Happy New Years! Today is our first day off since our arrival in Puerto Rico and it feels good to just relax and have some free time to explore our resort. Our resort, Aquatika, is beautiful and filled with swimming pools that stretch the entire place. And to top it off, there is a beach that overlooks the salty yet stunning ocean. This was the first time I have ever swum in an ocean and I was really surprised by the saltiness of the water. Being so used to the fresh water lakes in Minnesota, the salty ocean water was very wounding to my eyes. There are also many sports that we can play from basketball and beach soccer to mini golf and tennis. But most importantly, the people here at the resort really understand the social capital aspect of Puerto Rico. They are really nice and everyone looks out for each other.
We also got the chance to walk out of our resort for the first time today and stopped at a near by seafood restaurant called El Parrilla. El Parrilla is a family owned restaurant that is almost 80 years old. The food there was delicious and service was even better. It seems like everyone here in Puerto Rico, regardless of being able to speak English or not, likes to make conversations and get to know you better. People here in this city of Loiza are very prideful even though there aren’t lots of big buildings or big highways. This is one of the older cities in Puerto Rico that are still doing pretty well because of all the different mix of people in this community. I believe that we are situated in this city so that we can get a better understanding of this unique community and all it has to offer.