Puerto Rico 5/15/2019 - 5/19/2019 |
|
Saturday, May 18, 2019 - Castillo San Cristóbal, Flamenco Dinner ShowWe woke up this morning and got some coffee from the third floor. When we were ready for breakfast, we walked down Calle San Francisco, through the Plaza de Armas, and to the bright yellow colonial building which houses Chocobar Cortes. Mark, the taxi driver who brought us to Old San Juan from the airport, had spoken highly of the place. He used to work there, and said that if we wanted to try some fusion cuisine which makes use of high quality local chocolate, this was the place.The Cortés family has been involved in "farm-to-bar" chocolate production since 1929. Don Pedro Cortés Forteza started his chocolate empire in the Dominican Republic, and subsequently expanded his business to his native Puerto Rico. Chocobar was opened as a gastropub in 2013. The walls are decorated with metal chocolate molds with the CORTES imprint. A colorful mural depicts the various Cortés chocolate products, from drink mix to candy bars. On weekends, they serve brunch all day. They have a menu of chocolate cocktails, and I ordered the choco martini made from Bailey's, milk chocolate, and Absolut vodka. It came with white chocolate shavings on top and a chocolate sugar mixture coating the rim of the glass. Craig opted for an Ocean Lab IPA, produced in Isla Verde, Puerto Rico. Craig and I each had the same meal: Fried French toast with chocolate and maple syrup coating, chocolate flakes, homemade whipped cream, and fresh fruit. Marty chose the Chocobar pancakes: vanilla-chocolate pancakes served with homemade strawberry marmalade and caramelized salted almonds. In addition to maple syrup on the table, there was also chocolate syrup. We added chocolate syrup first. Marty swears he will never eat pancakes without chocolate sauce again. Everything was delicious. After a few bites, we decided to add a touch of maple syrup as well, to add sweetness. The combination really worked well! We have never been to a restaurant where almost every dish incorporates chocolate in some way, and we certainly approve! After breakfast, we decided to visit the other Spanish colonial fort. While walking there, we passed a Franciscan chapel dating back to 1756. Saint Francis has featured prominently in our lives (My grandfather was the caretaker of his family's parish St. Francis of Assisi. We were married at that church. The parishes of our compadres in Guatemala and Ecuador also happen to be St. Francis of Assisi), so we couldn't resist stopping in. The interior was painted a cheerful sky blue with white trim. There was a stained glass window next to the altar. A modern painting over the church doors depicted Saint Francis holding a skull, with angels to the left of him and bombs to his right, along with the words "Paz para Vieques" (Peace for Vieques). This is a reference to the U.S. military using the island of Vieques (a small island 8 miles east of the Puerto Rican mainland) as a bombing range and test site. Protests after the accidental killing of a civilian by a jet bomb in 1999 led to the eventual withdrawal of the U.S. Navy in 2003. We continued on foot to Castillo San Cristóbal, the second of the two forts in Old San Juan. It turned out to be the largest fortification built by the Spanish in the New World, encompassing 27 acres. When first built in 1634 in response to the Dutch attack on El Morro from the east, which resulted in Spanish victory after a 21 day siege, San Cristóbal was a small redoubt. The fort took its present form in 1766, and construction was finally completed in 1783. If we had come yesterday, we could have gotten in for free with our entrance ticket from El Morro the day before. Both sites belong to the San Juan National Historic Site, and entrance to one also gets you entrance to the other within 24 hours. But yesterday we had been skydiving. So we paid the entrance fee ($7 per person), which we were happy to do since it benefits the National Park Service. We walked through the grass of the dry moat and entered a tunnel or "gallery" built in 1769. The tunnels were surprisingly spacious. They were used to get troops quickly and safely from one area of the fort to another. They were also booby-trapped with explosives that could be detonated to collapse the tunnels if enemy soldiers gained entrance. A symbol of an exploding bomb above the tunnel entrance indicated that it was one of these "countermining galleries." The bombs were on display, and they looked like the quintessential stereotypical cartoon image of a bomb - a large iron sphere with a location for a fuse at the top. Also located in the gallery tunnels was a dungeon with a single narrow window providing almost blinding light into the otherwise dark chamber. There was some old graffiti on the wall as well as a detailed sketch of a ship. We wandered through the tunnels and up ramps to the three levels of the fort. It seemed like it was better designed for moving large artillery around the fort, with wide ramps and fewer staircases. On one side of the fort were beautiful ocean vistas, and in the other direction were views of Old San Juan and San Juan Bay. This fort had the same types of sentry boxes as Castillo El Morro. From the fort we could see down to sea level, where the "devil's sentry box (garita del diablo)" was located. This sentry box dates back to the original redoubt which was built on the site in 1634. It is thought to be haunted, as at least one sentry