Turtle Beach, Culebra

Turtle Beach is located in Culebrita, Culebra. It’s only a few minute drive from one of Culebra most famous beaches: Flamenco. This beach is an amazing place to go if you have children. Not only will they have fun, but they’ll learn too. I’ve found that when a person can see up close an animal like that, they get a new found love and respect for them, making them care more about keeping them safe. Turtle Beach has some of the best snorkeling ever because you’re able to see not only how beautiful it is underwater, you can see and swim with the turtles. There are also stingrays and colorful fish. Snorkeling is $20 per person and they’re totally worth it. I didn’t go too early, but they said the earlier you get there the more chances of actually swimming with the turtles you have.

It’s extremely important that you respect the turtles. Do not give them any of the snack foods you decide to bring and don’t leave any trash because it could get to them. Turtles are usually friendly and don’t mind being touched, but always being gentle because they might get scared.

There are amazing places to eat and I thought many of them had reasonable prices. The food is wonderful and there is a widespread of locations with a variety of menus. Don’t forget to try some of the delicious street food!

Like Vieques, Culebra is an island off Puerto Rico. This means that you need to take the ferry from Ceiba to get there. It’s $4.50 for the round trip per person. The earliest ferry to leave from the big island to Culebra is at 6:30 am last ferry to leave from Culebra to Ceiba is at 1:30pm, except on Sundays when it’s at 5 pm. Same as Vieques, Culebra has a van service that is always around the pier so that when you get off you can just ask them about their price for one trip or for the whole day. Not all the prices are the same all the time, they depend on the person in charge of each van.

This place has been, by far, one of my favorite places I’ve visited. I learned so much and gained a new love for the little turtles. It was so adorable!

Location: Culebrita, Culebra, Puerto Rico

MacCannell, D. (2011). The Ethics of Sightseeing. California: University of California Press

Upcoming Events All Over Puerto Rico!

Here is a list of festivals that are coming up. Visiting festivals is a great way to check out the different culture there are in our tiny island.

Page: Mi Agenda PR

Post Title: Listado de eventos y actividades gratis en Puerto Rico

Link: http://www.miagendapr.com/etags/gratis/page/5/

Sandy Beach, Rincón

Sandy Beach in Rincon is a beautiful spot on the west side of Puerto Rico. It’s a great place to visit, especially if you’re a surfer because that’s what it’s known for. This really isn’t a beach to go and have a swim at; it’s mostly just to go walk around, see people surfing or even catch a competition. However, there are many thing to do around it. Great places to shop and amazing food. There’s even a raw oyster bar you could try (I didn’t dare, but my brother went for it and said they weren’t bad).

Rincón is famous for being a surfer’s haven. However, it wasn’t always considered to be. It wasn’t until 1968 surfing got popularized in the island, after the World Surfing Championship took place here. People started going to Rincón’s beaches because they were considered, and still are, great for surfing because of their 20-feet tall waves. Since then, surfing has spread throughout Puerto Rico and the Caribbean alike. Rincón is even considered to be the surfing capital of the Caribbean and draws surfers from all over to come here looking for great waves to surf.

Location: 7 00677, Km4 Hm 7 Carretera 413 Ramal, Rincon, 00677

PR Surf. (2012). Surfing in Rincón, Puerto Rico. December 3, 2018, from Rincón Vacations website: http://rinconvacations.com/surfing-in-rincon-puerto-rico.html

Interview With a Viequense

In one of my last blog posts I talked about a beautiful place I visited in Vieques, Puerto Rico. However, Vieques has been going through a rough patch since hurricane Maria. That’s why, to better understand the situation viequenses are going through, I decided to interview Luis Monserrate. He is a viequense studying at the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez. He got to see up close how tourism was affected by the hurricane and the negligence by the government.

How long have you been living in Vieques?

L: I’ve been living in Vieques for 18 years, my whole life.

Were you able to witness how Vieques changed after hurricane Maria?

L: Yes, I got to see all the physical destruction and the social neglect from our government.

