Day 3 started out with breakfast being delivered to us to eat out on the deck in front of the hotel before getting in the van to drive to El Yunque Rainforest for a morning hike.
That pool sure looked inviting and had the kids very excited to be able to swim later that evening.
Our first stop at the Rainforest gave us another glimpse of some creatures we don't normally see. A walking stick! My pictures don't do justice to the wonder and awe on the kids' faces as this amazing creature crawled up their arms.
The snails are really big there!
A little fun face-painting with clay rocks
After two hours in the rainforest, we got back in the shuttle bus and rode to our lunch destination, a popular "barbecue" place. Barbecue doesn't mean the same as in the states, though. We got some special rice to split among us, along with a variety of bite size pieces of chicken, pork, and ribs, and yellow sweet potatoes. The kids all made a funny face at first, not sure they even wanted to try this typical Puerto Rican lunch, but they all loved it and ate really well!
After lunch, we drove to the beach for a Bomba class (a dance that came with the African culture in Puerto Rico). We all really enjoyed it, loosened up, and had a great time! I've never had any sense of rhythm, but I sure do wish I knew how to dance. People that dance just seem so relaxed, upbeat, and happy. I'm so incredibly uncoordinated that I step on my own feet, but I'm sure a little practice could change that. The best part was that it was right on the beach!
After our Bomba class, we drove to the home and art studio of Samuel Lind, a famous painter in Puerto Rico. He and his son gave us a tour of his whole studio where he stopped to talk about certain paintings or projects he was working on or had finished. He was just a simple, humble, down-to-earth, super friendly guy who just loves showing his artwork. His home and studio are one, and he had unfinished projects going on everywhere you looked. The house was quite warm, with fans in most rooms and an AC unit in just one of his rooms where he worked, and citronella candles burned in every room to help with the constant mosquitoes. But those conditions didn't stop quite a few people from touring the studio and purchasing signed prints of his artwork.
This is his son, Lemuel, who happened to have lived in Bloomington for two years, so he enjoyed having us there. He is a graphic designer and is actually more famous than his father!
Then we walked across the street and met another lady who had some art set up that was made by many of her family members.
Our Spanish class was supposed to be at the art studio, but our teacher got sick, so the tour lasted a little longer. Then we went to dinner a little earlier at a restaurant right on the beach.
I tried the famous queso frito that came with a guayaba sauce to dip it in. Very tasty!
Hector decided to try arepas de coco. They were really good!
He also decided to try Mangu, (mashed plantains), but he wasn't too impressed.
Despite the face, this meal was devoured!
These girls wanted chicken and rice, so they had to improvise by ordering fried chicken with a side of rice.
Here's another arepa de coco.
A mangu tree, very common here with their roots above the ground.
We caught some pretty ocean pics as we drove away.
When we got back to the hotel and got out, the kids excitedly pointed to the sky. So we just started snapping pictures as the sun quickly disappeared.
With Spanish class canceled, we got to our hotel an hour earlier than expected, so all were excited to have not just one, but TWO hours in the pool. Those kids had a blast and really needed that time, which of course meant that we had to stay up later to dry all the wet clothes again. We had to be packed and ready to go back to the first hotel the next day.
While the clothes dried, we gathered for our journaling and debrief time, where we also all each wrote a thank-you note for someone who helped make our trip go well. Our guides, our drivers, our Spanish teacher, and even our hotel staff that cleaned our rooms. The kids really took pride in delivering those letters the following day.
With all the swimming, everyone slept really well that night.
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