PR - Lazy and (Somewhat) Wasted Day

After the intense activity of the last two days, we were pooped. Given the torrential rainfall San Juan got all day Tuesday, it was an excellent excuse to hang out at the hotel and do absolutely nothing. Being lazy is what vacations are all about, right? (Ok, I've only really had one lazy vacation in my life, but all the new parents at my work recommended we take this opportunity while we could.) So, other than a little workout at our hotel's exercise room, we watched tv, napped, read and ate. I actually never even left the hotel. Mike popped out to grab us some lunch, but we had breakfast in the hotel restaurant and then had pizza delivered for dinner. True laziness! Even though it rained 98% of the day, there were a couple of sunny moments that morning and I was able to get a nice shot (reflected out of our cool mirror in our "reading room") of the beautiful view.

What I Did All Day

We had grand plans for today (Wednesday). We got a very early start to the day and were up and out of the hotel at 7 am. A quick trip down to Old San Juan to get a picture of the cool blue brick streets and we headed out of San Juan. Our destination - the caves at Camuy. We wanted to get there in time for the first tour then check out the Arecibo Observatory and get to our hotel in Guanica to relax for the afternoon.

Street View of Old San Juan

Blue Bricked Streets

We got to the caves at about 9 am. Unfortunately, due to the mass amounts of rain received in the last couple of days, tours were being delayed due to mud clean up in the caves. So, we waited. After about 30 minutes, they let us in to watch the intro movie then it was out to the trolley loading area where we waited. Apparently, they still weren't quite ready to give tours. So, we grabbed a snack from the cantina, entertained ourselves with feeding some of the 12 stray cats that hang out in the area and waited. Finally, we boarded the trolley and headed out to see the sink holes. They were impressive sites! 

Three Points Sink Hole - 400 Feet Deep

Nerd in Hard Hats (Yes, They Made Us Wear These)

Camuy Sinkhole-Bat Entrance

Looking Up From Sinkhole

So, when do we finally get to see the caves? Apparently, never. They were having some "problem" in the cave they were trying to resolve so that we could go on the tour. After viewing the sinkholes, we headed back to the kiosk area and waited. Then they made the announcement that there would be no tours today and we could get a raincheck. So, 3 hours after arriving, we left and had not gotten to see the caves. Bummer. The Observatory is in that area and it was something Mike really wanted to see. However, after reading a bad review from a tourist about the Observatory the night before, Mike didn't think he could handle another disappointment for the day so we decided to just head south.

With map in hand and google directions, compliments of the iphone, we headed off. It was a trip neither one of us will ever forget. At first, the windy mountain roads gave us absolutely breathtaking views that we thoroughly enjoyed. But, as the winding road became S and hairpin turns on a 1 and a quarter lane wide road for about 2 hours, we had had enough! I was getting car sick in the front seat and Mike's arms and leg were getting sore from all the turning and braking. We hope to NEVER go on that road again! But, we got through it (mostly) unscathed and arrived at our beautiful hotel in Guanica.

Mike Starting Out on the Windy Road

Our first stop at the hotel, check out the shaded lounge chairs on the beach, do some reading and enjoy a strawberry daiquiri (non alcoholic for me, of course). Ah! It quickly melted all of our road stress away. After more resting in the hotel room, we had a lovely dinner at the "casual" outdoor cafe and were serenaded by a wonderful guitarist. The lighted tennis courts were beckoning, so we went to them and hit a few balls around after dinner and now it's time for a movie and a good nights rest! Buenos Noches!

Self Portrait on the Beach

Gorgeous Sunset!

For more pictures of the day, check out the full album here.