To my knowledge, Vieques has been somewhat, if not completely, ignored by our government. Would you say that is correct? Why?

L: Most definitely. Vieques has been ignored by government officials since before the hurricane. Vieques still doesn’t have and is suffering a transportation crisis as we speak with the maritime transport being unavailable.

How do you feel about that?

L: It makes me feel mad, mainly because not only is the government abandoning us, but so are our own people that choose not to fight the system.

Did it [the hurricane] have a significant impact on tourism?

L: The hurricane did hurt the island’s aesthetic but it recovered quickly and got it’s tourism back. However, now the whole government issue has made it impossible for tourist to get here because of the whole maritime transportation crisis I mentioned earlier.

Which are, in your opinion, the most visited locations in Vieques?

L: I would have to say Sunbay Beach, Fuerte Conde Mirasol, La Esperanza (beach, neighbourhood), Red Beach and the Ceiba Tree, which is five hundred years old.

What’s your favorite place?

L: My favorite place is La Esperanza. It’s the most gentrified area in Vieques and it has amazing food.

Lastly, what makes Vieques a great place to visit? What makes it unique?

L: The resilient people in Vieques are what make it unique and worth the visit. They’ve gone through so much, yet they are such open and warm toward everybody.

Vieques is a beautiful place we should all visit, because if our government won't help them, we should all try to.

Check Out This Awesome List!

This is a great list with things to do in Puerto Rico! It has different things to do, such as things to eat and places to visit. With only a few things you do from this list you can get an amazing Caribbean experience!

Page: PuertoRico.com.pr

Post Title: 100 Cosas Para Hacer En PR Antes De Morir

Link: http://puertorico.com.pr/100-cosas/

Museum of The Ponce Massacre, Ponce

The Museum of the Ponce Massacre is one of the most interesting museums around for history buffs. It’s the actual place where the massacre happened, which makes the experience even more impactful. The feeling you get when you’re there is really eerie. Personally, my heart felt really heavy because it’s such a tragic moment in the history of my island.

This massacre occurred on March 21, 1937. It is said to be the bloodiest act of repression towards the independent party in the history of Puerto Rico with 19 deaths and over 200 injured. The  history behind this massacre is that the governor at the time, who was imposed by the US government, general Blandon Winship, ordered the killings of the nationalists. This after they got word that they had planned a march in Ponce. The gathering was peaceful, but they had already tilted them as “rebellious, no good doers”. That’s why Winship sent police officers, along with his right hand man, to stop them. One of the victims was a little girl coming out of church, so not all the deaths and injured were part of the march.

One of my few complaints is that there isn’t a guide to explain what you’re looking at. Also, it’s actually a pretty small place and it’s kind of hot which made me feel a little uncomfortable. I would recommend you consider wearing comfortable, airy clothes so you can have a better experience, because let’s be honest, the heat sometimes ruins it.

Photo From: Periodico Claridad

Location: Cuarto, Ponce 00732

Rosado, M. The Ponce Massacre (1937). Recovered December 3, 2018, from Enciclopedia de Puerto Rico Sitio web: https://enciclopediapr.org/en/encyclopedia/the-ponce-massacre-1937/

Playa La Chiva, Vieques

Playa La Chiva in Vieques Puerto Rico is another Puerto Rican, natural beauty. It’s also known as Blue Beach because of how crystal clear the water is! This amazing place is also part of the National Wildlife Refuge. It’s remarkable and truly one of a kind. I’ve been to Vieques many times, but never to La Chiva and I think that is probably one of my biggest mistakes in life. As soon as I got there and saw the beach all I could think is “how is it that I have never been here?”

This beach is so big (a mile and a half long!) that you feel like you have it all to yourself, and on the off season, you probably do. There are so many beautiful sights and Chiva has more than just it’s beautiful view to show for it. Some people have seen sting rays, turtles and even nurse sharks! In this amazing place you can also do snorkeling and the sun is great for a suntan.

