Puerto Rico... Off the Beaten Path (Video)

Here is the video Guest Blogger, Ryan Latone put together on his adventure to Puerto Rico!

Puerto Rico... Off the Beaten Path (Written by Guest Blogger Ryan Latone)

I arrived in San Juan, Puerto Rico on a Tuesday at 4:00 pm. My travel mate on this adventure, Nick, had already grabbed the rental car. We booked a couple beds at a hostel roughly an hour and a half West in the town Isabela. At first glance, this peaceful coastal town had little to offer, however, it did provide us with the catapult we needed to attack this trip and make the next 4 days COUNT!

We saw a sign dubbed Hostel; surely this is the place to crash the first night. As we rolled into the parking lot, there were 20 or so garages all uniquely labeled, “Love Machine.” There wasn’t anyone in sight except a young guy yapping on his cell phone. I hopped out of the car and said, “Es este el hostel?” (Is this the hostel?) To which he replied, “No! Alla arriba.” (No! It is above/up.) I jumped back in the car and away we went. We had driven right by the Hostel into this “Love Machine” place by accident. I don’t know what goes on in those garages exactly, but I have an idea…how couldn’t you with a subtle title like that?

 We flew in with no agenda, nowhere to sleep, and no idea what Puerto Rico had to offer. In my opinion, sometimes it’s best to book a flight and figure out all the other shit when you get there. Once we found our hostel, we hit the beach for a brew and to chat with some locals. The beach was beautiful with the sun setting over the ocean, but we had little time to admire. We needed to find some locals and get some information. Fortunately, we met a couple that gave us some ideas. We would hit up Jobos, a surf spot near town, then proceed to get lost finding a waterfall locals frequent called Las Cataratas. We drove through the Puerto Rican hillside mesmerized by the beauty of it all. The road twisted and turned through the hills making each drastic turn a game of, “What could we hit around this corner?!” With the road only being about a car and a half wide, it makes for some interesting encounters with both animals and fellow drivers.

A bit lost, I asked Nick to pull over so I could ask an older gentleman working on a house if we were headed in the right direction. Sam was as nice as they come, small build with hands as tough as rocks, his English, PERFECTO! After explaining detailed directions, he could tell we still had no clue where to go. No fear, Sam to the rescue! “Give me 5 minutes, I will drive you there, you will follow me.” What an offer! He drove us the 20 minutes there and when we arrived a man tried to hustle us to pay for parking; Sam had none of that. We parked, walked over to Sam, and thanked him. He had unselfishly took the time  to drive us there without any motive at all, he simply wanted us two gringos to see a local waterfall in his home country. I tried to give him a ten-dollar bill for gas, but he wouldn’t take it. “Grab an extra beer for you boys tonight, safe travels,” he said with a smile.  It is moments like this when you see the kindness in people that is all too easy to forget.

We were the only ‘tourist’ there, although I use that term loosely.  

There had to be 200+ Puerto Ricans at the waterfall enjoying the day. The waterfall was everything we hoped it would be, both beautiful and jump-worthy! There were multiple jumping points, one at the top, and the other halfway at about 15 feet high. With no hesitation, Nick and I committed to jumping off the lowest one with the larger still in question. The first jump was relatively easy to get to and was a nice introduction to the cool water that waited for us below. We hiked up to the top where only one person has jumped that day. The question was, did I have the balls to jump? The waterfall was a pretty steep slope; you had to jump a solid 5 feet out to clear the rock face. Uneasy and nervous, I crawled my way to the edge and found my footing. A local gave me a thumbs up from below; his look of ease gave me the boost of confidence I needed to make the jump. Before I knew it, I had hit the water to a roar of laughter and cheers. Nick soon followed. Not only did we stick out like a lion at a vegetarian convention at this local spot, but we also conquered the fall. We hiked back to our car about 20 minutes away full of pride and amazement that we had just accomplished that! Thirty hours before this, I was working at my job with no idea jumping off of a waterfall was on the horizon.  This is why I like to travel with no plans; the unexpected becomes the story you want to tell.

