The Scurvy Dog's Puerto Rican Blog

Merry Christmas One and All

This is a short post to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

I hope 2011 was as good to you as it was for us. I know it’s been a hard year for many. We look forward to the new year and all it brings.

I’ll be adding a couple more Category Pages to the site over the next year- One dedicated to Gardening in Puerto Rico for those that like to get their hands dirty. And one dedicated to Historical Images from the past with the back story to them. There are many untold stories here and I want tell a few of them.

Needless to say- Running the web site, photography and gardening keeps me very busy. I love it!

I’ll also be integrating this site more closely with my Facebook presence as well. I’m not a huge fan of Twitter, so for now, I’ll leave it alone.

I will follow up soon with a post about Christmas in Puerto Rico… A great time to be in Puerto Rico!

Feliz Navidad

El Yunque Forest.. A Northwest Approach

Most folks visit the El Yunque US National Forest via a formal tour and I highly recommend that. I took the half-day tour from San Juan on my first visit. There are links to half day and day trips in the Sidebar. That was great, but now I had an opportunity to see it from a different perspective.

The San Juan Photo MeetUp group was celebrating their 100th trip and chose this spot for their picnic. We caravanned from San Juan to the site since some of us had never been there. It’s a typical drive up into the mountains on paved, but narrow twisty roads. We took Highway 3, then 186 to 9966.

The road literally turns to garbage upon entering the park.

It is paved, but crumbling in places with growth literally in the road. It looks more like a paved path than a road.

The US Forest Service sign marking the entrance is overgrown. It says: Caribbean National Forest. Which BTW, is the only Tropical Rainforest in all the US park system. El Yunque peaks at 3,543 feet. On the opposite side of the road, there had been a huge chunk of the hill that sluffed off (from heavy rains), into and across the roadway. I got my boots muddy simply getting out of the car. [Read more…] about El Yunque Forest.. A Northwest Approach

The 42nd Indigenous Festival of Jayuya, PR

An event worth the trip, no matter where you live.

We were there on Saturday, but the festival was spread across 4 days, ending on Sunday.

Activities included a conference dedicated to La Flor de la Guasabara, lighting of the Taino Fire, a special presentation of indigenous music and dance, the presentation of a documentary dedicated to Taino Indians, crowning of the Indigenous Festival Queen, music workshops, a variety of local contests and tons and tons of live music!

I’ve now made the run to Jayuya 3 times. The first time was on Palm Sunday to check out the town and the second was for the Tomato Festival last May.

On the drive up, I stopped at a stand of magnificent Pine trees to score some seeds in hopes of getting a few to germinate. This was old growth over 40 feet tall.. not something you see all the time.

The weather on Saturday was mild… it’s always a little cooler up in the mountains so it was quite nice. In the plaza, all the best places to sit in the shade were taken. Ya snooze ya lose.

Good idea to bring your own folding chairs… most folks do. [Read more…] about The 42nd Indigenous Festival of Jayuya, PR

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

University of Puerto Rico Botanical Gardens

Another ‘Top 10″ attraction of PR and San Juan in particular.

Yes, the gardens on the grounds of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) had been on my original ‘hit-list’ of places to see. I’m a little ashamed I had not come to visit before now. The SJ Photo MeetUp Group decided to come back and check it out so that was all the excuse I needed.

Though some tropical plants flower year round, this is the tail end of the summertime flower explosion. There is something in bloom year round, but it was evident that many things had gone to seed or past that. The dry season starts in late December so most things go into a dormant state.

The weather was sunny, balmy and in the the mid-80’s F.

I would normally wear shorts, but I often need to kneel for shots so jeans are a minimum. A hat is a good idea too as well as an umbrella for afternoon showers. [Read more…] about University of Puerto Rico Botanical Gardens