Video : And eating our way through San Juan

My new favorite thing, is organizing the food of my travels onto a post (with an awesome RECAP video at the end!).  Because lets be honest, the food just may be the best part about traveling.  Being on vacation and trying new food is the best combination (calories don't count once you get off the plane).  

A Few Things About The Food: 

My initial thoughts of Puerto Rico would be an abundance of fresh seafood, tacos, and plantains.  And in a few ways, I my thoughts were right, and wrong.  

• Tacos were mediocre
• Mofongo absolutely delicious (and really really heavy)
• Mojitos are perfection
• Fresh (not fried) seafood was not as abundant as I thought
• Amazing homemade sauces
• Vegetables are a rare sighting

Visiting Condado, Puerto Rico

Because the main reason of our visit was to celebrate the Hill's wedding in Old San Juan, we took their advice in looking for lodging in the beautiful area of Condado Area.  Everyone seemed to be staying in this trendy section of San Juan.  This post is all about places to stay, where to eat, and what to do in the Condado section of Puerto Rico, with the help of Jillian Hill with her exquisite taste, and our shared love of good food.  She has visited the island many times, and put a lot of work in organizing  all of the restaurants and hotels in this post. 

Quick facts:

Eastern part of Old San Juan
Can be expensive

Quaint

Very safe

Beautiful span of beaches

Adjacent to the lagoon

Right next to Old San Juan

Close to the airport (15 minutes, 9km, $19 cab ride)

Visitors Guide to Old San Juan

Old San Juan is probably what comes to your mind when you think of Puerto Rico.  Chances are if you cruised the Caribbean, you probably stopped here.  Whether you are on a cruise, or flying to the island for the week, Old San Juan has to be on your "Must See List".  Old San Juan is home to culture, history, and brightly colored buildings.  Forts , food, and cobblestone streets.  To escape the touristy area and prices of Condado and experience some of the history of Puerto Rico, head on over to Old San Juan.

For my first disclaimer....don't get me wrong... Old San Juan is also really touristy. As I mentioned, it is a huge stop for cruises ships and the port can hold 12 cruise ships at once.  Cruise ships dump roughly 3,000 to 5,000 people off (each ship, we checked) at once.  If you venture near the cruise terminal, you will be greeted with overweight cruise going Americans poking in and out of touristy shops.  But don't let this turn you away from Old San Juan.  You can slip into a cafe, or enjoy the sunshine at one of the parks.  You can get lost in one of the cities massive forts.  

But before you do all of that, 
pay attention to my DO's and DONT's of visiting Old San Juan. 

El Yunque Rain Forest - Puerto Rico

One of the best parts about traveling to Puerto Rico (besides the ocean and sunshine) was getting to spend time with friends.  While in Puerto Rico to celebrate Jack and Jill, we extended the trip a few days to enjoy some extra time in the sun, exploring Puerto Rico with friends.  

Friday, a day with no plans before weekend wedding festivities, Chris had been planning on renting a car to check out the rain forest of Puerto Rico.  I was gung-ho to hang out in the rain forest, exploring another beautiful section of Puerto Rico. While you are among tourists, you are far away from the hotels and cruise ships.  El Yunque National Forest is the only tropical rain forest in the national forest system.  It covers roughly 29,000 acres, and has hiking trails, scenic views, historic markers, and beautiful waterfalls.

I asked one of locals from my dive charter about the rain forest and the critters living in it.  Her answer was "birds, reptiles, but as far as mammals.... stray cats". We made sandwiches, grabbed the sunscreen and bug spray, packed into the rental car and headed East to El Yunque.

Rain forest cats, here we come..

Biking the Boardwalk - Pinones, Puerto Rico

Continuing on from my "travel like a local" post, I wanted to share another story of how following the less traveled path to somewhere awesome is always the best option. And also a story of a stroke of bad bad luck. Sometimes I feel like the luckiest person. And then there are those instances that remind you that you still have your stroke of bad luck from time to time. Its really interesting when these moments happen within ten minutes of each other.   

Read along as we venture over to the Pinones boardwalk
the area of cheap beer, good food, and a lack of English speaking locals. 

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Bike on the Pinones Path

Quick story:  

(in case you are only here for the pictures, I get it)

We biked to this amazing local spot about 8 miles away full of awesome food and cheap beer.  The bikes had several issues leaving us stranded 8 miles away from our hotel.  The views, food and beer was worth the frustrations.  Lots of stray dogs and garbage everywhere.
More "need-to-know"  info in the NOTES section at the end. 

Las Paylas - Natural Slides in Loquillo, Puerto Rico

Las Paylas 

(also known as Las Pailas) 

Natural Water Slides in Loquillo, Puerto Rico 

There are so many different ways (or types) of travel. 

You can take a cruise to join the masses and eat your way across the Atlantic. You can fly to a secluded beach and spend a week soaking in the sun and tackling your reading list.  I am kind of the adventurer travel.  Scuba dive, hike, explore - that is my kind of trip.  Not only do I love to find activities for my active lifestyle, but my favorite way is to travel somewhere and find the spots off the beaten path. The spots where the beer is half the price, the food is amazing, and the locals are friendly. The spots where there are no crowds, but instead you can experience a different kind of culture, eat what the locals eat, and see what people in the area really do for fun.  If you like to travel to the lesser known spots where the beer is a dollar and you can eat mystery meat on a stick, this post is for you.

Scuba Diving - Fajardo, Puerto Rico

If I am traveling to an island, I am absolutely planning a day to dive (this land locked girl gets giddy around ocean tides and sea spray).  While traveling to Puerto Rico to celebrate a wedding of a good friend from home, I snuck away before all of our friends arrived to spend some time under the surf.  

When diving alone in a new place, without the comfort and security of my dive friends from home, I try to get a recommendation or do some research on highly rated dive charters. Puerto Rico seemed to be a place you can dive while you are there, but not a big destination among the dive community.  My friends had never been diving there and didn't know of any respected dive companies on the island.

I was going to have to ask some locals. 

Reef around the Spanish Virgin Islands