Author Archives: Cassie

Growth and Markets: Our Weekly Routine in Puerto Rico

No, I am not talking about the stock market or the GDP, but rather the original meaning of those words. Literally growing things (including a baby) and going to markets. We have a bit of a schedule and routine now, moreso than ever with a baby. We used to go out a lot more at night with the band and just to hang out at chinchorros or downtown at the ArtWalk, but we now appreciate our quiet evenings with the kiddo sound asleep. So that means our days must be a little fuller. Fridays and Sundays mean market. Fridays we go to the San Sebastian Pulguero (Flea Market) where we do some bartering and buying. Mostly we are in the market for strange exotic plants. Actually we are ALWAYS in the market for those it seems. No matter how much plant life we throw at the property, it just eats it up.

With a new flower find at the San Sebastian Market

It’s pretty fun at the San Sebastian market because we are nearly always the only “gringos” there and so we sort of stick out like sore thumbs. But people are starting to get to know us, greet us and show us what all they have available before we even have to ask. It REALLY helps to know Spanish in these sorts of environments!

Aeden is a favorite with many people at the market including this sweet woman who even sang “Que Linda Manita” to him

Aeden and the birds back at the farm

Saturdays are usually spent back at the farm unless we have something fun planned. On Saturday afternoon we harvest the fruit and flowers for the Sunday Rincon Farmer’s Market.

Look who needs to start wearing shoes soon!

Aeden is now 11 months old! Check out his latest update video

New bromeliads in bloom at the farm

Our avocado that we accidentally cut down YEARS ago, has come back and is fruiting! I am so happy! Yay for guacamole! What’s strange about it, is only one trunk has fruit. So I think it must have been grafted long ago and we’ll probably have two types on one tree. We’ll see!

At the Farmer’s Market in Rincon. Dragonfruit! We have had our dragonfruit plant flower, but it never holds onto the fruit

The Farmer’s Market on Sunday mornings is fun. We don’t make much money, but it is worth it and it’s fairly stable for being summertime. We have made a lot of great friends there. And we use the money to go out and have brunch and drive around a bit afterward. If we make any more than that we put it into buying more plants from the nurseries or flea markets around.

Taking Aeden to Yogufruti after the Farmer’s Market one Sunday

I never knew what fashion tasted like before, but it’s pretty good! haha

During the week we mostly work on the farm: mowing, planting, improving trails. We also clean and do “turnovers” if we have guests staying in the cabana. We also like to pick a day or two to go shopping or an excursion of some sort. Sometimes we go hunting for plants on the side of the road or check out a beach. Lately it has been so hot, that we have been doing everything we can to stay cool. Since we don’t have A/C that means sitting in the baby pool, finding anywhere that has air conditioning and just milling around, eating watermelon and lots of fluids and trying to avoid the heat of the middle of the day (siesta anyone?). The beach is actually too hot for me on those sizzling days since the water and sand multiply the sun’s effect.

Staying cool in our baby pool in the shade like the hillbillies we are haha!

Fun shopping day out with friend Pauline

Stop in at an authentic chinchorro for una bien friiiia

Checking out a beach in Aguada (Tablerock) -great beach for bamboo driftwood hunters!

Fun on the farm! Dad and boy

Man and his horse swimming in Anasco

Not sure, but I believe this is a cupey flower blooming at our house

Britton had a red RX7 when he was a teenager so this made him gasp when we were driving along in Aguada one day! His 17 year-old self has multiplied! haha

He probably wasn’t listening to this type of song back then though (this is a top hit currently on the radio that we turn up when it comes on, and it’s great for Spanish vocabulary!)

Buying plants at Jardines Eneida! One of our favorite nurseries!

At Jardines Eneida. Check out the video:

I call Puerto Rico “Toon Town” and it’s not without reason…Check out this vibrant little house

And this one…who is very concerned with the modesty of its columns haha

Or this awesomely strange creation seemingly out of a sci-fi movie

Driving up the hills of Mayaguez we had a majestically different view of Rincon and Desecheo in the distance

That’s it for the update. Time flies. I can’t believe that a year ago I was hugely pregnant and just waiting for our little guy to arrive and now he’s almost walking. It’s crazy. Nothing like a kid to make time really feel warped.

