured both of the Forts/Castles and walked all around viewing the different structures and admiring the workmanship of them. When we finished there we headed back to our VRBO to get ready for dinner at Eter, a rooftop restaurant. When you walk in, it is the bottom floor to a hotel. They check you in and guide you to the elevator so you can head up for dinner. As you walk off the elevator you are met with a hostess and a lit up sign that says " Be High @ Eter", the hostess guides you up the steps to your table and if you are sitting at a table that's by the glass wall, you get to see the most beautiful view of San Juan. I had the surf and turf with chocolate strawberry martini and that was one of the best meals I've had! We didn't get crazy for my birthday because lets face it, one night out calls for a few nights in lol. We headed home and ate some cake and ice cream and just relaxed for the night. The next day was the 4th of July, which they don't celebrate because, why would they? They did however have a small festival going on in the park by Condado Beach. We first went to the beach and then headed over to the festival to get some tacos and homemade lemonade. Man them tacos were so good and so was the lemonade, really everything we ate or had there was amazing. I'm already ready to go back! That night we couldn't do anything because we had a super early flight back home. All in all we had an amazing trip, next visit down I will be renting a car to explore more of the island though. Thank you Puerto Rico for an amazing birthday!!

-Vic