Isla South Region, Puerto Rico

50th San Blas Half Marathon of Coamo

The party of the decade! Or… Why stay in San Juan when you can be here, the center of the Universe?

This was my 3rd San Blas Marathon.

The 1st post in 2010 featured a lot of photos and a video of the runners going by from a fixed vantage point. The 2nd post in 2011 featured tons more shots, a map of the route and a video of the route shot from the roof of my SUV. It turned out to be very popular on Youtube.

It gives you a real sense of how big the ‘all day’ party is.

This year’s 50th Anniversary post will feature tons more photos and video of each runner as they ran by. Well, most of them, we did not get ’em all. And the little VadoHD was only good for about an hour and 20 minutes before it pooped out. The video will also feature traffic from the ‘impromptu’ parade from earlier in the day.

That video will be featured here in a few days. It takes a while for me to edit down almost 3 hours of clips. So this post is about everything else.

The weather for the day was broken overcast, but no real chance of rain. I got a good bump on my tan for the time I spent outside.

This is the middle of the dry season in PR. Things are starting to dry up and turn brown from a lack of rain. Especially on the south side of the island where we are. [Read more…] about 50th San Blas Half Marathon of Coamo

Coamo’s Patron Saints Festival 2012

I took the opportunity this year to check out the local ‘Fiestas Patronales 2012’ on Saturday. It was staged this year on the plaza of Coamo. It’s a prelude to the San Blas Half Marathon, this coming weekend. In fact, this will be the 50th anniversary of the Marathon. I expect it to be a major ‘blow-out’.

Coamo has been getting ready for the 50th Annual Marathon since last year’s marathon ended. They have even painted new 50th Anniversary kilometer markers in the road.

As I’ve harped on before about Puerto Rico’s obsession with Christmas, the partying in Coamo will not stop until after the Marathon concludes next Sunday. In fact, Coamo has 2 Patron Saints where most towns only have one.

They are la Virgen del Candelaria and San Blas de Illescas.

The first Patron Saints Festival was a very local affair, staged in the plaza and did not start until dusk. I love late evening light as well as dusk. It adds a nice glow to everything. I drove to the plaza, just before 6PM so parking was no issue. Evening Mass got out about 6:30PM, just as the sun was fading. Street lights kicked on, shortly after that. [Read more…] about Coamo’s Patron Saints Festival 2012

Christmas in Puerto Rico and Fireworks too

I’m not exaggerating when I say the Season starts the day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday) and does not end until the day after Three Kings Day on January 6th. I have a small post I did about Black Friday too.. it’s as crazy here as it is on the mainland. Here’s a link to it.

The reason for the long celebration stems from the fact that as a predominantly Spanish speaking Catholic state, the main event was/is Three Kings Day. It has been celebrated in Puerto Rico since the beginning of Spanish rule. Children would leave food for camels (dried grass) in a box, under their beds at night and then wake to find little gifts the next morning. Christmas Day was a day dedicated to the family, much like Thanksgiving is in the US. Move forward to the late 20th Century and you see the locals adding in Santa, gift giving and all the other trappings of US Christian customs as well.

Believe it or not, I saw a cut commercial tree, heading home on the top of a car, the day before Thanksgiving this year. [Read more…] about Christmas in Puerto Rico and Fireworks too

Arroyo’s Tren del Sur- Train of the South

A Puerto Rican attraction in need of resurrection..

Most printed travel guides speak of the ‘Tren del Sur’ in Arroyo as if it were only temporarily closed. It operated 4 miles of track from 1984 to 2005 when it was shut down for ‘maintenance’ and never reopened. Today, it appears to be all but abandoned… weeds and tall grass are starting to overtake it.

That’s truly a shame.

It’s typical of the kind of changes that have taken place, island wide.

Sugarcane has not been a cash crop here for decades. Yes, you can still see it in small plots, but that’s it. More of a novelty, really.

Puerto Rican Rum is made from imported sugar and molasses…

Not the best kept secret. [Read more…] about Arroyo’s Tren del Sur- Train of the South

153rd Ponce Carnaval 2011- Part 2

The ‘Burying of the
Sardine’, March 8th, 2011 and the conclusion of ‘Carnaval Week’ in Puerto Rico.

As reported in my last post- Carnaval in Ponce, this is a fantastic time to be in Latin America. Great music, great food, outrageous costumes and tons of fun. An event the entire family will enjoy.

Though there are things happening the entire week before Ash Wednesday, the weekend before is always the most active.

Activities during the week don’t get started until after dinner. There was a much more relaxed, local feel to Tuesday night’s celebration.

According to US Census, Ponce’s population is just under 180,000
(as of 2009). So the scale of activity is nothing like being in a big city like Rio de Janiero or New Orleans. A definite home-town vibe. That’s a good thing as far as I’m concerned. I felt pretty safe the whole time I was there. [Read more…] about 153rd Ponce Carnaval 2011- Part 2