Diving and Back to San Juan
It what seems to be a recurring pattern of up by 8am and up by 11am, today falls on the early side. The shuttle to the dive boat arrives at 7:30, by which time Nick and I have already eaten breakfast. Angela and the other boys are still comatose (shocking, I know), in the former case, with pillows bunched up around her head and mumbling every once in a while about how noisy we are.
We arrive at the dock to find that with the exception of one other person, we are the only ones going out this morning. The boat is on the small side (max is 6 divers) and will be a bit different experience for Nick (no buffet lunch or jumping off the top deck), but the sites are not far offshore so we won’t be spending much time on it anyway. The upside, is that they give Nick the option of rolling into the water backwards off the side which he is pretty stoked about.
The water has been a little choppy the past few days, so visibility isn’t quite as good as normal (or so the guides tell us), but it is significantly better than Thailand was in November, and across the two dives we get to see a fair amount of stuff. In addition to the Lionfish, Garden Eels, and turtles, Nick gets to see his first shark (a Nurse). There are also a couple of tiny swim-throughs on the second dive that give him another new experience.
We get back to the hotel a little after noon, which is plenty of time to gather up the rest of the horde, check out, and make it to the ferry terminal for our 3:00 departure.
Overall, I’m lukewarm on Vieques. There are some great things we experienced, like Green Beach, the bioluminescent bay, and the diving, but where it might be paradise for those whose vacation style trends toward umbrella drinks by the pool, it’s a little too slow for me. If I could do it over, I would still spend some time here, but maybe just two or three days.
When we arrive back on the main island, we pick up a car for the week to give us a bit of mobility. The hotel is about 40 miles away on the outskirts of San Juan, so that is our first destination. On the way, we stop at Luquillo Beach, where they have a string of roadside food stalls a couple of blocks long. Nothing is really familiar, but we try it anyway (with mixed results). The little people go way out of their comfort zone and try – wait for it – pizza. I’m so proud.
By the time we get to the hotel, it is already getting dark. The area reminds me a whole lot of Waikiki, which, admittedly, makes me a little nervous. It is one of the original hotels built on this stretch of beach from back in the days when lobbies were dimly lit and full of leather and crystal. We fit in fabulously with our swimming trunks and flip flops, but we musn’t be the first hillbillies they’ve seen as the staff never once asks if we need directions to the Super 8.
Now as much as I give my trusty travel partner a hard time for her addiction to cush hotel rooms, there is simply no person more adept at smooth talking a room upgrade (the first room we get is fine, but seven days with a view of the parking lot seems a bit uninspiring). I don’t know her secret (and maybe it’s better I don’t know), but a trip down to the lobby later, we’re dragging our bags down to the two room suite with the huge windows overlooking the ocean. The Roberts family is now very happy.
It’s late, so we don’t have too much time to explore, but of what we do see, the hotel is quite nice, and the beach easily the best we’ve seen in Puerto Rico (from a quality perspective anyway, as I’d probably still trade it for Green Beach).