Here’s a quick little video of some vignettes of our daily life in Puerto Rico. Hope you enjoy. Oh, and I am trying to do a little more with Instagram if you’d like to follow along.

Anniversary Trip to Guanica: Lighthouse Ruins and Copamarina Resort

Leave a reply

Copamarina Resort

We have been trying to check out new places that we haven’t seen in our time in Puerto Rico. We tend to stay close to the west coast because we can make it a day trip and get home before it is too dark so as to put Aeden to sleep. Since it was our anniversary we decided to head a little further south to Guanica thanks to a suggestion from some readers! (PS if you ever have a place you’d like us to check out, or a topic you’d like us to discuss, send us a message and we’ll do our best to make it happen.)

First stop: Guanica Lighthouse Ruins

We stopped at the Guanica Lighthouse Ruins on our way to the Copamarina because it was literally just on the side of the road we were driving. It reminded me of the Aguadilla Ruins except that it isn’t directly on the ocean. The view was beautiful and if we hadn’t been a little dressed up I might have scrambled around the area a bit more. Definitely worth checking out if you are in the area.

Fun in Guanica

Hey!

Family pic

Smile!

Next we were off to the resort. It was only about 5-10 minutes down from the lighthouse and super easy to find. A lush oasis in the desert. The most striking thing about the Guanica area in general is how very, very dry it is. For people who are looking to live in an arid environment, this southwestern region of Puerto Rico is where it’s at. For me, while I loved the way the resort maintained a tropical and lush environment with what must be a LOT of watering, I prefer it to be that way a little more naturally. The resort itself had all the classic feel with loungers, pools, hammocks and even a pier that they use to take people on sunset boat rides and you can rent kayaks to go to nearby Gilligan’s Island which I still very much want to see.

Beautiful setting

A little bit expensive ($30 for a tiny pizza and 2 beers) and they didn’t let us use their pool, but we enjoyed the ocean instead and they at least let us use the outdoor showers

I enjoyed their landscaping/gardening a lot and it gave me ideas for our gardens

We drove home and caught the tail end of a beautiful sunset in Mayaguez. It was a wonderful day!

Here’s a short video of our time there.

Secluded Waterfall: Charca Las Vegas, Maricao

Leave a reply

Our family at the waterfall (photo thanks Markus)

Our friend Daisy invited us to a last-minute getaway into the mountains of Maricao and we are so glad she did! We quickly did all of our chores so we could head up to this secluded, hidden waterfall and yet it was not too hard to find in the jungle. One of our favorite waterfall areas is Gozalandia, but it has become a tourist trap and just too popular, especially on a Saturday in summer. This trip was just perfect with just our group and a couple of other people there. The pond was deep enough to swim and jump into and the water was soo refreshing. This time of year, the ocean water is almost too tepid warm and so the rivers and ponds start to beckon to us to cool down.

Fun in the water

Beautiful (au) natural setting

Aeden seemed to enjoy playing in the water

After how hot it’s been, we are already thinking of going back!

The group. It’s really not a long walk from the road to the waterfall

Stone petroglyphs (maybe old maybe not)

Super refreshing!

Apparently there is another smaller fall up a little higher as well as a waterwheel (molino) just down the way, but we just enjoyed this amazing spot. We brought down some drinks and snacks and enjoyed a much-needed break from the heat. We WILL be back!

Here’s a video of our time there:

Birthday Fun and other Updates

Leave a reply

We have been enjoying the island even more since we returned from our trip to Colorado. Nothing like a trip off the rock to help you appreciate our tropical island home even more.

For my birthday this year we stopped by one of my favorite resorts: Villa Montana in Isabela/Aguadilla. I like how it is tucked away and not too “posh” that we can drive in with our truck or old Mustang and not feel like a hillbilly as we did at Royal Isabela. There was hardly anyone there and so we had one of the pools to ourselves and Aeden just loved it. We ordered a pizza and walked along the beach. It was a very chill time, especially considering how hot it’s been!

With Aeden down the beach