(Originally written October 2019)
I didn’t want to feel confined to just one section of the city, so I decided to spend my last day-and-a-half in nearby Ocean Park. No more tours were planned and my trip was coming to an end. Originally, I had booked a second AirBnb, but of course, if you haven’t noticed a pattern of cancellations, something happened with the host and that reservation was cancelled one day prior to the beginning of my Puerto Rican escapades. As I sought out a replacement, I saw an ad on the side of a webpage for a site called Hotel Tonight. I had never heard of it, but decided to browse the available listings and booked a room at a small bed and breakfast.
My checkout was at Noon, so I packed my bags in order to allow myself the morning to relax. I had called the B&B the night before just to double-confirm my reservation, and I also booked an in-room massage for the evening.
One of my tour guides had driven me by a restaurant and recommended I go there for breakfast; so that’s what I did. I found La Mallorca on my iphone’s GPS – a 15-minute walk. I had learned that no matter the time of day, it would be warm out, so I filled my bottle with ice cold water and gave myself enough time to saunter on over at my leisure. I strolled down some new streets – as I had not really roamed all over Old San Juan. This one part of town near the port, specifically Calle San Francisco and Calle del Cristo, had a lot of shops – everything from mom and pop souvenir and jewelry shops to Marshalls, Coach and Pandora.
I realized I was walking downhill a lot, so it would be a trek to get back to the apartment.
La Mallorca was a cute café. There was a bar seating area and square table throughout the open space. A counter in the front had baked goods on display. I sat at a small, 2-person table by the window. I had a view of the entire dining area, and I could stare out, past Plaza de La Barandilla at the passerbys – people wandering, students going to Carlos Albizu University. The city seemed to be awakening on a typical Monday morning. I ordered a buttered Mallorca and guava juice. The pastry was made fresh, so it took about 15 minutes. I set my phone down and took in the nearby conversations – couples on vacation, locals coming in for a quick bite, a toddler boy running around and momentarily, awkwardly staring at me. I took this time to just breathe and be. The food was tasty and very inexpensive; I spent about $7 for the entire meal.
I made a little pitstop at Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery. I didn’t go “tour” it though because… nah.
It was a beautiful rising – warm but not overwhelmingly hot, clear skies, a gentle breeze. As I approached the apartment door, students from the nearby art institutes were speckled all over Ballaja Plaza, drawing. I went inside, opened the floor-to-ceiling doors to the balcony, turned on some tunes, and sang. I love singing, but I never want to be too loud and “disturb others.” I let my voice carry through the apartment and float out into the park.
Ten minutes to 12, I requested an Uber, locked up and waited outside. The total for that AirBnB stay was $383.68 for 3 nights.
It was about a 15-minute drive to my next lodging. My check-in wasn’t until 3, and my room wasn’t ready, so I dropped off my bags and walked to Calle Loiza to get some lunch. The hotel had recommended two restaurants, but I had read Calle Loiza was a popular street with lots of food and shops, so I just decided to walk there and see what I could find. Well, on a Monday afternoon, pretty much everything is closed. So that’s that. Also, why was I walking around in the early afternoon? I don’t know, but I do know I will never do that again. I was quickly dripping in sweat! I had a location in mind to go to, but after eight minutes, my GPS still said I had another ten or so minutes to walk, and I just could absolutely not. I spotted a café across the street that was open and just decided to go there; food is food. I know I walked in there drenched and looking disgusting. I asked and went to the restroom, first, to clean myself up.
Much to my surprise, it was a lovely little restaurant called Cocobana. It was a vegan Caribbean restaurant! I hadn’t expected to find a place that solely served this cuisine, but it was very clear that this part of town was also going through rapid gentrification. The food was served cafeteria-style. I had arroz al pesto cilantro (cilantro pesto rice), pimiento relleno de quinoa (quinoa stuffed pepper), pasta, and jugó de frutas. It was absolutely delicious and filling. I was too tired to take good pictures. Also, it was funny to note that this place was right across from a McDonald’s.
I still had a couple of hours until I could check-in, so I called another Uber and took a $5 ride to Calle Cerra in Santurce. This street is most notable for its murals/street art/graffiti. There are several tours you can book, but honestly, this is something you can do on your own unless it’s absolutely imperative that you have someone tell you about every single piece of art.
Calle Cerra is home to Santurce Es Ley, an art festival that began as a spontaneous, community art event, that has apparently turned into an international jubilee. “You can just drop me off on the next corner,” I told the driver. “Here?” He asked. “Yep, wherever. I have no destination; you can just pull over… Thanks.”
Santurce is going through redevelopment – I wouldn’t walk through there alone at night, for instance, but in the afternoon, I was fine. I thought it might be difficult to find some of the standout pieces that I had seen online, but it wasn’t at all. I walked up and down a few blocks and took in all of the most popular portraits.
Around a quarter-past-two, I grabbed another Uber and headed back to the B&B.