disappeared while on watch (other theories include that he deserted and ran off with his girlfriend.) There was a beautiful view westward along the coast, and we could see the garitas, walls, and lighthouse of Castillo El Morro. The colorful houses of barrio La Perla added to the picturesque quality. One house was painted to resemble the Puerto Rican flag. The 1890's saw the expansion of Old San Juan. The original walled area could not sustain the growing population, so parts of the eastern and southern city walls were removed, along with the other two original city gates (only San Juan gate remains). Spain ceded Puerto Rico to the U.S. in 1898 after the Spanish-American War. During World War II, U.S. troops utilized both forts (know collectively at the time as Fort Brooke). Here at Castillo San Crístobal, U.S forces constructed some boxy concrete observation posts which stand in stark contrast to the fort's Spanish colonial masonry. They used these structures to keep watch for enemy submarines and warships. Other vestiges of U.S. war presence include a decontamination area to be used in case of chemical attack. As with Castillo El Morro, tres banderas (three flags) were flying: the Spanish military Burgundy Cross, the flag of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the United States flag. After touring the fort, we were feeling overheated. The sun was strong. We went into the gift shop and bought a book about the two forts, as well as a little Lego-style building kit of Castillo El Morro. While I think that El Morro is the more dramatic of the two forts if you only have time for one, we are definitely glad that we came to San Cristobal as well. Unique features such as the tunnels and bombs, as well as panoramic views of the city, make it an interesting site in its own right. We walked back to the hotel, and asd we passed Burger King, we asked Marty if he needed one more fix. He said that he was fine; the chocolate breakfast had filled him up. When we got back to the hotel room, we took a siesta, cooling down in the air conditioning. We started to pack our bags for the trip home tomorrow. I looked through tourist brochures and browsed the internet to determine where we would go for a nice dinner to celebrate the last night of our trip. When researching Barrachina, the restaurant which lays claim to inventing the piña colada in 1963, I saw that their menu looked good. When I saw that they offered a complimentary flamenco show with live music and dancing on weekends, that sealed the deal. I called to make a reservation for the three of us for 7 o'clock. We walked the few blocks to the restaurant. We were a few minutes early for our reservation, so we sat in the lobby to wait. They called us to our table at exactly 7 o'clock. Craig ordered a Magna beer, and I happily ordered the place's signature original piña colada. Like any good tropical drink, it was served with a bamboo umbrella, a marischino cherry, and a wedge of pineapple. It was a spectatular drink - so creamy and smooth...not grainy or icy at all. Sooo delicious! For appetizers we ordered chorizos al jerez (Spanish sausage sauteed with sherry and onions, served with garlic bread) and calamari breaded with coconut. The chorizo reminded me of sweet kielbasa that my mother used to slow cook in the crock pot. And the calamari was so amazing that we eagerly ordered another serving. All three of us ordered the same entree: Steak Fortaleza. The menu states that you should allow 35 minutes for preparation, so we ordered it immediately. It took significantly less time than that so we had plenty of time to enjoy our meal before the start of the flamenco show. Our meal was a skirt steak stuffed with ham, swiss cheese, onions and peppers and covered with mushroom sauce. It was delicious! We were done eating by the time the show started at 8 p.m. There was a male vocalist, a flamenco guitarist, three female dancers, and one male dancer. They performed on a stage at the front of the room, clapping, stomping and spinning. Our table was far back from the stage, but that had been expected, as we had only made a reservation a couple of hours ago. For dessert, Craig had cheesecake and I had coconut flan. As the show came to an end, the dancers convinced one of their friends, a woman in street clothes, onto the stage. She joined them in the finale number, and she was as talented as the rest of the performers. This had been the perfect way to spend our final evening in Old San Juan. Delicious food, free live entertainment, and a world famous piña colada. It was a maunfactured tourist experience, sure, but it was fun and low-key. We love catching live music whenever we can, and I always enjoy watching dance. Flamenco comes from Spain, and belies Puerto Rico's Spanish cultural influences. When the show ended shortly after 9 o'clock, we headed back to the hotel. It was only a couple of blocks away. We picked up some ice cold waters from the 3rd floor lounge and then went to bed. We had managed to pack a lot of activities into these few days, and it was so great to get to spend quality time with Marty. Castillo San Cristobal |
 Brunch at Chocobar Cortes  Colorful colonial architecture in Old San Juan  Devil's sentry box (garita del diablo), part of the original redoubt of Castillo San Cristobal  Marty, Castillo San Cristobal  Craig in a sentry box, Castillo San Cristobal  Flamenco dancers at Barrachina See all photos from May 18 |
 Castillo San Cristobal |
|
|
 |
|
 |
