Birthday Celebration in Puerto Rico: Four Girlfriends and a Trip to Remember
- Mapula
- Nov 8, 2018
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 10, 2023
A few weeks ago my best friend, whom I met in Puerto, along with another friend, planned a return trip to the island where we all lived many years ago, to celebrate her birthday. The moment the decision was made to revisit the island we so loved and enjoyed, there was excitement, excitement, and more excitement! There is a certain degree of fascination that you experience when you return to an island, versus when you first visit. The sense or feeling of familiarity and knowing, is pure sweetness.
We arrived early afternoon and drove directly to the home of a wonderful and most accommodating Puerto Rican native whom I had not previously met, but we immediately became friends. By the time I left, we were great friends. We feasted on a traditional Puerto Rican dinner of rice and peas, plantains, chicken and a delicious traditional soft bread. Dessert was her special cherry topped cheesecake. This night was an early night for us, since none of us slept the night before we traveled.
Day 2 - A trip to the beach at Dorado. The water was easily between 75-80 degrees. It was beautiful! A brisk walk turned into an impromptu splash in the ocean (with our workout clothes still on!)
Day 3 - A trip to the beach again, we splashed, floated and bathed in the warm sea water with the equally warm sun beating down on our faces.
Day 4 - A trip to the capital city of San Juan, where we walked along the cobblestone streets, and mingled with other tourists, and of course, bought a few souvenirs. One particular item I purchased says it all “Puerto Rico will survive”, which speaks to the attitude of hope and gratefulness of the vendors for the recovery of Puerto Rico following the hurricane in the fall of 2017. They were just simply happy to be in business again. I was extremely touched by the warmth of the local community.
My absolute favorite part of this day was dinner at Raices, a traditional Puerto Rican restaurant.
Waitresses dressed in traditional uniform with wide skirts, apron and a white head wrap.
My favorite food is chicken and seafood Mofongo. A Puerto Rican dish made with fried plantains as its main ingredient. Plantains are picked green and fried, then mashed with salt, garlic and olive oil in a wooden mortar and pestle. Normally served with seafood, chicken or meat. It is absolutely delicious and lip smacking good. (Here I am in bliss with a mouth full of Mofongo.)
Day 5 - Very heavy rain, flooding in some areas. We took a trip down memory lane to a place where we all lived. Nothing was the same. The house I lived in was sadly no longer there. It had been demolished. The highlight of the day was shopping at the market in Condadito. The vendors were again so happy to serve us and even went out of their way to assist with filling my basket with local fruit and vegetables. No doubt I was in my element in the market looking at the vibrant colors of the vegetables and the exotic smells from guava, pineapple, mangoes, papayas and passion fruit. We experimented with making a drink from passion fruit. Fabulous!
Day 6 - We boarded our flight back to the mainland and wondered where we’d travel to next. Perhaps West Africa. We three cemented a friendship and I personally added a new friend (our host) to my list of close friends which we hope will last a lifetime. The bonding was effortless and we enjoyed an unforgettable mini vacation in Puerto Rico.
Adios!
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