Now, when I booked the room, I wasn’t able to select which of the 12 suites I wanted to stay in. I had browsed their website, and of course there were some rooms I’d prefer over others, but I had to leave it up to chance. I walked past the bright red gate and entered The Dreamcatcher. It was like its own little tranquil world. Lush vegetation lined the small walkway. I could smell incense burning. Elephant, Buddha and Taíno statues gave even more life to the greenery. A small, black bird took a bath in the blue-colored fountain in the courtyard. Amethyst crystals decorated the tables. In the reception area, a poured a cup of water – the jug had bright pink flowers and cucumbers in it. A large, golden dog roamed the home.
I was still a little early, so I took a seat in the courtyard and started reading my book. “Woods?” A woman asked. “Yes.” “Your room is ready. You can get settled, and if you’d like, I can give you a tour.” “Awesome, thank you!”
My room was unequivocally picturesque! A wooden sliding door opened to a private patio, complete with a hammock and outdoor shower. A comfy queen-sized bed was in the bright, pale-green room – a hand-written welcome note sat atop a set of towels. There was a large walk-in closet and private bathroom (some of the rooms had a shared bathroom, that’s what I had hoped to avoid, haha).
I glanced inside the gift boutique – definitely browsed because I could not afford the $100 hand-made stone necklaces. Hell, to be honest, this whole place is out of my grad-school-life budget, hahaha. The Sanctuary Suite that I was staying in typically goes for about $194 per night, but using the third-party booking site, I got it for $102 – which was about what the Air BnB I had planned on staying in was going for. Love me a good deal! There was an outdoor, shared kitchen, where I had my own shelf in the fridge. “It’s a pescatarian kitchen,” I was told. All of the food served (breakfast/brunch) was vegetarian. In the same area was an in-ground pool filled with turtles. I used to have a pet turtle, so it made me happy to see all the cute, little creatures. I watched and played with them later that evening.
The concierge and I walked through a huge, wooden and glass door into a lounge – with board and card games, including Cards Against Humanity – and into the dining area. There was a chef’s kitchen, chalkboard with the day’s food offerings, and a mini-fridge with wines and other beverages. “It’s an honor system – you can put cash in the jar for your items, or write down what you took on the clipboard.” Truthfully, the only thing that felt awkward to me about this place was all of the security cameras around the main spaces; so, I don’t think it would be possible for anyone to cheat the “honor system.”
Once back in my room, I decided to take a shower in the outdoor shower – why use the one inside when I could be free outdoors? I stripped down and walked to the terrace and turned on the water. It was so quiet and relaxing that I could meditate in an unconstrained environment. I cleansed myself in the silence, in my aloneness. It was lovely.
I moisturized with a body butter from Nealea’s Naturals, dimmed the lights, turned on one of my favorite songs, Muy Tranquilo by Gramatik, and awaited the arrival of the masseuse – for my in-room massage. Shortly after 4:30, I heard a knock on the outer door and welcomed in Yadira. She was a petite, energetic woman with curly, dark hair. “Would you like me to set up outside or in?” She asked. I chose inside. We chatted as she got everything together. “Now, I have like 50 mosquito bites on my body, but I promise they’re just bites,” I warned her. Y’all. Make sure you sleep with mosquito nets. I honestly had 15 bites just on one calf; I looked like the CDC should’ve quarantined me. She used her speakers to continue playing a Gramatik playlist, as I had requested, and I enjoyed an hour-long full body, deep tissue massage. I felt so rejuvenated and at rest by the end of the service. I almost fell asleep by the time we were done. She gave me some exercises to help with the scar tissue in my right wrist from an incident that happened 5 years ago and we hugged as she departed. As I mentioned at the end of Day 2, this service was about $80 and was charged to my room’s bill.
I laid in bed for about 30 minutes, meditating some more. The Afro-Caribbean tour host had texted me information about an event at a nearby location, that would feature bomba! The woman that I had gone to the beach with and I messaged each other and planned to meet that night to check out the live music, so I got up, got dressed and took another Uber to La Terraza de Bonanza. I pulled up to an outdoor space – people were spilling into the street. This was very clearly not a touristy spot, which was pretty cool. I met up with my buddy and we bought shirts from a stand set-up by woman named Wendy, whose merchandise had women-empowerment slogans and celebrated Puerto-Rican heritage. You can order her merchandise here.
I ordered a few tacos and a rum and coke, and enjoyed the company of my travel friend, talking about love and life, until the music began, close to 9pm. All around, people were dancing – some even got on stage and gave a fabulous show! Oh, how I wish there was some impromptu lesson because I would have loved to join in!
During my cultural tour, we had been reminded that Puerto Ricans are three ethnicities – Taíno, African and Spanish. All around, you could see the different textures and tones that weaved themselves into an eclectic web of really rich, opulent and diverse culture. I much preferred this over a club or more touristy venue. This felt like a more authentic nightlife experience.
My mate and I took an Uber, together, back to our places of rest, and I went to bed…
