Puerto Rico: Day Trip: June 2011

Happy Wednesday, I hope that everyone’s week is going well. This post was originally going to be dedicated in response to recent natural disasters, however, in light of Sunday’s tragedy in Las Vegas it is for everyone that is currently trying to get their lives back together. I didn’t know anyone at the festival in Las Vegas but I do have friends that knew people there.

As for natural disasters, my family in Houston was affected but it was minor compared to the utter destruction of homes that many people faced and are still working through. I personally have donated what I could to relief shelters and I know that others have done the same and much more: donating time, items, clothes, and money. At the bottom of this post are links to various website that you can visit to help the victims.

Here is the story of my brief visit to Puerto Rico and the little things that stuck with me from this beautiful, history rich island. On the way to and from Nevis we had layovers in Puerto Rico. On the way there our visit was just a night. We had time for dinner and bed before we were back at the airport the next morning. On the return trip we spent a day on the island. We spent much of our time exploring Castillo San Felipe del Morro in San Juan.  

I did a good bit of research for this post and I learned that this is a World Heritage Site. There are 500 years of history in this one beautiful area. My memories of this site are fairly vague but I remember the sweeping wide green lawn and walking up to the main gate on a brick path. It was beautifully ornate. Above the doorway itself there is a style of decoration where there are three lines (triglyph) and then a small image (metope). These are called Doric metopes and they also decorate the The Parthenon in Athens.

I bring up this gate and decorative style not because you need to know the name but because of the similarities. I saw something old and it reminded me of something ancient an ocean away. The influence of long dead Greeks was here on this island in a fort that overlooked the sea of the New World. A fort with narrow windows and cannons, a place of influence in its own right that had been fought over for its influence and location. 

Our actions always have an immediate effect but things can also echo through time and make things happen that we never dreamed were possible. Good and bad actions both ripple, touching people that we don’t know and that don’t know us. Anyway, I’ve turned into a bit of a philosopher today. Puerto Rico is a beautiful, vibrant island full of history.

Below are ways to help those affected by many recent natural disasters and man-made terrors:

Las Vegas Relief – Go Fund Me donations and  blood donors

Puerto Rico Relief – for children and other ways to help

Hurricane Harvey Relief  – Red Cross – Salvation Army

These are not the only ways that you can help. There are others and possibly better or more local donation sources. If you know any, please put the link in the comments. Next post will be Saturday. Everyone will get to visit Alaska with me and my family. Perhaps it will inspire you to go on your own Alaskan adventure. Also, Keltin, my boyfriend, has started a movie review blog where he looks at the best picture winners. 

All photos by Laci McGee