We always choose the self assist option to debark, but today we did not want to leave the ship extremely early. So we took our time getting ready and went to the formal dining room for one last delicious breakfast. By 8:30 we had to vacate our cabin so we took our luggage and went to the back pool deck to recline on deck chairs and read/ nap. We were just outside the lido restaurant so we had easy access to the guava passion fruit juice we can only find on a cruise, this was definitely better than roaming the streets of Old San Juan with our luggage while we waited for check in time to arrive. After a couple of hours zones were still being called, and we decided we were ready to leave (we could leave anytime since we were in the self assist group). We made our way to the gangway and stood in a few lines to finally get through customs. We are pretty patient travelers, realizing that everyone is doing their best to make this as painless as possible for everyone involved. We finally emerged from the terminal sometime after 11 and rolled our luggage less than a mile to our guest house. We were a little disappointed that we had not spotted elliptical lady one last time as we left though. We had reservations at a different place this time since the one in which we stayed prior to the cruise was booked. This guest house did allow us a beautiful balcony overlooking Calle de Recinto Sur. Our room was not ready yet, but the extremely friendly staff took our luggage to the room so we could walk freely around town.

We decided this would be a great time to check out the forts. Old San Juan is surrounded by an old wall originally built for defensive purposes with forts at the two points of land exposed to the sea. Construction of Castillo San Cristobal was began in 1529 by the Spanish and was added to for over 200 years, the current massive size housed as many as 6,000 soldiers at one time, rising 420 feet above the sea with walls as thick as 36 feet. I don’t usually remember such facts, but this place is truly amazing. It’s last use was by American soldiers in WW II. There is a lot of walking and climbing involved in this massive fortress, and before long we were searching diligently for lunch. We found a Subway and sat down to rest. It was mid afternoon and our room was finally ready. We went back and all easily agreed on a nap. The only downside to visiting so many great ports on one cruise is the fatigue factor. We like to use every bit of time we are given at each port to explore the island, and with so many fun things to do onboard at night, we did missed a good bit of sleep this week, and we were all feeling it.

A two hour late afternoon nap makes for a late dinner. We were all feeling tired and in the mood for traditionally American food, but had no idea where we could get this. After walking the busy street for a few minutes, we made a happy discovery. The restaurant was called Trianas and we could see the musician through the windows facing the street. We were soon seated directly by the stage. Although we had apparently missed the first part of the show, we were enraptured with the Flamenco guitarist and his dancers. We later learned the restaurant normally featured flamenco on Friday and Saturday night, but we were lucky enough to have caught a special show. We couldn’t ever figure out why? Maybe because of the holiday weekend, it also seemed to be the birthday celebration of a lady at the next table. Whatever the reason, the lightening fast fingers of the guitarist captured our attention completely. We had seen a famous Flamenco guitarist 15 years ago on our only previous visit to San Juan during a nighttime stop on a cruise. We wanted to see the bioluminescent lagoon but weather didn’t permit, so we reluctantly scheduled an excursion to see the guitarist, and we were pleasantly surprised at the show. We adored it then, and we were loving it now! And the biggest surprise came when Juan Carlos told the story of his appearance on the Ed Sullivan show at the age of 16. His is when we realized that this is the same guy! What?! We were thrilled at our good fortune of seeing him again. I don’t know how much this elderly gentleman performs these days, but I’m so glad we had now seen him twice. We ordered Ceasar Salads and cheeseburgers off the kids menus, but the food was now an afterthought.

After our dinner, we were too excited to go back to our guest house. We walked down toward the water front and found a local festival going on. Food trucks and booths with local arts and crafts kept us entertained. We bought some homemade plantain chips (one of my favorites). We visited a local CVS for a few essentials we had run out of, and then headed back as it got late. We have planned a slow and relaxing day tomorrow (which basically means NO plans). It’s not something I usually do well with, but today’s fatigue has me looking forward to it.