On our very first trip to Puerto Rico on our honeymoon we serendipitously found Calypso just down from the lighthouse in Rincon. Calypso seemed straight out of a Jimmy Buffet song. Neon lights, pink and teal paint, ocean waves right beyond, and a no-shirt, no-shoes, no problem attitude. They had good drinks (especially their rum punches) and pretty decent eats too. It was one of the places that made us fall in love with Rincon. We felt we could fold right into the fabric of life in this little corner of the island.

Just another day in paradise…at Calypso

We met  the owner of Calypso, Cindie Rice, on one of our trips to Puerto Rio. She was just enjoying her time at Calypso hanging out in one of the chairs out front by the gift shop. She was an interesting character who believed in ghosts, UFOs and lots of conspiracies. As a great surfer, businesswoman, animal lover and a legend, especially amongst the gringo community, most everyone in town knew her name. She was the one to tell us about the previous owner of our property (and how she had been found dead in the house). Cindie was a staple in the community. She supported local music and we are grateful to Cindie for having us play music when we were in the band. She was the sort of person it just seemed would always be a part of Rincon.

When we played a show at Calypso with our band

So it was sad to read that Cindie Rice had died after some difficult times in her life such as being diagnosed with Parkinson’s.

Cindie and Me

This season there seems to be a lot of people moving out of Rincon or otherwise leaving the island. Exiting the stage so to speak. It has been a time of transition with new characters arriving and some of the greats, like Cindie, leaving.

Calyspo Sunset at Cindie’s celebration of life

We celebrated her life the way I think Cindie would like for Rincon to: with a big party at Calypso. We watched the sunset over the water, listened to music and ordered up a rum punch in her name. Rest in Peace Cindie. May there be forever fun music, good waves, happy dogs and strong drinks on the other side!