We found a place to stay in a nearby town on AirBnB in Utuado, a sleepy little town in the heart of the Puerto Rican countryside. At $25 a night, it had our name written all over it. (AirBnB is a great alternative to hotels and hostels. Homeowners rent out rooms or guesthouses to people in need). We grabbed a bottle of rum and headed to our home for the night. The night was pitch black, without any city lights polluting the air it made for a great evening. Free from text messages, emails, or facebook; it was just two friends enjoying the simple life.

Goofing off in Yunque Rain Forest

We woke early to hit up the Camuy Caverns before jetting over to El Yunque Rain Forest. The caverns were a sight to be had, but the tour required for access made for a slow hike. This hike could have been done in an hour, instead we wasted a half a day. My advice would be to skip it if you have little time. We boogied our way to the rain forest. We hiked aimlessly for the rest of the day and found another series of waterfalls. We found a swimming hole, posted up to enjoy the afternoon sun, and enjoyed the sights and sounds we are not used to back home. We could have hiked for days around this beauty, but decided to go find our beds for the night in Fajardo.

AirBnb to the rescue again at $10 a night, chickens clucking at 5 am included! Luck plays into travel, and boy did we get lucky. Bioluminescent Bay was a sight to see, so we had been told.  Little did we know reservations for the kayaking tour into the bay booked up two weeks out! Shit. I spoke with every company there and had no luck. A man said he might have two spots available because a ferry from Vieques had broken down and a few folks might not make the 9pm launch. We waited with our fingers crossed and our bellies full of beer. Luck was on our side! We managed to get a kayak and we were off. I can’t explain how great this experience was. Essentially the bay has algae that ‘glows’ when it is disturbed.  It’s a beautiful fluorescent greenish/blue color that lights up the water. As you glide your hand against the kayak a trail of algae fused fireworks lights up behind your hand. It’s magical and mind-boggling. I felt like a kid again. 

The next day we planned on heading to the island of Vieques off the east coast of Puerto Rico. Luck would not be our friend this morning. The ferry sign said it clear as day, “SOLD OUT.” What the hell? We didn’t even think to come the night before and get a ticket, but that’s exactly what Puerto Ricans do. I talked to a local who said he got there at 11 pm last night to reserve a spot and camp out.  I thought back to the prior night and at 11 o'clock, I was three beers deep after our kayak trip. Oh well, he mentioned we should check out a secret beach near "Seven Seas Beach." Seven Seas Beach was a hot spot for locals, jammed packed and busy as hell. We walked along the strip of beach to the end where it turned into forest. The guy gave us directions to this so called ‘secret beach.’ 

On the way to Playa Colora

We were either going to get robbed, killed, or find an epic beach spot. We gambled and decided to follow the directions we jotted down through the forest. It was a brisk 20-minute hike to this paradise of a beach called "Playa Colora." I kid you not; we were the only ones there on a stretch of sand a half mile long without a hotel or other person in site. We relaxed as the day’s sun moved across the sky. I snorkeled for 3 hours as I had done when I was a kid in Marco Island, FL on family vacations. The risk paid off, we had found our slice of Puerto Rican paradise.

Old San Juan was exactly what I thought it would be, yet still very enjoyable. Touristy in its unique way, but still friendly and full of potential. San Cristobal Fort was worth the $5 admission and was worthy of the hour. We heard of an old bar called La Factoria, after walking in circles for an hour we found it. It was named, “La Taberna Lupolo” on the outside. This explained why we walked by it ten damn times. Carlos, our bartender, made us a unique drink infamously called, “The Industry Handshake.” It was a blend of Don Q rum, cayenne pepper and a dash of some ‘magic’ I couldn’t get him to share. The drinks were worth every penny that night, and went down like water on a hot summer's day. We drank till 4 in the morning that night, dancing and drinking with the locals. We drove to the airport, dead tired and ready for a nap. I slept right in front of my gate as to not miss its departure, surely someone would wake me up when they were boarding, and someone did thankfully.

