This will be the last post about our Puerto Rico vacation. With it, I share a few more photos from our trip.

Enjoy.

***All pictures taken by Justin Edwards.***

Our week in Puerto Rico consisted of sightseeing, some family time, and a lot of driving back and forth from one spot to another. But, we had a great time and the kids were wonderful. Considering we were dragging them around with no regard for their normal routines and schedules, they behaved really well.

And my daughter? She’s the awesomest explorer ever. She was a real trooper and was up for all our “adventures,” as she called them. She was like our own little Dora and even made up her own song as we hiked in El Yunque.

So, what did we see and visit? It was a mix of must-see tourist spots, some nostalgic visits to towns dear to my family, and a couple of new places we’d never visited.

Places to Visit in Puerto Rico

West Coast of Puerto Rico

We took a little ride up the west coast from the southwest corner where we stayed in Cabo Rojo, up to the northwest corner and into Isabela. Along the way, we made a few stops.

Cabo Rojo Lighthouse & Cliffs

Rincon Lighthouse

Aguadilla

This is the birthplace of my parents and where they grew up. We had to visit with them and hear the stories of “I used to play there” and “If you look up that mountain, our house used to be up there.” Highlights in Aguadilla include:

• Crash Boat Beach – Where it was way too busy both times we passed by for us to find parking and actually stop. I did get a shot of the sign before we left though.
  
• Parque de Colón
  
• El Parterre
• La Plaza

Isabela

We only made one stop in Isabela as we passed through. And that was to take a picture of the Taíno face sculpture on the side of the road.

La Parguera Bioluminescent Bay

This was a first for us and we took the boat ride at night to see the bio bay. Somewhere in this water there are sparkles.

Visits On the Western Half of the Island

Moving more inland, we made sure to make our way to these landmarks.

Cavernas de Camuy

Centro Ceremonial Indígena de Caguana in Utuado

Lago Dos Bocas

Mountain Scenic Route

East Side of Puerto Rico

Of course, we made our way back towards the east side of the island.

El Yunque – Caribbean National Rain Forest

La Coca Falls

La Mina Falls

Viejo San Juan (Old San Juan)

Amazingly, we did not get many pictures as we walked through San Juan. Probably because we had lots of us to keep track of, including small children, and the streets are narrow and were crowded. It was pretty hard to do anything but just walk. We did get this shot of what I think is a house (can’t remember).

Parque de las Palomas (Pigeon Park)

That's me fearing for my life trying to feed the pigeons.

El Morro

Levittown

After visiting the birthplace of my parents, I made everyone take a drive through the neighborhood where I lived for the first 8 years of my life. I was able to show my husband the house where we lived, though it and the neighborhood looked very different. And with all the excitement over seeing my old house, friends’ houses, and even my old school, I did not take any pictures.

***All pictures taken by Justin Edwards or Melanie Edwards.***

Want to visit Puerto Rico? Check out the guide on UpTake, with information on lodging, things to do, and more.

Ahem. I know I said that today you’d be getting a run down on what we did and saw on our vacation in Puerto Rico. But, I just had to tell you about our time before we even officially got started. Apparently, I had a lot more to say than I thought, and it became a post of its own.

Soooo, you’ll be getting four days of Puerto Rico instead of just three. Lucky you!

I promise I’ll get into the details of our week and tell you about all the wonderful places we visited. But today, I will tell you about our first travel day.

The Plane Ride

Oh the flight. The flight that nearly killed me. And I’m not.even.exaggerating.

First let me tell you that I’m not really a nervous rider. I only get a little anxious on take-off and landings. Something about the bumpiness of it all and feeling those wheels lift off the ground just shakes me a bit. I always have to hold someone’s hand. (So, who volunteers to get me through the flight to BlogHer?) Once we’re in the air, though, I’m fine.

However, when the plane starts to jerk this way and that way, and just a little more than what you’re used to, you begin to get a little nervous. And sure I’m used to the pilot officially announcing “we’re experiencing some turbulence.” That’s all normal.

But, then the plane suddenly dropped. Dropped as if I was on the freaking Tower of Terror ride at Disney. In case you’ve never been on it, your butt lifts off the seat as it drops.

That’s exactly what happened on the plane. That’s never happened on any flight I’ve ever been on. Ever.

Of course you know that I was crying my eyes out. You know how people say that they see their lives flash before their eyes? I didn’t. Instead I saw my baby girl’s life…or what would be her life. And I just kept thinking “I’m not ready. There’s so much to see her do still.”

And do you want to know what my husband said? He took my hand and said, “What does it matter? We’re together.” It shocked me into calmness.

Trekking Across the Island

Ok enough dramatics. Oh no, wait wait. One more story.

The SUV we rented online said that it would fit 5 passengers and 5 large bags. But, we quickly realized that it only fit 2 bags comfortably and maybe 3 if we squeezed it in.

(Here’s where I would insert a picture of the trunk and us trying to fit all 5 bags, had I taken one. But, I’m pretty sure that would have royally pissed off the husband who was desperately trying to make it work at the time.)

After much struggle, the company gave us two intermediate sedans. But, that meant that I would have to drive one of them 3 hours across to the other side of the island.

Me? Driving in Puerto Rico? Oh.hell.no. I was not at all for it.

Of course, I got lost just trying to leave the airport and finding a spot where we could meet my older brother who had flown in with his family from Milwaukee. And my husband who has never been to Puerto Rico was following me.

It was an awesome start for our trip. Absolutamente-freaking awesome. And me coming off the shakiness from the plane ride. Oh yea, I was a JOY to be around at that moment.

But, we finally found our way after some guidance from my older brother and met up with them about halfway through the trek to the west coast of the island.

The House

Finally, we arrived at the rental house. Exhausted.

We stayed in Cabo Rojo, on the southwest corner of the island. The house we stayed in was actually really nice and comfortably fit all 9 of us. At last something was actually looking right for the week and I could actually begin to enjoy myself.

A quick run for dinner, some brief planning of the week’s itinerary, and our first day in Puerto Rico was over.

Come back Wednesday when I’ll finally tell you about our sightseeing.

*Photo from rental information page.

Today’s the first full day we’re in Puerto Rico. I’ll be gone all week and won’t have full Internet access. I’m not even taking a laptop.

But, I’m sure I’ll manage to be on twitter and maybe even facebook from my phone, so be sure to follow along to get updates of our trip.

In the meantime, enjoy the scenery. See you next week!

Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico

Photo from garbageboy