There are great places to eat all throughout Vieques, the places around the beaches are usually expensive, but so worth it. The only thing I would recommend when going to Vieques is to bring bug spray! The mosquitoes go crazy when you’re out of the water, so be prepared!

Giving that Vieques is a small island off of Puerto Rico, you need to take the ferry from Fajardo to it. Usually the tickets are $2 dollars, making it $4 per person for the round trip. The trip is about half an hour to an hour, but you have to get there early to purchase the tickets otherwise there might be none left for the day. Another thing you can do is buy them beforehand be it a few days before or online. Once in Vieques, if you don’t rent a car, there are actually a lot of van and bus services that will take you anywhere in the island for the day, but each of them have their own prices. You could stay over there for a weekend or just go for the day and you will still enjoy yourself so much. The last ferry usually leaves at 6:30 in the afternoon, but you can leave Fajardo as early as 9:30 am giving you all day to do and visit different locations.

Something important to know before going to Vieques is that it’s not fully recovered from the hurricane because there has been a lot of negligence from the government and there are places still without electricity. It was really heartbreaking to see that they are still struggling, more than a year after the hurricane. Nonetheless, they still welcome you into their home with a warm smile.

Location: Puerto Ferro, Vieques 00765

CBS News. (2018). Forgotten island: Vieques still running entirely on generators more than a year after Maria hit. December 1, 2018, from CBS News website: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/puerto-rico-island-viques-still-running-entirely-on-generators-more-than-a-year-after-maria-hit-2018-09-22/

Las Pailas, Luquillo

Las Pailas is a natural river in Luquillo. It has a great natural rock slide that can make anyone feel like a little kid. It looks like it might hurt, but it’s extremely fun. Las Pailas also has various natural pools; one of them has a rope you can use to swing into the beautiful waters of this river. It’s really cold, but in this Puerto Rican heat it’s nice and welcoming.

It’s free of cost to enter the river, however the people that live next to it charge around $5 for parking. There’s a house there that sells candy and a variety of beverages, but there really isn’t any place to buy food nearby. I would recommend you bring a little cooler with some snacks and water. Also, please bring a little plastic bag to put all your trash in, it’s a really beautiful place and we should all work to keep it that way. Another recommendation I make is to try not to wear flip flops because the rocks are slippery and there’s a chance of someone falling.

This river is considered by many Luquillenses a treasure of their land. The flora is absolutely breathtaking and it makes the space seem so welcoming. People have even gone to Las Pailas for their wedding pictures (the few that I’ve seen have been so incredibly beautiful!). But that doesn’t mean that if you don’t have a professional camera the pictures won’t look good. It’s also great for selfies!

Always keep in mind that to keep it that way, we have to keep it clean.

Photo By: PuertoRicoDayTrips.com

Location: PR-983, Luquillo, 00773

Trent Dalton, Welcome to Utopia

Check Out This Great Blog Post!

I saw this blog and thought it was pretty amazing. Maria Eugenia, the author, talks about everything from fashion to beauty to travel. This post about a weekend in Puerto Rico is great and I thought it could benefit my readers as it did me.

Author: Maria Eugenia

Blog: The Girl On An Island

Post Title: How To Plan A Last Minute Getaway: Puerto Rico

Link: https://www.thegirlonanisland.com/2018/03/the-last-minute-weekend-getaway-puerto.html

Birth Of The New World Statue, Arecibo

The Birth of The New World Statue, known around Puerto Rico as the Statue of Columbus, is a 360 feet bronze statue located in Arecibo. The ride there is pretty nice and you can appreciate many of our island’s beautiful landscapes. However, there’s not much to do at the Statue’s site because the TerraVista Park, which is said to have restaurants, zipline, kayaks and more by 2020, is still under construction, but you can say you visited a pretty incredible piece of architecture. It’s $3 to enter the lot to see it, so that’s a plus too. With the money you save you can go visit some of the great “chinchorros” (food spots that serve amazing Puerto Rican street food) that are close by.

