San Juan, and more specifically Isla Verde, is the Atlantic City of Puerto Rico. I think.
Yes the beaches are (geographically) nice, but given that in the past year I’ve been to both Waikiki and Bondi beach, it’s difficult for me to be wowed. Furthermore, the tourist appeal of San Juan is heavily tainted by the fact that the city is just ugly. I could go into specifics, but a trivial example is the garbage everywhere. I mean one tiny thing that would make the immediate area outside our hotel much more appealing would be simply cleaning the trash off the streets!
This morning I planned to walk west on Isla Verde beach to theadjacent Ocean Beach. The wind was near-cyclonic, and it felt more like walking in a desert so much sand was blowing everywhere. Isla Verde Avenue looks like it could double for a set from Mad Max IV, so I was back in the hotel within the hour 🙂
The hotels here are like oases. Each is a self-contained wonderland of entertainment, by which I mean they all have casinos. It’s increasingly obvious that this is the big draw of San Juan. The beaches are just there to fill the time between sinking coins into the slots. Perhaps.
Do I sound cynical? Maybe.
Here’s a shot of the koala I found in the hotel room, and me not being cynical 🙂
BTW we had Outback Steakhouse again for dinner, and we discovered we like ribs!
KLS is off at midday tomorrow and we’re both heading to Old San Juan to try and dig up some decent souvenirs. Don’t get my started about the taxi scam…
