Early mornings usually mean you have something planned for the day. That was the right thinking for this scenario. Chris had set us up to go on a tour and El Yunque Rainforest it was. I was so excited when our tour guide picked us up, we weren’t the only ones who were eager for this tour, the van was packed, and surprisingly 8/9 of us were from NYC. We were surrounded by neighbors from Westchester County, Brooklyn, Harlem and the Bronx.
We actually ended up hanging out with Patrick from Harlem, since he was more on the adventurous side of things, while everyone else seemed to be complaining that they had to hike.
When we arrived all the way at the top, green was the color of choice. Well, why wouldn’t it be, it’s the rain forest. There were many streams and trails, we strayed for a bit, but let’s face it, we were all excited for the infamous waterfall… and it was absolutely stunning. Freezing, but gorgeous non-the less.
The rocks at the bottom, sure didn’t make it easy for me to walk. One will be high, while the next was short, while one was dull, another pointy, one wobbly, while the next was slippery. 
Like usual, and I’m not surprised at all by this, but I lost my footing and fell on the ride side of my ribs hitting a rock. That wasn’t fun, but it wasn’t going to stop me from having a good time anyway.
The hike back up was a bit more of a struggle, due to the incline and the sharp turns. Once I saw the end of the line, I couldn’t be more relieved. Time for lunch, we were all exhausted and hungry and another couple in the van were getting more ghetto than they originally were when we first met them. We stopped at one of the local pit stops and grabbed some grub. We ordered some pasteles en hoja con arroz y habichuela. And even though the food was good and devoured, I’ve had better pasteles from my abuela, and even from Chris’s mom.
We stepped into the souvenir shop and for the first time actually purchased something. Seemed a like all the ones we stepped into had corny little knick-knacks. Chris bought a hammock, while I purchased a pink handbag for my boss Jessica. She’s been super amazing with giving me time off, I definitely have to bring her back a little something.
After the tour was over, the tour guide had to take us back home, and the rest of the group to Luquillo Beach. Everyone else was doing a trio tour which included stops to El Yunque, Luquillo Beach and the Bio Bay in Vieques. Even though we wanted to do all three, we just didn’t have the time. While dropping off the rest of the group, our tour guide Charlie, was ready to drive us back. I asked if I could use the bathroom first, and I ended up convincing Chris to take a quick run to the beach with me. He said no at first, but with a little begging, we were running towards the beach to get a quick glance at the famous beach before we had to get back to civilization. 
When we made it back to the van, we were cracking up and Charlie already knew we made a quick run for it.
I had every intention of jumping in the pool when we got back to our condo, but with all the exhaustion, a nap was needed. This was our last night in Puerto Rico and to end all of the festivities we had decided to start right at the beginning. We planned to meet up with Monica for a goodbye dinner, in this case drinks. She brung along her friend Rob from back home (Pennsylvania).
We started off drinking at a local bar called Stop & Go. Since I wasn’t too much in the mood for beer, I ordered wine & about 4 more after it. They were these personalized bottles that served about 3 glasses each. So I knew I was feeling it. Everyone else was was chugging on beers and we all took a break to shoot down some jagerbombs. It was time to celebrate Rob’s birthday.
We all walked on the beach for a little while to grab some fresh air. The sand was cool, the moon was bright and the waves were a little rough.We walked into an Irish pub called Patrick’s. I stepped into the restroom while everyone else went to grab a seat. As I stepped out of the bathroom I lost my footing & ended up falling on my right side. I’m not exaggerating when I say, I busted my ass!
Coming up the stairs was one of the locals who saw everything. How embarrassing! I walk over to where Monica, Chris and Rob are…. rubbing my ass… and who decided to walk over? The same guy who saw me fall. He asks if I’m ok. He barely speaks any english. At first his intentions seemed sincere and that’s when he got comfortable and stared to crack jokes on me.
I laugh it off because what can you possibly do but to laugh at yourself. He ended up hanging out with us the whole night, cracking jokes. When we all stepped outside to the porch of the bar, he kept saying how Dominican women are the best since they cater to you hand and foot, and that Chris was lucky to have me. I laughed because in some ways, he’s right, but that’s not all we’re good for. There’s a lot of spicyness that comes with latina women.
Everytime this man had something to say, I had a snap back response to it. After many drinks, Chris invited Monica and Rob back to our place so we can just blast some music, have more beer and shit talk all night. I cut open a mango and served it, a nice sweet snack to balance out all of that drinking. Time got the best of us and we ended up falling asleep around 3am. Good last night.
I told myself I would sleep in late today. I lied to myself. You would think that on vacation you would stop checking the time, but when you have so much you want to do, drink, eat. Time gets the best out of you.
Time for check out. Staying with Jose and Bill at the communal hostel was fun, but now it’s time for something a little more private. We headed to
Buenos Dias Puerto Rico!
Most of us were headed to EDC, so when it was time to get ready, the girls were butt cheek exposed in tutus, while I was busy putting on rhinestones on my face, which I ended up sharing with all of them in the long run.
