I took a really slow morning. Today’s plan was to “do” Old San Juan and the forts, maybe followed by a quick jump into the ocean. So before I left the hotel, I asked for a beach towel. Should have gotten two; they are not big.
Got into an Uber at about 10. The driver was a nice older gentleman who came here 50 years ago and never left. He tried to sell me a book, something about Jesus, and replied that I’m not a spiritual guy. He dropped me off at a cafe that he said had a nice breakfast, and he was correct. Some eggs, toast, juice, and a quesita. Didn’t fancy the cream cheese, but otherwise it was good.
Walked around a bit and found a mug. No, I did not buy this one.
Went to the first fort, Castillo San Cristobal. There was an entry fee of $10, which is also valid at the other fort. It actually took me almost two hours to walk around the whole compound; it’s rather big. Wasn’t that much information, but interesting to see the different aspects. They put some thought into it when they built it (and upgraded it) over the years. Apparently, it had a big impact on ships coming to the region from Europe.
When I thought I had seen everything, I left the fort and started hunting for some ice cream. But when I had crossed the old town and came out on the other end and hadn’t found any, I gave up and continued to the next fort, Castillo San Felipe del Morro. This was the first one, guarding the inlet to the San Juan harbour. I spent another 1½ hours walking through all six levels it contains.
At three, I left this compound and started to look for something to eat. I drank probably about 2,5 liters during the day in the heat. Google said it was about 30 °C, and that’s in the shadow. It’s fortunate that we’re at the coast with lots of ocean around, so the wind helped quite a bit.
After walking around a bit, I found a Burger King, so I dropped in for a quick burger, some wifi, and AC. Old San Juan seems to consist of quite narrow streets and low speed limits, so traffic is really slow. So I checked Google Maps to see where it eased up and walked a few blocks before ordering an Uber to go back to the hotel and the beach.
The driver said nothing except yes when I asked if it was Rafael, until he made a turn too early and was about to drive onto a one-way street, in the wrong direction. Then we had a brief conversation. But he got the job done and used the indicator, something that doesn’t seem to be very common here.
I walked down to the beach, which is a block from my hotel, and changed into swimtrunks. Found a spot on the sand where I dropped my bag and shoes and then got into the water. I have great respect for the power of water and waves, the suction that is created when the water goes back out. So it was with great caution that I entered the sea. I got more confident and felt in control, so I kept walking a bit further out so I could play with the waves. It wasn’t very deep, so the water level varied between my knees and my shoulders.
After half an hour, I got ready to head back to the hotel, when I noticed four police officers walking onto the beach towards another person in uniform. They all looked out at the sea, and then I saw two kits in the water a bit out. I guess they wondered if their owners were okay. After 10-15 minutes, a boat with blue lights got there, and the kites went up in the air, all good it seems, and the officers left the beach again.
I got back to the hotel and showered my feet to get rid of the sand. I then grabbed my eReader and went to the pool and read some. The water wasn’t that cold, but in combination with being in the sun all day and some jet stream in the pool, I almost started to freeze a bit. So I went back to my room again and took a warm shower. However, the water pressure is so low that it takes some time to rinse out shampoo and soap. The nozzle is mounted on the wall, so I can’t take it off either, as I did during my previous stay in San Juan.
My room would benefit from a dehumidifier; the stuff I ran through the laundry yesterday hasn’t fully dried, and I will need my swim trunks tomorrow, and they just got out of the pool 🙂
Anyhow, I watched today’s Formula 1 race on my laptop, thank god for VPN, and then set out to get some dinner. When I passed the reception to get a towel, there were no staff there, so I waited for a while. I got company from another guest, whose whole room had been emptied, suitcase, wallet, passport, everything. So he was a bit more eager to get hold of the staff; I just wanted a towel. I wished him luck and left.
I went to the restaurant I got recommended yesterday, Raices Urbano. I went into Walgreens first, which lies just next door, to get some breakfast. I’m getting picked up at 8:30, and I don’t want to find a cafe for breakfast before that (there is none at the hotel).
I ordered a risotto, and it was really good. I ate while reading. The book is quite captivating.
When I paid, I used my American Express card, but I’ve had it denied three times today, either saying it’s the wrong code or just some random error message. I even chatted with the Amex support, and they couldn’t see any failed transactions, so it must be the terminals. Irritating, since I’m sure about the PIN code (I even double checked it).
Walked back to the hotel, got my towel, and then wrote this while watching/listening to Broncos @ Commanders. I’m actually going to see the Broncos in Las Vegas next weekend.