My biggest take-a-way from this trip was a simple one: choose your travel partner wisely. Nick and I had been friends for a few years, but didn’t have any mutual friends and we lived roughly 1,000 miles apart. This distance created a lack of bullshit conversation on petty things going on back home. Instead, it opened us up to REAL conversations about life, passions, and our dreams.  My advice would be this, if you take a trip don’t always go with your best local friends. Ask an old friend who has moved away, try and reconnect with them on a new level. The opportunity for growth in your friendship is exponential.

Total cost for 5 and half days of badassity:  about $1500

$573 for flight, purchased 10 days out

$217 for food

$70 for paddle boarding/ caverns/ bio bay trip

$206 for alcohol, 70% of which was on the LAST night (idiot me!)

$250 misc cash spent

$150 for gas and car (short trips like this there was no time to hitch)

$85 on sleeping arrangement for 5 nights

Get out there and DO MORE! Thanks for reading. 

Big Bend Outer Mountain Loop Hike (Video)

Check out the video of our 3 day hike to Big Bend National Park in May 2014. 4 friends and 38 miles of ups and downs (physically and mentally)

Alaska Kayaking Video

This video shows the 2 day kayaking trip out of Seward. He wore a GoPro for majority of of adventures.

Chicago Cost Breakdown

We do our best to keep costs to a minimal while traveling because it allows us to do more and travel more. Due to busy weeks at work and preparing for school to start up again we did not get a chance to search any deals on Groupon. We also did not buy the Go Chicago card we referenced in our trip recap. So here is the cost break down for 4 (2 full days) in Chicago on a holiday weekend visit.

ACTIVITIES	$     107.40
AIRPLANE TIX (2)	$     615.00
BAR	$     236.29
FOOD	$     257.28
HOTEL (3 NIGHTS)	$     400.00
SOUVENIRS	$       80.32
TRANSPORTATION	$       87.16
TOTAL	$ 1,783.45

*Note the airplane tickets and hotel cost were paid in advance

Travel With Friends

If you can bare your friends for weekend trips, it might be worth doing. We took this trip with Becky's cousin, which helped greatly with hotel cost. Hotels are NOT cheap in Chi-Town... roughly $200/night after taxes. You can try staying further from the city but you miss out on the atmosphere, plus Taxis are not that cheap. Half our transportation cost were on Taxis and that was taking turns paying for them! There is nothing wrong with walking. On our first day, we already walked nearly 5 miles before noon. 

Think before grabbing a Taxi!

Splurging

Ok. I will admit it, we splurged this trip. Take a look at our cost from 9 days in Alaska and compare it to 4 days in Chicago... we would be broke! We spent more on hotels in Chicago than Alaska! 

Doesn't this look delicious? Because it was!

But always remember to take a look at the purpose of your trip. Alaska was adventures and outdoors, Chicago was attractions and food. We made sure to stop and smell the roses (or pizzas?) and savor it. How could you not? Chicago is home to many great varieties of food. The bar scene was fun and inviting. Northwestern's campus was a block from our hotel. Sometimes it is OK to spend a little bit of money!

Chicago

Chicago is a great city with a rich history. If you'red not going for an event (like lollapalooza), a weekend is enough to get a lot done. Being as far north as Chicago is, weather is important to research. Locals told us May through October are the best times to visit. We traveled Labor Day weekend, getting in late Friday night and leaving Monday morning, giving us TWO full days of fun.

Day 1

Flight arrived at Midway at 9:45, due to late night arrival, the three of us took a cab ($35) to our hotel. We all worked that day and after checking in, we decided to just grab a bite and call it a night. The only problem was that not a lot of restaurants' kitchens were open past 11, although we were not too ambitious to explore the area.

