1/20/24: Puerto Rico: Leisurely Drive Back to San Juan

Before leaving Cabo Rojo for the drive back to San Juan, we stopped at the scenic Sanctuario Schoenstatt, on the grounds of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary. It was a replica of the German Church of the Apostolic Movement of Schoenstatt, a worldwide Catholic movement prioritizing a strong devotion to the Blessed Mary. I read that the term "Schoenstatt" is derived from the German words for "beautiful" (schön) and "place" (statt). Located atop a hill with lovely ocean views, it was hard to imagine that a more idyllic place could have been picked.

The church was small with just a few pews on either side, a carved wood altar, and stained-glass windows. We were lucky we had the church to ourselves so I could say a prayer for a little one whom we just found out was very sick.

Longtime readers of my blog likely recall my love of colorful city signs like this one in Joyuda, a town near Cabo Rojo.

Given enough time, Steven and I always find peace wandering through cemeteries but we had to just admire this one from the road as we passed through the town of Juan Diaz on our way back to San Juan.

We were in no rush to get back to San Juan before boarding our ship so we took Hwy. 14, the back road, rather than the toll road we'd driven westward a few days earlier. It was a great choice as we much preferred gazing at huge country estates and horse country instead of having cars zipping by at great rates of speed.

Steven wondered why I had given him grief for his parking job at the lovely Puente de los Flores aka Bridge of Flowers just south of Coamo. I guess he did have a point considering ours was the only car in the lot!

Notice the Puerto Rican flag in the arbor's background.

The mural said Welcome to Coamo! It became Puerto Rico's third-largest city when it was established by the Spanish in 1579. Coamo controlled the island's southern area until 1880 when political power transferred to Ponce. The town, however, remained important with decisive battles occurring in Coamo during the Spanish-American War of 1898.

Just as we'd seen in both Ponce and San Germán, Coamo's main plaza was dominated by a gorgeous church. Dating from 1563, the whitewashed, neoclassical Iglesia Católica San Blás was one of the oldest churches on the island.

A child was being baptised so we couldn't wander around as we'd hoped. If we had, we would have viewed paintings by two island masters including one of a painter’s girlfriend being tortured in purgatory!

A whimsical sculpture on the plaza:

Waiting for the celebrants in the church was a limo to match! 

Calle Jose Ignacio Quinton, dating from 1570, was the oldest street in Puerto Rico. Once used by the indigenous people, the same route connected the south to the north of the island.

I don't know whether it was because it was Sunday afternoon or Coamo was so small, but we encountered few people as we wandered around.

Just as in the beautiful colonial town of San Germán a couple of days earlier, a dental clinic in Coamo also promoted its church!

Finally, just off the main drag, we saw a few locals enjoying live music, the most people we'd seen in almost two hours!

Who would ever think this small, no-name fajita restaurant in Coamo of all places would have had the juiciest burger I'd had in years! How I wished I could get one a-tenth that good anywhere in Denver. Steven liked his burrito, too, fortunately. 

On the San Juan waterfront with our Virgin Voyages Valiant Lady behemoth behind us. After the very tough year Steven and I had had, we were excited to put as much of that behind us as possible and enjoy the upcoming week touring the Lesser Antilles. Not that long ago, we thumbed our noses at the cruising lifestyle figuring that would never be us or, at least, not until we were OLD. Ha, that changed pretty quickly when medical issues made independent travel more challenging. We were just thankful that traveling another way was still possible. 

Bidding adieu to San Juan's El Campo de Morro and a great few days exploring colonial Puerto Rico that charmed us from the get-go. I hope one day we'll return, not just to the US territory's capital city on a port of call, but to discover other areas of the Caribbean isle.

Next post: Amazing Aruba.

Posted from Tempe, Arizona on another sun-kissed day on March 22nd, 2024. Wishing you and your loved ones good health.