“your book not captivating you?”

and this is how it always begins. i took a split second to consider his choice of verb — why captivating and not something else? — but the truth is that i was immediately taken. i could repeat the umpteenth iteration of my affinity theory, but there was no need for such formalities when there was only one hour left in the streets of old san juan, and time was sliding away indifferently even as we exchanged quick opinions of our books. i had been waiting for the vintage store on the corner of calle de san francisco to open, but this stranger convinced me to get up and leave the vain endeavour. i’ll take you to the shore, i’ll show you the ghetto, you’ll be back before you know it. i went. i saw the shore, i saw the ghetto, and slummed it for an hour with the locals. everything moved very quickly and i wasn’t allowed to take any photos of people or houses. then he took me back to the vintage store and the hustle and bustle of the tourist avenues, and we parted ways, and i boarded the NYC-bound plane out of puerto rico. and that’s always how it ends!

but what a deliriously exciting hour.

spring break photos from old san juan:

#1 steph in her broad white hat, lending some modelesque quality to the streets of san juan

#2 narrow cobblestone walkways and dangerously asymmetrical homes

#3 nicholas and nicole outside the pablo casals museum

#4 plaster models of the doors of old san juan, found in an art shop

#5 a wedding was happening one of the days we were there. such gorgeous bridesmaid dresses!

#6 doesn’t this feel like a place to make a bond movie?

#7 these slot game machines are everywhere in puerto rico! usually found where fat old men are wiling the hot afternoons away

#8 a bar that was filled with pictures of marilyn monroe

#9 all curbside bars serve mofongo – a most scrumptious dish made out of mashed sweet plantains and meat. sounds gross but it’s not

#10 us on the sloping green hills surrounding the el morro fort. it’s the fort where amistad was filmed!!

#11 kites – popular pastime at el morro. remember when the skies at KL parks used to be full of kites?

#12 rolling down the hills in a race to the bottom – another popular pastime at el morro

#13 another picture for good measure

#14 view of old San Juan from el morro. check out the coastal cemetery! on this day i only saw the crashing waves from afar, and thought that they may just be the biggest waves i’d ever seen

#15 crow

#16 a strange sculpture outside the church that made me miss jovann!

#17 one of the many eccentric sets of windows

#18 the very retro ben & jerrys shop

#19 calle del sol at night; very quiet and domestic

#20 the bars with their gates thrown open to welcome the spring night crowds

#21 at one of the bars that had some very cool old beer and Coke ads on the walls. was tempted to ask if i could have one…

#22 party on the balcony!

#23 and finally- led by the hand to the slums and the unwelcoming coast

#24 the shore on rocks. i was so close! is it really that dangerous?

#25 graffiti at la perla, which was really all i could take pictures of

#26 couldn’t even take pictures of the ground cos of you know what :(

#27 sometimes a skateboarding haunt, sometimes a swimming pool, apparently!

#28 i still can never tell the difference between geese and really big ducks

#29 my oh my

more soon!