Like a piece of old Spain picked up from the the European continent and dropped in the Greater Atilles, Puerto Rico is a beautiful union of old world meets new. While you walk around the vibrant streets of San Juan and are towered by their centuries old building crumbling slightly but holding fast. You can see an old city keeping up with modern times. Night clubs bumping the latest U.S. house music can be heard echoing through the narrow alley ways while young tourists zip by on Segues. This city is truly one of many colors.
The city of San Juan used to be a military town that had fought the Spanish, The British and the Dutch once upon a time, now has grown into a vibrant city. All the architecture of the the Spanish and some of the French from that time still stand. The oldest buildings are protected by the US law and are what bring charm in my opinion to the city. They are colorfully painted and usually stand two stories tall along the blue cobble stone street. Each stone on the roads are glazed a navy blue color and not one is exactly the same.
The warm, humid air, thick enough to drink, reminds you that you are still indeed in a tropical island. The tall, lush green jungle trees separate the buildings and droop over the streets to give shade. Palm trees of all kinds and sizes are common place and I can hear parrots roosting in their canopies as I walk deeper in the city.
In all of of the parts of the city, you will see several feral cats sleeping and lounging around the city. These are the gangs of San Juan. They were brought to the islands by ships that use to keep them aboard for rat control. They now have become permanent residents and are beloved by the people. It was said that while most cats have five fingers, you can occasionally will see six toed cats and they are considered very lucky. These cats since then have been called ‘Hemingway Cats’ after Earnest Hemingway. The city neuters them which can be indicated (besides looking between their legs) by a notch cut into one of their ears. Volunteers feed the cats daily all over the city.
Local, modernist art work can be found in many of the parks and city squares all over town. While many of them are local artists, some of the works come from all over the world as gifts to the this beautiful city. Walking by them, you can see at sunset several of the young, beautiful residents doing photo shoots next to them.
The city had a lot going for it. It has the history, the scenery, the culture, the food and architecture and so much more. I look forward to many more stops at which has become by far my favorite port of call in the Caribbean. -DB