This statue, work of russian architect Zurab Tsereteli, is currently the tallest in the United States and the fourth tallest in the World. It is surpassed only by Laykyun Sekkya in Myanmar (380 ft), the Spring Temple Statue in China (420 ft) and The Statue of Unity in India (597 ft). It started production in 1991 to commemorate Christopher Columbus’ first voyage. The three sails it features behind him are representative of his three ships: La Nina, La Pinta and Santa Maria. After years of building, the statue finally got to the island in 2016 and officially opened in 2017.

Personally, I believe this was a pretty foolish investment. It cost over 2 million to an island heavily in debt, to transfer the statue over here.  All that money could’ve been used in more efficient ways. What makes matters worse is that we’re honoring a man that forced himself into this island and stole all our gold from us. He slaughtered our men and raped our women. The fact that we accepted this “gift” is so strange to me.

Photo taken from: www.elespanol.com

Location: Islote, Arecibo 00612

Yeats, W.B. (1920). The Second Coming. The Dial, p. 238

Then Versus Now

    My high school experience was pretty great when I look back on it. I went to a great school where I learned a lot and I met amazing people I’m still close with. However, it was a new school so it took a lot of hard work from both the administration and us, the students, to get the school to where it is now. Going back I felt very nostalgic; even though I’ve only been out of high school for a little over five months. It felt like going back to a childhood home where you made so many memories.

    I went to what could be described as a boarding school. I spent five days there and only two at my actual house, so you can see why I felt like I was going back to an old house. I felt as if nothing had changed because it looks exactly the same, but it’s so different from when I attended. Sure, it’s still a place where people go to learn and its purpose is still preparing high schoolers for college, but it’s feel is completely different.

    During my three years in that school we had a lot of problems with the structure. Since the school is located in an old naval base in Ceiba, there were always problems with the water and electricity. There were a lot of times where we had to leave because the power would go out or because there was no clean water and we couldn’t stay. After Maria, my school didn’t have electricity or water for eleven months. Even after they claimed that a hundred percent of Puerto Rico had been restored. Nobody really cared about the school, except us. That’s why we started to make noise and get the attention of people, we considered, could help us.It took a lot of effort and a lot of ignored phone calls from the administration to get the school back to normal for the students left after my class and I graduated.

    Now, the school won’t have any other problems with the water because it was given twenty four hours to fix their black watersー and they did. They also started a project where parents give money to the school so they can buy diesel for the power generator in case the electricity is out. Those seem like pretty good changes in my opinion because it keeps the student from missing class due to lack of resources. Something that would have been very efficient when I went there.

    Another thing that changed were the teachers. We had the same teachers the three years I attended. Sure, they changed maybe two or three throughout, but that was it. This year I went back hoping to see some familiar faces and I found a complete new team. The administration only had three familiar faces and the teachers I had grown to know and loveーsometimesー were gone. Only a few teachers I knew were left. I hope the new ones are as good as the ones I had the privilege to have.

    Something that didn’t really change, except for me, is the stress levels. Before, when I entered it was just so stressful and I was drained all the time because of the demands of the school. When I went back it was just a feeling of peace and something like gratefulness to the school for preparing me for my life now and making it seem not so bad. Regardless, you can still see the stress in the students when they walk around. It’s a very demanding school. You have to maintain a certain GPA or they expell you, classes are all AP so, in consequence, the AP tests are mandatory.Classes are an hour and forty minutes, and you have to take two maths and two sciences per semester. That’s why when you enter you feel like you’ve just become part of the zombie apocalypse. Students still walk around laptop strapped to their hand doing work they couldn’t finish the night before.

    They have a time they have to be out of their “villas” to go to class and they can’t go back inside until a determined time. Everything was regulated before. Even until what time you had to take a shower and how many times you could do laundry and until what time you could be out of your own room. Now I was told by some of the students it’s a little more relaxed. They still have a determined time to leave and be back to the villa, but the time they spend outside their rooms wasn’t regulated. Neither was the was time to wash your clothes or the time lights have to go out. Also, before you weren’t supposed to use the phone (from the school, because there is no signal for cell phones in a naval base) unless it was an emergency and they determined what was considered an emergency. Now, you can call whenever, but still within reason.

