The main attraction in Old San Juan is the National Historic Site Fort San Felipe de Morro, which occupies a beautiful peninsula surrounded by water & a large rolling hill.
There is a cool old cemetery down by the water & we watched one of the cruise ships approach the island.
One nice thing about OSJ is that they offer a free trolley that goes all around downtown and makes dozens of stops. One drop off location is at the entrance to the Fort at the end of this road, but the park service itself offers a free shuttle between the Fort & the Castle which will take you door to door between the two parks.
Just across the harbor, we caught a glimpse of the Bacardi Distillery & immediately put that on our list of things to check out while we were on the island.
The fort stands guard over the entrance to the harbor- the first deep water safe haven that boats coming from Europe could find for hundreds of years & thus why Spanish control of the island was key to further explorations of the New World for centuries.
We were glad we arrived early, as the crowds started pouring in as we left. There were huge fields surrounding the fort itself with people frolicking and enjoying the delightful winter weather- we even saw a vizsla playing ball.
Inside the fort is very impressive- a charming mix of old ruggedness & tropical decor. There is still a functional lighthouse that operates & the park service has done a very nice job making the fort interesting and accessible.
The ocean views of the fort were nothing short of spectacular. Imaging all the canons lined up in each of those wall cutouts, ready to fire across the bay at approaching enemy ships, all the while enjoying a stunning view of brilliant blue waves crashing on the rocks.
There is a much smaller fort across the harbor entrance that would fire canons simultaneously from the west, making it nearly impossible for ships to sail through canon balls flying from both directions. We didn’t really do a full tour of the place- I was hungry & H was ready to hit the beach, but we loved checking out this historical site that played such a pivotal role in exploration of the Americas for hundreds of years.
GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: First real work trip of the year & first flight today, headed to Oklahoma City & then Paris (Texas!) tonight.
