This is the last installment of our Puerto Rican adventures. Where much of the first half of our trip was dedicated to relaxation and letting go of that city grit, the last half was all about adventure. When we first started looking into Puerto Rico two attractions immediately stood out to us- the rainforst and the bioluminescent bays. 

First up the El Yunque National Forest (the only rainforest on US soil). The day we decided to head into El Yunque was less than ideal, unlike all the days leading up to the trek we woke up to an overcast sky threatening to rain. Fittingly it did rain on us in the rainforest, in fact it poured buckets. We embraced it and headed deep into the green mass of tree in search of the La Mina Falls. 

At first I was a little disappointed with the trail, I mean the trail was paved for crying out loud! But, by the time we made it to the falls the rain had started to let up a little and I was smitten. We decided to go ahead and continue on to the Big Tree Trail where I took a bazillion pictures which I'll spare you. At times I felt like I was in a scene from Jurassic Park, and at others Fern Gully. It was a magical playground of plants unlike anything I've ever seen.  

Note: My brilliant husband not only remembered to bring a waterproof camera for this trip, but also a dry bag so my precious DSLR could come along too!

Our other adventurous excursion took place the following evening in the Laguna Grande bioluminescent bay (aka bio bays). The bio bays are basically warm pockets of water that attract phosphorescent plankton. At night these plankton glow in the dark when disturbed or moved creating fireworks in the water. There are only 5 of these bays in the enitre world, and Puerto Rico is home to 3 of them.

We opted to take the sunset trip to the bay so we could see the gorgeous Mangrove trees and wildlife as we made our way into the lagoon. It was straight out of Indiana Jones. As the sun set our tour guides explained what was happening in the water and the types of fish we were about to see. I was a ball of excitement waiting for the water to glow and it felt like it took forever to see anything happen. And then it did.

There are no pictures of what we experienced when the plankton woke up for the evening and part of that is on purpose. There are just some things in life you have to experience for yourself, no picture will ever do it justice. All I can say is get out there and travel- you never know what you'll walk away with. - b.

Read more about our Puerto Rican adventures no. 1  |  no. 2  |  no. 3

One of my favorite parts about travel is immersing myself in a new culture, or at least in someone else's idea of a culture. This immersion starts with finding unique places to stay, and my new favorite tool for this is Airbnb. For Puerto Rico, Ryan and I both got on our respective accounts and spent hours digging through options until we stumbled upon the Dreamcatcher Guesthouse. We immediately knew this was the place. As the images will show, it was an absolute dream.

Surrounded by a lush garden, Dreamcatcher was a serene respite from the bustle of San Juan. There were communal living areas with wide doors opening into tiled patios with gorgeous green plants spilling out of every nook and cranny. A guitar was permanently propped against a settee for guests to play, and herbal teas were always at the ready when ever you needed to just sit and relax for a moment. 

We stayed in the Moroccan Room which came with its own entrance and side porch with a small table and chairs. We happily finished each evening on the porch under the glow of a lantern, listening to the birds hum the night away. I promise I'm not making any of this up. 

If you're ever in Puerto Rico we highly recommend the the Dreamcatcher Guesthouse- and that's an unsolicited, unsponsored, unpaid, totally from the heart recommendation. That doesn't happen much nowadays so take it as you'd like. - b.

Read more about our trip! Puerto Rico no. 1 + no. 2

What's the first thing you think about when you hear someone's going to Puerto Rico? Sand, surf, and sun of course! We took full advantage of this geographical feature, finding ourselves on the beach sometimes three or four times a day. The guesthouse we stayed at (more on that tomorrow) was steps away from the Ocean Park beach in San Juan and made it easy to hop in and out of the water at our leisure.

Ocean Park was definitely a touristy spot, but we found that hitting the beach before noon afforded us a generous spot on the sand, and fewer bodies to bump into in the water. We didn't take our water time too serious, instead playing with a waterproof camera and bobbing between waves as our bodies slowly turned into prunes. It was bliss. - b.

read puerto rico no. 1