Day 2
We woke up and took advantage of our hotel’s complimentary breakfast, but we soon found out that Chicago has extensive brunch options. I would highly recommend looking into this (will discuss later). We started off the day walking to Navy Pier. Chicago is a pretty walkable city and the pier was roughly a mile away. Luckily we had perfect temperatures of mid 70's with cloud coverage, which in our opinion is perfect walking weather. First thing we walked up on was a boat tour group. Hindsight is always 20/20, but that’s why we write about our travels and tips… making the mistakes to make sure you don’t! The Go Chicago card is something to look into.  This pass has 25 attractions for Chicago, one being the Architecture River Tour. This was a top attraction for us.

Trump Tower straight ahead!

It is a 75 minute info overload tour with amazing one of a kind views. The guides are great, witty, and very knowledgeable (our guide's name was Sarah). You will pass some of the major sky scrapers of Chicago, like the new Trump Building, the famous Sears Tower, and numerous historic buildings. If you don’t feel like going, but your group does, you are in luck... because there is a full service bar aboard! So no excuses! Visit here for more information. If you do happen to use the Go Chicago card (almost half the cost of the card on one attraction), you CANNOT use the Go Card again that day for another cruise.

Giant SEARS TOWER

Heading back to the pier

Our tour ended right around lunch time, so we continued our walk along the Navy Pier, grabbed an old fashion Chicago Hot Dog and enjoyed the view. If you have the stomach for it, there is a huge Ferris wheel (also on the Go Card) on the Pier. Surprisingly, Navy Pier boasts the most populous attraction in Chicago. After eating we walked off our lunch on our way to Millennium Park. Little to our knowledge, Chicago Jazz fest was going on at the park! The park was extra packed, but this also meant extra stands for beer! Chicago has a lot of local brews to try! We took our picture with the giant bean and just enjoyed the atmosphere.
The weather was forecasted for afternoon rains so we made our way to Shedd Aquarium (also on the Go Card), which is highly remarked as the best Aquarium in the United States. If you are keeping track at home, the river tour ($35), ferris wheel ($16), and Aquarium ($31) totals $82, where as the Go Card cost $80. Here is the kicker… we waited in the Aquarium line for an HOUR. The Go Card also allows you to skip the line! The Shedd Aquarium proved why it is a top rated attraction, housing over 1,000 marine species and multiple habitats from the pacific northwest to the African tropics. For some extra dough, you can watch beluga whales, sea lions, and dolphins at their aquatic shows. We stayed til closing time (lots of animal feedings!) and caught a cab to take us back to the Magnificent Mile area.

Deep dish pizza is Chicago’s thing. Everyone will say theirs is the best, so I am sure you’ve heard of, like Pizzeria Uno, Lou Malnati’s or Gino’s. We tried Lou Malnati's and after only a 45 minute wait, it was worth it. We got the works and washed it down with some local brews. There is more than meats the eye (see what I did there?) as we had to take some home. The atmosphere was what did it for us. W
e were seated outside on the patio enjoying the nice cool night and people watching. Chicago is such an active city! We tried some local bars and hit it off well on the first attempt with Streeters. It is a cool “basement” bar with a young crowd. It is more like a dive bar with a pool table and giant Jenga blocks. This bar is located a block off the magnificent mile and a block from the giant McDonalds!

View from the 96th floor of the Hancock Observatory

Day 3

We woke up a bit later due to the late night. We wanted to visit the Lincoln Park area and started with a cab ride to the Lincoln Park Zoo. This zoo is not nearly as large as the Brookfield Zoo, but it gets the job done. You can learn more here. We spent about 2 hours here and had a great time. On a Sunday morning the zoo had quite a few people, mostly families with small children. The Big Cats exhibit along with the primates was their main attractions. Both were entertaining! We wanted to check out the Brunch scene and ironically enough went to a place called Brunch. Located not too far from Michigan Ave. Guys, are you worried about being out of your element? Fear not, Brunch has a Beermosa that uses a Belgian wheat beer mixed with fresh squeezed orange juice. Thrillist put together a guide to the best brunches in Chicago and of course the boozy brunches too.

