Backtrack to Rincon and Mayaguez

Back on the road in the Rodeo

The good news is, auto service is pretty cheap here compared to home. They replaced both rear brake drums, pads and a seal. With labor, it came to $160. Not bad as far as I’m concerned. Plus they turned it around in 24 hours.

I made the mad dash to Rincon by 11AM and got shots of its small town square, then had a bite to eat at the local Panaderia. I had an Alcapuria (fried, made with green bananas, yuca and ground pork) and a Sorullo con Queso (fried corn meal dough stuffed with a little cheese) with juice.

Then I headed over to the local beach. The waves were flat, typical of this time of year.. so no surfer action. Shooting surfers was high on my list, maybe next time. I did meet a wooden boat builder from Maine who moved here several years back and was bumming his way around on his bicycle. A nice enough guy, struggling to stay busy. He said he had been to all the US States but Alaska and Hawaii. Quite the character.. never got his name.

After our little chat, I headed over to the local light house. Its a nicely done tourist attraction (without any fees). Very pretty. There were great views up and down the coast from there.

Then it was back to Mayaguez to see the only zoo on the island. The Dr. Juan A. Rivero National Zoo was originally established in 1954. It cost $10 to get in plus $3 to park. There were concessions scattered across the park plus a gift shop at the entrance you had to go through in both directions.

All the displays were outside with the exception of the small reptile/amphibian exhibit and the bird aviary. It was hot and humid, but worth the up hill slog to see it all. It was easy to cover in about an hour and a half. Some of the displays were behind chain-link or mesh screen making it impractical to shoot.. at least for me. They even had a Bald Eagle and a few Canadian Geese on display. The highlight of the “little” hike was the giant aviary cage. You walked into it via a set of screened double doors so they could not escape. Once inside, the birds and the visitors mixed freely.

Its a small, but nice zoo. It is starting to show its age, however I think its still worth the money. I would go back. The lighting was a little flat this time through.

I finally got back to the Santa Isabel turn off in time to eat dinner. I tried the “other” island fast-food chain, El Meson. I ordered the Boricua al Plato (a grilled flat steak). It didn’t look anything like the photo above the counter. It was “OK”, but nothing special. The platter came with a big pile of fries. The price seemed appropriate. To be fair, their menu was mostly sandwiches so I will go back and try one another time. The rating IS subject to upgrading at a later date.

Ponce is next…