By the end of our morning at El Morro, I was tired of climbing. But not Penny! She climbed up on top of this stack of cannonballs to wave at you.
Tomorrow...we leave Old San Juan for THE BEACH!!! (Yeah!)
Way to go, Penny and Eva!
<great tour>
Diane wrote:Penny's travels have been a pleasure.
Old San Juan is lovely. How were the people? Did you notice any ugly Americans? I've heard some stories that made my skin crawl.
Everyone (except the first taxi driver!) was lovely to us. People in the Caribbean are generally very friendly and welcoming. Puerto Rico is a US territory, so the people there consider themselves Americans. (Sort of.) At any rate, San Juan is a very Americanized city for the Caribbean.
sozobe wrote:Really enjoying the pics and accompanying commentary, thanks!
(I just realized that we haven't planned where Penny is going next, have we? Canadian leg?)
Yes, I was just going to ask that. I'm taking Penny around Tulsa to get some photos tomorrow, then will need to send her to her next destination this week. We're leaving on Saturday for Wichita Falls/Dallas, then Seattle. (Will be gone until August 4.) But to be fair, it is someone else's turn, I think. PM me and let me know where to send her, 'k?
Eva, the 'Ugly American' type I was referring to was the American tourist from the mainland who complains about nit-picking things like a $2.50 beach fee when checking out of the hotel.
The incident I was told about did take place. The hotel clerk remained polite and courteous during the tirade. The woman probably more for her hotel room than he made in six months.
Your pictures are wonderful. Dys and I are now talking about going there.
"Ugly Americans" can be found everywhere, unfortunately. I was especially appalled at the behavior of some of my countrymen in France a few years ago. Ugh. I would have liked to claim to be Canadian, but my accent would've given me away. So I just kept my mouth shut.
San Juan is a very easy destination in the Caribbean. No passport needed, since it's a US territory. And it's sort of a travel hub...lots of flights in & out since many cruises leave from there. You have to fly to San Juan to get flights to many of the other islands in the Caribbean.
If you go, I'd highly recommend staying in Old San Juan. As you've seen, it's beautiful with lots of great shopping, restaurants and all the conveniences you need within easy walking distance, plus FREE trolleys that stop outside the hotels and take you to all the sights. Unless, of course, you insist on staying at the beach. (Ridiculously overdeveloped, in my view, but still...the water is gorgeous. Photos tomorrow.)
It's a great pleasure following (yours and) Penny's views around there!
Ah, finally...the beach!!!
(That's a seagrape tree. There were lots of them, along with palm trees.)
The water was gorgeous. No shells, though. We were on the Atlantic side of the island. The shells were on the south (Caribbean) side, they said.
Penny wanted so much to go swimming, but I wouldn't let her. I did carry her out into the surf, though. Just up to my knees.
sozobe wrote:(I just realized that we haven't planned where Penny is going next, have we? Canadian leg?)
Eastern Ontario/Toronto's scheduled for October.
The beach was very crowded. So many hotels, so many people. Penny stopped to talk to these girls. She was fascinated by the diamond navel jewelry this one girl wore.
Penny was seriously considering getting her navel pierced too. Alas, we couldn't find her navel.
We walked down the beach a little way to the Casino. It was very ornate...lots of heavy, carved mahogany and huge crystal chandeliers. Penny won her first hand at blackjack, then lost two. I got her out of there before she lost any more.
I wish they had let me take her picture at the blackjack table, but they were very strict about no photography in the casino.
So we contented ourselves with photos in the casino's garden.
ooooh Penny in the fleurs
lovely!
After all the excitement, Penny was tired so we went back to our hotel room to nap a little before packing for the trip home. Penny slept with me every night in this king-sized four poster bed with WAY too many pillows.
Our room was freezing...the maid kept cranking up the air conditioning. As a result, we spent a lot of time sitting outside in the sunshine trying to warm up.
We both had a wonderful time in Puerto Rico, and we didn't even get sunburned! We hope everyone enjoyed this virtual trip.
We so did! Really beautiful pictures, and Penny obviously enjoyed herself immensely. (And further proved her affinity with her owner, who also wants a navel ring, and won't be getting one for a verrrrry long time...)
Were we talking about a Canadian leg ending up in Toronto or starting in Toronto? I can't remember for sure, will need to check back. No time right now, hope to do so in the next day or so. If any Canadians read this, speak!
My portion of the Canajun journey hopefully involved Penny arriving at the hamburgers just a bit before Canajun Thanksgiving (need to the check the precise date, but mid/earlyish October) ... with Set, the puppies and me picking her up there - doing a little autumn colours road trip in Eastern Ontario after a <burp> festive meal ... bringing her to Tranna for a little get-together and then packing her up for a trip to Vienna (which the Empress and I really need to get sorted out).
Just before that Prince will be here in Boston. Maybe Penny would like to be present for another gathering.
in the meantime, i'd be happy to send her off to cambodia if she has a few weeks of free time. it's crawling with my peeps there.