We then did the short walk back to Michigan Ave. (more famously called the Magnificent Mile) and did some shopping! Thankfully for my wallet, it was just window shopping. Apparently the people of Chicago envied Paris in the early days and wanted to design Michigan Ave like the Champs Elysees in Paris. Premiere shopping. We got cleaned up and headed to the Signature Lounge. In less than 60 seconds you will be at a bar located on the 96^th floor of the Hancock Observatory (just off Michigan Ave). The Go Chicago Card offers a “360 Chicago View” that has a twist… or should I say tilt? This new feature allows you to lean over the ledge at the 94^th floor behind a safety glass.

Chicago skyscrappers

 For those of you who need reassurance, check it out. Without the pass, it will cost you $18.00. On the other hand you can get two drinks for that up in the Signature Lounge. I recommend going up right before sunset so you can see the the sunset then the city light up in the night sky. Ask to be seated in the area up front, the back is chaos… but add to the chaos by snapping a picture back there (sun sets out that window).
If you love wine, we went to a fantastic wine bar off Michigan Ave. Eno has a calming atmosphere and is connected to the Michael Jordan Steak House. We tried wine flights, cheese flights, and chocolate flights. Everything was fantastic and chooser beware, it wasn’t the cheapest place.

Day 4

We woke up and took the “L”, which is Chicago’s transportation system, to the airport. It is quick and very cheap ($3). It isn’t complicated even though we jumped the gun on our transfer and got on the wrong line! Learn more here.

Til next time!

Fav:

People watching

Architecture River Tour

Wish List:

Chicago History Museum

Museum of Science and Industry

12 New Orleans Treats to Try

Since I was sad to see my old favorite place of Frankie and Johnny’s is under new management during my last trip to New Orleans, I decided to see share what else is out there. I haven’t tried them all and plan on it! Most places are in Uptown or French Quarter ranging in all prices.

1. Alligator Omlete – Daisy Dukes. Gator is the other white meat and it may be better! Get your day started with it

2. Crawfish Etouffe Fries - – Dat Dog. $5.50 (fries) has many other dogs (alligator, crawfish fused, southern specialties) 3 locations (Magazine St and Frechman (good drunchies food))

3. Shaved Ice – Hansen's Sno-Bliz. Only open Spring – Fall but that is all you need to for the delicious heat escaping treat. Shaved ice is completely different than a snow cone.

4. Sweet potato Beignets w/ Foie Gras – SoBou. This is a fancy ($$$) upgrade to the classic Café du Monde, but served as a dinner item. Try it with the Foie Gras Burger!

5. Breakfast in a To Go Cup – EnVie Café. Most genius idea ever cause we are busy people. Eggs, bacon, hash browns, sausage all put into a to-go cup.

6. Gumbo – Mr. B's. Everyone looks for the best gumbo in the city known for its staple. It’s all up for opinion but either way you will not go wrong.

7. King Cake Cheeseburger – Food Drunk, which is a food truck makes King Cake (usually reserved for Madri Gras only) available year round… as the buns for a burger!

8. Foie Gras Macarons – Ye Old College Inn. Do I even need to explain? Foie gras makes everything better. They have other items topped with it too.

9. Quack Quack – Irene’s is a pricey place downtown that has a St. Phillip Duck ($22) that is worth every penny.

10. Fried Frog Legs – Bayou Hot Wings. Adam Richman (Man Vs Food) said they have the best wings… frog legs count as wings… right?

11. Crepes – Crepes a la Cart. Located near Tulane, this French classic has a New Orleans twist (along with the signature sweet crepes)

12. Muffaletta (or other Po-Boys) – Johnny's Po Boy. Italians brought this idea over to New Orleans and it was perfected. Decent prices and any kind of po boy you can imagine.