Paradise

Rob's mom came in to watch the kids so we could take a much needed break away from life. (THANKS MOM!!!) We spent 4 days in Puerto Rico. Initially we planned the trip to celebrate our 10 year anniversary that happened last year BUT this trip will definitely take care of birthdays, anniversaries and holidays for the next few years. We stayed at the Rio Mar Resort. Its a luxury resort filled with plenty of on-site activities. But we actually wanted to SEE and EXPERIENCE Puerto Rico.

On a typical day you see find musicians playing.

There were lots of activities. This was a cooking demonstration.

The final product was a Coconut Kiss. SO YUMMY!!!

The hotel was full of interesting guests including these guys who roamed around all over the hotel grounds.

On our second day we took a tour to the El Yunque Rainforest where we took a hike to see La Mina Falls. This was our tour guide. You can see a banana tree in the background.

The foliage was beautiful.

There were several cascading falls.

In the rain forest you will find several tropical birds including the Puerto Rican Parrot, interesting bugs, snails and lizards and of course the two-note chanting of the Coqui frog. Here are a few things we spotted. Don't blink or you could miss them.

La Mina Falls

The Yokahu Tower overlooks the rain forest.

The view from this tower was pretty amazing.

We also saw the La Coca Falls which can be seen off the side of the road. Depending on the weather and the amount of rainfall will determine the flow of water down this massive rock.

That evening we took a Kayak out to the Bioluminescent Bay. A bio bay is a body of water that contains millions of tiny mico-organisms that glow in the dark for a second when the water is agitated.

On our third day we went to Capitol Building.

We also visited the San Cristobal Castle which was a fort built by the Spaniards to protect Puerto Rico.

This was a dungeon used for prisoners.

A lookout point.

Another fort named El Morro is located on the other hill side.

In Old San Juan the buildings were made of cement and painted bright colors.

This is the Governor's Mansion

We ate some Puerto Rican food. We tried a traditional food called Mofongo.

A dish I enjoyed were their sweet plaintains. YUM!

Pigeons Park - A pigeons paradise - Food is thrown to them constantly. As you can see, it's every bird for himself.

We loved taking long walks on the beach in the evenings.

Coconut trees grew along the beach

We found several crabs scurrying around the sand trying to find the nearest hiding place (a nearby hole in the sand) or they scurried into the water.

What a great way to end a day.

Our fourth and final day was spent on the beach.

We spent some time reading and relaxing.

When we pulled into the driveway this is what we found on the door. Apparently the kids missed us a little bit, but definitely enjoyed having grandma around and were sad to see her go.

We couldn't come back without souvenirs for the kids. Here they are with their new Puerto Rican friends.

What souveneirs did we bring back for the two of us...Well, 2 sunburns and a lot of great memories.