Uncertainty has “certainly” been the name of this year. And while things aren’t back to “normal” and the arbitrary and confusing rules change practically every other week, things are at least a little more calm around here. And meanwhile in the midst of the chaos that 2020 is shaping out to be, another year of life has gone by and so we did our best to celebrate my making it another trip around the sun.

I have always wanted to go on a horseback tour here in Puerto Rico, so we thought if it was available we’d try to book a tour.

There’s a great company in Rincon called “Pintos R Us” but I know the trail and area they take so well that I wanted to go on a tour of an area that I’ve never seen. We decided to go with Tropical Trail Rides in Isabela. It was a great experience. After dropping Aeden off at daycare, we drove up to Isabela and met up with new friends Kristie and Hernan there. We checked in, paid (discount is given if paying cash), got weighed and a horse assigned to us. We wore face coverings to check in, but they weren’t required during the actual ride which is literally always a horse-length away from anyone haha. The views were wonderful and it was a different perspective to see everything a little higher. Such a connection with the animal when you are on her back too, almost like being one creature.

We rode through the back side of Villa Montana Resort and then onto Shacks Beach and finally all the way to Survival Beach in Aguadilla and back. We mostly walked and trotted on the horse.

Afterward we met up with a few more friends for a nice meal and drink at Villa Montana. It was a great, chill way to celebrate my birthday.

On the day of my actual birthday we just went out alone to explore the black sand beaches of Mayaguez on the litoral. This beach is often ignored because the dark sands are considered dirty by the local people there even though they are just the mineral colors of the sand and I found it to be incredible! We walked up and down the beautiful coast and took pictures before having a nice simple meal at Carbon de Palo, a sweet little seaside restaurant.

There’s a lot that is out of our hands right now, but our own happiness always is. And that’s what I’m focusing on right now. To another solar cycle! Hope everyone is staying safe and happy as well!

We also recently went through a pretty major Tropical Storm (Isaias) and thankfully we didn’t suffer any damage though some of our friends did have landslides and flooding unfortunately. You can watch the video of our experience here: