Eye-opening Travel

Last week I flew to San Juan, Puerto Rico to spend a few days at a friend's place. It was an eye-opener, as naturally I expected to see some rendition of Teddy Roosevelt's glorious ride up San Juan Hill (with sword aloft), pictured in all our grade school texts. But touring El Morro, the fortress and walls at the tip of the island, it's easier to see us in a more Puerto Rican context: Teddy was no hero, rather just another invader in a long string of them--English, Spanish, the Dutch and U.S. Yes, us! The Taino Indians who originally inhabited the island are mostly long gone, unless you count the 20% Taino my niece, of Puerto Rican descent carries, and will pass on to her daughter who will be born in the next week or 10 days, for whom it will be 10%. 

Nonetheless, San Juan is a charming, hilly old city, reminiscent of old cities everywhere--cobblestone streets,  renovated buildings flush with narrow sidewalks, plazas where locals gather, though there are

fewer locals owing to the international elite owning many of them. There's one for sale by Cherif M----- down by the Plaza Colon in case you're interested.  

One of my all-time favorite tourist sights in Spanish-occupied and influenced countries are churches. In Mexico, next to the Indian ruins they are the most colorful for the penchant of dressing statues in real fabric. Such as this one in San Juan Cathedral of a saint whose relics are there. (Photo right.) If you go, do donate because clearly the restoration of the cathedral (unfinished) needs all the financial help it can get. 

 Equally charming and a wonderful stroll of a sunny, sweet-breeze-off-the-ocean afternoon is St. Maria Magdalena de Piazzi's Cemetery, also at the tip of the island, with its marble and granite sculptures of saints, angels and Catholic deities and their refined expressions of sorrow and grieving. 

Spanish influenced, warm regions are also famous for their wonderful fountains, courtyards and patios. San Juan is no exception and though hurricanes wreck havoc on some of this stuff, local artisans and carpenters seem be able to put the pieces back together every time it Humpty-Dumpties.

Hats off to the people of Puerto Rico for their ability to value and protect their own culture, making visiting a wonderful experience. 

Here is a flutist we caught one evening a small plaza in front of the Cathedral of San Juan, to which, when they docked the crews of Spanish ships, would go up the hill and thank God for a safe voyage.

Perhaps the most interesting cultural phenomenon was a "statue" on the Plaza de Armas. He is a real mime artist wearing full-body white face and standing on one of the empty pedestals surrounding the fountain. He truly looks like he's made of marble until he moves. The people--tourists and locals alike--gather in droves and I daresay he has a lucrative business because it is so astonishing when he moves.

San Juan is well worth the visit.