    In Origin of the Boarding School: Assimilation Versus Extermination it reads “Students talked about their loneliness , about being away from their families. Some would try to run away, only to be caught and brought back”. The first time I read it I felt so detached from it because I had a very different idea of what my high school experience was actually like, but going back there I realized how true this specific quote is to my high school. The fact that I wasn’t able to call my family whenever I pleased made it a little more difficult than it already was, and I know it is for the students still attending. When you have to isolate yourself from a lot of people a lot of the times to get stuff done it becomes this weird kind of loneliness that I don’t think you can get unless you’re part of the boarding school community.

    I loved my high school regardless of anything because I learned and it prepared me for a lot of things. That’s why I didn’t really want to accept that some measures were a little extreme. Even some I didn’t consider to be.

Looking through whose eyes?: An autoethnography

When asked who I am, I answer with my name: Kiara Nicole Cordero Del Valle. Because that’s who I am. That’s what I assume we’re supposed to answer. But, are we really just a name? Are we really defined only and solely by something that was given to us and not by what we’ve chosen and decided for ourselves?

If I were to answer more in depth about myself when asked who I am, I’d say I’m a Puerto Rican, a feminist, a Political Science major, a bookworm and a movie buff. That’s the way I see myself as an individual walking around the world. However, when asking how other people perceive me I was described as: smart, driven, a lover, but also a fighter, overprotective, caring and supportive.

I believe that everything we are is just the result of a compilation of events and experiences that have happened to us. Every single choice we make is persuaded by how we were raised and what we’ve been through. That’s why I believe I am the way I am.

Certainly, the person that’s had the most effect on how I turned out is my mom. She’s been a single mother since I was four years old. She had me when she was sixteen and my brother when she was seventeen. After she graduated high school she used to study and work full time and still manage to check mine and my brother’s backpacks and take us to school in the mornings. I know it was very difficult for her because my dad had moved to the United States, so it was just her. Having seen how hard my mom worked and how determined she was to give me and my brother everything we needed and wanted is why I am so determined and so driven.

I have four brothers, but I live with three of them, and I’m the only girl and the oldest. That’s why since I was twelve years old I used to take care of my brothers after school when my mom was at work. I believe that’s what’s made me so overprotective and caring. That’s why I take care of everyone around me even when it’s not my job. I’m used to having to take care of everyone and everything, so that’s what I do. I’ve always worked hard at being the best version of myself so I can be a good role model to my younger brothers. Therefore, I’ve always been good at school, or at least I assume it is.

Because I’ve always dealt with anxiety, as a result of bullying, and I read in an article that reading helped with that, for my thirteenth birthday, I asked my mom for my first book: The Mortal Instruments. Once I finished that book I went on to read more and more. Now I’m able to read a three hundred page book in two days because it calms me. I like the idea of being in someone else’s world for a few hours. I guess that’s also the reason I love movies so much.

However, the thing I think what represents me the most is my feminism. I’ve considered myself a feminist since I was fifteen and I’ve worked on it everyday since. I grew up in an environment where my mother always made sure I knew women were capable of everything men were able to do and maybe even more.That’s why I decided to study political sciences, because I believe there should be more women working in politics, especially here in Puerto Rico. I guess you could say my mom guided me to it, even though she didn’t consider herself a feminist until I started talking to her about it.

Along with my mom, two of my biggest influences were Dolores “Lolita” Lebron and Pedro Albizu Campos. Reading their stories I understood that we, the people of Puerto Rico, are not being respected and I think that Puerto Rico should be freed from our colonizers. I’m a patriot and I sincerely love my country like I love my mother. That’s why I believe we deserve better than what we’re getting.

My mother  influenced my life choices by just showing me indirectly her beliefs and I never really noticed until now. My mom never pushed anything on me and allowed me to be my own person with my own sets of ideals, but I still managed to turn out almost exactly like her. And I guess that’s a good thing, because my mom is one of the smartest people I know.