Puerto Rico Top 5

Our time in Puerto Rico was magical. An absolutely perfect way to celebrate our 20 years of marriage. Here are my top five highlights from our trip:

View from the tower

1. El Yunque National Rainforest: Aside from childbirth and zip lining, this was one of the most difficult things I've ever done physically. The other is kayaking to the Bioluminescent Bay on Thursday night of our trip, but you can read my Facebook post about that experience (I was so scared!).

We arrived in San Juan on Monday, May 22nd, and spent the day in El Yunque the very next day. I am afraid of heights and driving up the steep inclines of the rainforest was scary (lots of twists and turns, and the two-way road was very narrow). It was so beautiful! We saw one waterfall, climbed up a tower, and hiked into the rainforest to see the bigger waterfall. It was very challenging but, as almost everyone we passed on the hiking path told us, so worth it!

After we finished the hike, there was a lemonade stand which sold what tasted like the best lemonade ever. I won't talk about the woman who fell on her way down the hill toward our car as we were leaving except to say that she held on to her lemonade the whole time! As we were leaving, we picked up lunch at the Restaurant El Dajao and were served by a wonderful young woman named Daphne. I tend to get fixated on things at times, and before we went to Puerto Rico, I took a screenshot of a dish of empanadillas and was determined to enjoy some while we were there. Not only were there empanadillas, but also alcapurrias which our friend Amanda told us to try. So good!

2. Castillo San Felipe del Morro (El Morro): We went to El Morro on Thursday, which was the day before we came back home. I won't say much about the fort. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. What I'm proud of, though, is that on our first night, we went to hang out in Old San Juan, and we spent time with a woman named Norma there who gave us the scoop on how to enjoy our visit in a non-touristy way. She told us about the free trolleys, and we went back and rode the trolley to and from El Morro.

3. The Beach: Although Dishon and I have been together for over 20 years, we haven't spent much time together on the beach, so it was wonderful to stay in a hotel right on the beach. 

4. The Hammock: I've always wanted to lay in a hammock, and just never had a chance to. Since there were so many cool amenities at our hotel, including hammocks right near the water, we took advantage and truly enjoyed ourselves. 

5. Santaella: We enjoyed our anniversary dinner at
Santaella in San Juan. I asked Siri to tell me about the top 10 places to eat near us, and Santaella was one of them. The atmosphere and food seemed really good, and it did not disappoint. I enjoyed a cocktail called Parchita (Puerto Rican White Rum, fresh passion fruit, agave, lemon and lime juice and ginger juice). Very nice and refreshing. For my appetizer, I had a roasted butternut squash salad with feta cheese, fresh lentils, pomegranate seeds, kale, chimichurri, and pumpkin and sunflower seeds. I'm not really even a salad person, but that was the best salad I've ever tasted. Dishon had a veal cheek dish that was so tender, and I enjoyed same very tasty lamb chops. I used to have all my meat cooked well done, but, inspired by Dishon, I'm starting to become more comfortable with meat cooked medium. It was absolutely the right choice for the lamb chops. If it wouldn't have been tacky I would have gnawed the meat off of the bones. We shared a Puerto Rican bread pudding for dessert. It was cooked in cognac sauce. Yum! If you're ever in San Juan, I highly recommend dining at Santaella.

There's so much more we experienced there, but these were the highlights. My niece did a wonderful job taking care of Serena, Cairo and Rabbit, which made it possible for us to truly enjoy our time away.

When we were just starting out as a young married couple, I couldn't have dreamed of a life so wonderful. We are truly blessed!

On our honeymoon 20 years ago. Wow!