Monday, June 16, 2008

spring break part one...flying, luquillo, & old san juan...

finally...i'm blogging about my AMAZING spring break trip. it was literally 10 of the best days of my life. gear up for some really long posts, kids.


well, i guess it was 9 of the best days of my life--one day in the threshold of hell. the day we flew out, april 10th, was the fateful day that american airlines cancelled ALL flights. and don't worry. they had TWO people working at the counter. TWO. as you can tell, i was disgruntled to say the least. after hours of standing in line and getting the royal run around, an american airlines employee, carol glenn, took pity on amy, bryan, vince, and i and got us on some flights. (we were booked on NINE different airlines throughout the course of this ordeal!) i'm pretty sure there is a place in the celestial kingdom reserved for carol glenn.
we were so thrilled to finally be on our way...our long, indirect, uncomfortable way. we eventually flew from slc to denver, denver to philly, philly to san juan. our night in terminal A20 of the philadelphia airport could basically be described as the threshold of hell. the air conditioning emitted a constant arctic blast and the fire alarms were being tested...all night long. the teeny pillow and millimeter-thick blanket i stole from united airlines did little to increase my comfort. it was a long, long night. all in all, our airport fiasco lasted 27 hours.



once we landed in san juan and kissed the ground on friday, april 11th, we picked up our rental car and drove across the island to luquillo, puerto rico. we couldn't find our hotel at first and we were starving, so we stopped for an amazing meal at a little restaurant on the beach. unshowered and exhausted, it felt soooooooo good to eat some authentic puerto rican food out on the patio. this was the view from my seat. i was so happy i wanted to cry.


our waitress gave us some long, rambling directions to our hotel, but we found it--the luquillo sunrise inn. if you ever go to puerto rico, you NEED to stay here. i thought i had died and gone to heaven. every room has a balcony, breakfast is provided, complimentary beach towels and chairs... sigh.




this is where we ate our complimentary breakfast each morning. i'm telling you--celestial kingdom material, right here. it was beyond perfect.




this was the view from me and amy's balcony. we literally could cross the street and be at the beach...


...so we did. we needed some relaxation after enduring hell. plus, our baggage got lost so all we had were the swimsuits we stuffed in our carry-ons. we had no choice but to hit the sand.

i was so happy. i can't even tell you. i slept the next two nights to the sound of crashing waves. i guess the philly airport was worth it. :)


the next morning, we met up with jeanette and her hubby john (who left the night before us and had a pleasant flight) and went to el yunque national forest. it's a rainforest, so there were all kinds of tropical plants and animals and waterfalls and stuff. it was beautiful.


when we were done hiking, we grabbed some lunch and then hit the beach. the little cove we were at was crazy. the waves would come in, bounce back off the sandbar, and crash into the next set of waves, thus creating super, gi-normous waves. bryan and i had a blast...amy, not so much. haha.


the next morning, sunday, april 13th, we sorrowfully checked out of the luquillo sunrise inn and drove back to san juan where we met up with jim and his wife ericka, sari, and sari's friend jessie. we all tromped around old san juan together...and i fell in love. all over town were the cutest buildings...brightly colored with white trim. i could not get over them. i want to buy one. or seven. and live there in my bright houses on my colorful street. seriously.



...and then we came across one of the most beautiful sights i have ever beheld. and i am being 100% serious. these pictures don't do it ANY justice. behind one of the old forts, surrounded by ocean on both sides, there is an old cemetery and enormous grass field where hundreds of people had gathered to fly kites. it was surreal. i literally could not stop looking. i was so grateful for the blessing of being right there at that moment to see that. i will never ever forget it. i wish the pictures were better...


the crazy thing was that our trip had barely begun! the weekend in luquillo and old san juan had been so lovely, so picturesque...and we hadn't even been on the cruise! we boarded the carnival destiny on sunday afternoon and many adventures followed...

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...