Puerto Rico: Day Three

Today was the best day that we have had so far. I suppose that Puerto Rico, more than anything, is a beach destination. I’ve got great beaches at my fingertips in Nicaragua, so I’m not that eager to catch some rays down here. Instead, we explored two lesser visited sites in the interior of the island today. We really enjoyed the little trip.

First stop were the Caverns of River Camuay. They were awesome. I guess I have become accustomed to the rugged Nicaraguan tourist infrastructure. This was nothing like that. The cave mouths are hundreds of feet down in sink holes. We were bussed in and out in trolleys and accompanied by a bilingual guide the whole time. The caves are large are filled with interesting stalactites (top down) and stalagmites (bottom up). We also saw big spiders, cave crickets, and bats, and we heard the chirp of the coquí again.

After the cave we took some winding mountain roads to a Taíno indigenous site. The Taíno inhabited Puerto Rico for thousands of years before the Spanish and the Carib indigenous group arrived. The site was small, but very pleasant. The Taíno played a ballgame and 10 ball courts were found at this site. The largest of the ball courts was fenced off by lithographic carvings. They were carved in hard granite and very well preserved. The drives we took throughout the day were also very nice and we got some great views of lush green ravines in central Puerto Rico.

In the evening I went with Aaron on his flight to Nevis, of St. Kitts & Nevis. He flies a one engine plane, but the flight was smooth. There were only three other passengers, plus a co-pilot. It was nighttime, so off to the left (north) I could see the string of islands that make up the Lesser Antilles lit up. And above the islands there was a great view of the stars. I can’t remember seeing stars from an airplane so well before.

UPDATE: Photos of Nevis

Four Seasons Nevis

St. Kitts at sunrise

Mt. Nevis

Nevis is nice, although I have only been here for a few hours, all in the dark. We had dinner at Aaron’s favorite Indian restaurant. It is a nice temperature and breezy. Nevis reminds me of Ometepe. There are approximately 12,000 residents here, all who live in a ring around a central volcano. Aaron’s airline put us up in the Four Seasons, which is very nice. I may wake up just a little bit early tomorrow to walk around and see a little bit of the island. Alexander Hamilton was born here, and Horatio Nelson, a man acquainted with the hardship of service in Nicaragua, was a famous resident.