Trip Report - Eastern Caribbean - March 2015 - San Diego to San Juan

This vacation's core was Patti Culea's "Last Doll Making Cruise Reunion." This was a cruise on the Adventure of the Seas out of San Juan. I had never been able to go on one of her cruises before, so I figured this was my last chance.

 It was also a chance to see Puerto Rico and San Juan. We had been there in July 2004 on the way back from a wedding, but since we were flying standby, we never got out of the airport.

As part of the cruise the travel agent had booked us at Embassy Suites, a Hilton property that is a few blocks from the beaches of Isla Verde, but not too close to anything else. This was a beautiful hotel, but the rooms had poor ventilation and I believe that my allergies were affected by the bleach being used to clean.

Orchids in hotel 

From under hotel waterfall

We took at taxi into Old San Juan and walked around, looking for a place to eat. We spotted a banner saying "House of the Ribs" which turned out to be for Monditos.  I had tamarind glazed BBQ chicken with fufu* cubano. It didn't look too appetizing, but it was delicious. I took a picture of the decor, instead.

Frog as a hill

*"fufu" ( 'foo foo') In the Caribbean is made of ripe plantains or yams which are mashed with other ingredients. It is sweeter than mofongo, which I am told is made with green plantains mashed with broth, garlic, and olive oil. Both fufu and mofongo are the base for many different dishes.