Although it threatened to rain, I set out on an evening walking tour with my daughter, an umbrella and lots of optimism to tour Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. This is the first of many included tours as a passenger of Viking Ocean Cruises’ West Indies Explorer sailing on the Viking Sea.
Our small group of eight followed the waterfront as our guide explained the island’s history. Puerto Rico is a Caribbean Island of roughly 3,500 square miles in the West Indies. After centuries of Spanish rule, Puerto Rico became a territory of the United States in 1898 and has been largely self-governing since the mid-20th century. Its population is some 3.4 million people. Its vibrant culture is shaped by Spanish, African-Caribbean, and United States influences.
We pass Spanish colonial architecture in Old San Juan along the centuries-old UNESCO World Heritage Site streets paved with steel-blue adoquín stone, used to ballast in the Spanish galleons that brought settlers here.
We learn about the San Juan Gate, an impressive remnant of the three-mile-long wall that once encircled the city. We admire the historic, neoclassical-style Cathedral of San Juan Bautista, the oldest cathedral in the US. Just as we finish photographing Plaza de Armas, the Four Seasons Fountain, it starts to rain. We huddle under a tree and finally walk to an archway for better shelter as a foot of water cascades through its entrance. About 30 residents and tourists wait in the makeshift shelter for the rain to lessen or stop.
Finally, when it is just a drizzle, we walk to a beautiful hotel that was once a convent. Hotel El Convento dates to 1646, when construction began on the Carmelite convent through a petition by King Phillip IV of Spain.
From here, we go to a small café for a rum punch before returning to the Viking Sea.
Rain didn’t dampen the spirits of our small group, and we all learned about the island and this historic city.
For more information about the Viking Ocean Cruise West Indies Explorer, click here.
