March 20

Unlike 8 years ago, the weather today was nearly perfect, allowing me to visit San Juan NHS on the day of my arrival in PR. Taxi fare is now $25 each way from the airport, if you take the official San Juan taxi option. Uber and non-official companies might be less, but I stuck with city approved vendor. There are two main sections of the park, mainly two forts; Castillo San Felipe del Morro and Castillo San Cristobal. When I asked the driver to take me to del Morro, he replied, “oh, the Big One.” A path connects the two forts, a centuries old wall with old gun emplacements and a bastion. Takes about 15 minutes from gate to gate if you want to walk. Or the NPS has a shuttle. The Spanish started building del Morro in 1539, a few years after Ponce de Leon arrived in 1508. One can easily see the strategic importance of this piece of land which juts out from the San Juan Bay area. Cristobal was started in 1634, for additional defense. The lighthouse on the top of the fort was closed to visitors. But one could access all six levels of del Morro. There are no elevators, so be ready for many steps. Even though one can see centuries of wear and tear, the fort is in excellent condition to receive visitors. PR and the NPS have spent plenty of money to keep it operational. My one driver said it is the top tourist attraction in San Juan. That was evident by the hundreds of visitors who had to be reminded to leave the forts at 5 PM. A couple of standard Greyhound-size tour buses were parked at one entrance. The day was 82F deg and slightly cloudy, much different than the 20F deg freezer conditions in Akron this morning. The drive back to the hotel by the airport took three times as long as getting to the park, since it was 5 PM, the middle of rush hour. The main expressway looked exactly like the beltway in D.C…. bumper to bumper and stop-and-go.