The Mona Passage has strong currents. Rounding Cabo Rojo Point was predictably rough but only for a short time. Dolphins came to see what we were up to but soon lost interest.
La Parguera has the well deserved title of Little Venice in the Caribbean. Sailing in can be tricky and a clear day is needed to navigate the way around the corals reefs. It was not to be on this occasion. Thunder and pouring rain blotted all visibility.
Sodden but undeterred we moored safely behind the Maygueyes Island. It is known for its freedom loving house boaters, who regularly flout the government, turning the Mangrove Rivers into miles of pretty and brightly painted waters edge houses. It has a calm welcoming feel.
Searching for a pontoon to leave our dinghy, we came across a delightful Puerto Rican, who with her husband owns such a gem. They escape the bustling urban life of San Juan as often as they can, for the peace of river life. Yvette kindly offered her pontoon for Puff whilst we went shopping in the town. We were offered coffee and we exchanged some of our travelling experiences in return for Puerto Rican history and local information.
One of the great delights of our travels is meeting people. Puerto Ricans are vibrant. The Island is most famous for its Salsa, a fusion of Caribbean folk and North American jazz music set to complex African rhythms. It is a compulsive dance rhythm.
New Year celebration was set in Ponce, an industrial centre with a renovated Caribbean Victorian town.
A young French sailing couple together with their 2 young daughters in their Barbie pink tutus and tiaras came aboard and we drank a toast to 2011 European time (20hr local).
Ponce is best known for its Art Museum.
What an unexpected pleasure! The building, a superb piece of modern architecture, had just been reopened after a long period of refurbishment. The galleries were arranged in themes containing pictures and sculptures from the middle ages to modern day. The pre-Raphaelite collection is probably the best in the world and was amazing. We could have spent days there. The five hours flashed by and were far too short.
‘Flaming June’ by Lord Frederic Leighton –
is their signature picture. It is quite amazing.....Well worth the trip to Ponce just to see that.
Caja de Muertos (Coffin Island) was a welcome antidote to an Industrial centre. We walked the well marked small deserted island. Apart from its Park Rangers zooming around tending to baby Turtles, we were on our own.
Salinas, a protected hurricane hole, was the chosen place to leave Scorch for our excursion inland. Its geographic position meant we could day trip around Puerto Rico and return to base each evening.
Renting a car was the easy part. Driving was a precarious activity, with driving habits profoundly erratic. Speed limits are posted in miles per hours; distances are posted in kilometres just to keep you on your toes. Off the highways signs are poor and often bewildering. We got lost a few times but after all we were sightseeing so who cared.
Old San Juan, the oldest City in US Territory, is well kept, of Spanish Colonial Architecture with picture post card narrow streets, cobbled with smooth iridescent bricks and is charming.
Our visit fell on a Sunday resulting in closed shops and little traffic enabling us to drive freely around viewing the modern city as well as the University quarters.
La Ruta Panoramica, running the length of the sparsely populated interior of Puerto Rico from East to West, along the Cordillera Central was spectacular and at times heart stopping, not only for its beauty but for its unpredictable twists, through mist shrouded peaks, sheer canyons and impenetrable forests. We often lost our way as maps are inadequate and not really available. Due to the latter we saw many remote places rarely visited if the reaction of the few inhabitants was to go by.
We passed through remote coffee plantations clinging to the a steep hillsides and a few houses built on stilts. Avoiding the crater like pot holes, dogs and roosters was quite hazardous.
We enjoyed our 3 days exploring and felt we had a good insight of Puerto Rico.
We waited for the right moment to leave the sheltered water behind the reef and surfed into the open sea through the narrow Boca de Inferno at 3.45 am pointing towards the Spanish Virgin Islands.
Vieques and Culebra, the 2 little-developed Islets lying off the Eastern Coast of Puerto Rico have a laid back atmosphere, particularly since the US finally ceased its controversial bombing practise in Vieques in 2003. Our bikes came out of moth balls and we cycled as much as the hills would allow. Exercising is not in the local culture but sitting in the shade is the national sport. When we enquire how far was Isabel Segunda Town , ‘15 miles’ was the reply ‘but surely not on a bike?’ in fact it was no more than 5 miles. We were gratified to see them genuinely pleased to see us back in one piece on our return.
Culebra has a magic and peaceful feel about it. The kind of place people visited years ago and never left. We hiked to far away beaches. We were invited to a beautiful house overlooking the bay where we were moored for an evening meal. The view at sunset was stunning with it purple hue coloured sky. It was with regret we upped anchor.
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