What says the Fourth of July better than a post about our potentially soon to be 51st state? I kid, I kid. But they did vote on it again recently in Puerto Rico. I had a love affair with Puerto Rico, so close to New York, San Juan was a quick plane ride away. You didn’t need a passport, Old San Juan had it’s old colonial beauty and who could resists those early aught commercials of Ricky Martin saying, “Come to my Puerto Rico!” Well, with the global recession in 2008, Puerto Rico was hit hard. You definitely saw it in the big cities like San Juan where the building boom in the Condado district halted. Unemployment sky-rocketed, as did crime. I had a cab driver ask me on the way to the airport, “Why are you here?” Well, I got the message and hit pause on my trips to PR but I had been itching to go back. For years, I’ve heard mumblings about Rincón from friends and I’ll get into what eventually led my there in a later post but for now, here’s just a taste of the beautiful weekend I spent in Rincón for my birthday with my photos on my Fujifilm Instax camera.

Enjoy!

xx, Nn

My rooftop terrace view of Puntas and Sandy Beach from my rad home for the weekend, Casa de Rincon’s Ocean Terrace Suites.

Who do you want to be lounging and watching the waves with?

Obligatory selfie while waiting for my surf lessons.

I drove about 1.5 hrs down to Cabo Rojo to see this beautiful Puente Natural de Piedra. I wasn’t able to make it to Malta before their rock bridge collapsed so I had to see this beauty. The best part? Hardly any tourists!

Another must see in Cabo Rojo: Las Salinas. These stunning salt flats have algae that produce a kind of sunblock turning these “lakes” pink!

Daily run to the mini-mart

Hanging out poolside at Ocean Terrace.

Spotted these cuties watching the sunset on Sandy Beach!