Wrapping Up Puerto Rico

Today I just wanted to cover a few more things on Puerto Rico before we move along to another location tomorrow.  Jenny and Geoff will be staying in Carolina (pronounced karo-leena) which is to San Juan what Richardson is to Dallas.  Except that it seems even closer.  They will be just less than 15 minutes from Old San Juan.  But the nice thing about where they are staying is that there are nice beaches close by.

In fact, here's some late breaking news.  Just .2 miles from the hotel is Carolina Beach with chairs and umbrellas available for $10 and (are you ready for this?) a swim up bar.... on the beach!  Now, I know of one person in this party who will be excited by this news.  In other news, I'm sure that the swim up bar has Cokes.  Also according to one reviewer on TA they do kite boarding lessons on the beach.  Sounds like fun!!!

Carolina Beach is a Blue Flag Beach which basically just means that it is eco-friendly.  They have to be certified to fly the flag so the non-profit organization who runs it checks up on it and it should be a clean beach if you see the blue flag flying.  So going to this beach is just another way of saving the ocean.  Really, it's your duty as an American and an environmentalist to go to this beach.  Do you want to save baby whales and seals????  Go to the beach.  That's all I'm saying.

Carolina Beach

Apparently the hotel that my friends are staying in also has a nice pool.  The hotel is located in the Isla Verde area so they will have access to a local free trolley that moves people around between shopping, beaches and hotels in the area.  So, they will be able to use it to grab something to eat.  It is a great area for dining out with tons of chain restaurants as well as local restaurants along the trolley stops as well as within walking distance.  This particular hotel does not have vending machines.  So they'll probably need to use the trolley to make a CVS run and get some Cokes and bottled water.

Isla Verde Beach which is the other Carolina beach offers stand up paddle boarding lessons.  Although, I'm not sure what lessons are necessary....

• Get on Board
• Stand Up
• Paddle

Now you're a pro!  Maybe getting on the board is what requires the lessons.  I think that would probably be the hardest part for me.  Here's a photo of Isla Verde Beach.

I saw one website that proclaimed Puerto Rico the Hawaii of the Atlantic because it is apparently a good place for surfing.  There are surfing lessons available if you were so inclined.  Basically, it sounds like the possibilities are endless in Puerto Rico.  You can go from the culture of a very European like city in Old San Juan to rain forests, beaches, kite boarding, surfing and anything else you are interested in while in Puerto Rico.

One word of caution, if you want to go on a snorkeling trip confirm where they will take you since many take scuba divers and snorkelers to the same spot in fairly deep water which would mean that a snorkeler would be disappointed to be floating on top and seeing very little while the scuba divers below are having a great time.


So if you happen to be going to Puerto Rico in the next 3 or 4 months, I hope you will find the information I've thrown at you in the last two days helpful.  If you never thought of going to Puerto Rico, I hope you have seen some interesting things that might convince you it would be a nice place to visit.  If you have no passport and are looking for a tropical paradise, this could be the perfect location for you.

In closing today Shiner decided to help write the blog by standing over my head on the staircase and keeping watch for anyone intent of sneaking up behind me while I worked.  Thanks Shiner for having my back.