Garlands of shell ginger blossoms, their buds white and each tip a light shade of flamingo pink. Vivid hibiscus flowers and verdant hills covered in palm and mango trees. Tiny geckos skittering across our floor and walls.
When my sister and I sailed from Puerto Rico to Vieques Island this May, I had no idea what to expect – but was immediately mesmerized by this small Caribbean isle.
Beyond its dense, tropical landscape, there were the pretty towns that dotted its coast; places like Isabel Segunda, where our ferry docked, and Esperanaza, with its many seafront streets and hotels.
“When I first moved here, there were three telephones,” our taxi driver Jug told us as he drove us back to the ferry terminal. “Twenty people spoke English. Now there’s all kinds of gringos living here – which isn’t a bad thing, don’t get me wrong.”
I’m now at home in Virginia, spending a couple of months with my family before moving to India, and yet my visions of Vieques stay strong. Our hotel on the island, the Hix Island House, was practically a giant fruit orchard, growing its own papayas, pineapples, bananas, lemons, guavas, mangos, and passionfruit – just to name a few.
From Vieques’ vibrant vegetation to its boat-filled harbors, I loved every chance to glimpse this new corner of the world – and hope you will, too.
The imagery in this post is so vivid!! Ahhh, to be in the tropics right now… 😉
Thanks, Naomi! And I’m right there with you – there’s nothing quite like an island 🙂
Colourful prose and photos! And I’d never heard of Vieques! Sounds like paradise indeed.
Thanks so much, Natasha! I’d never heard of Vieques before visiting Puerto Rico, either, but I was really glad we took the time to explore it, even for only one night. Thanks for checking out The Great Affair, look forward to seeing you here again 🙂
Candace! This entry caught my eye since I’ve been working on projects in Puerto over the past year or so. We are doing a bunch of work on solid waste management issues and trying to push composting in PR and Vieques. Did you get a chance to learn more about the history of Vieques? It’s amazing how a place so beautiful could be used for target practice – there are many un-detonated bombs across that gorgeous island. So glad you got to see it…I’ve been to PR twice but not Vieques, yet!! Hope all is well with you, love! -Carissa
Hey Carissa! It’s great to hear from you. Funnily enough, I stumbled over to your blog again the other day and it seems congratulations are in order 🙂 So excited for you and your engagement! How cool that you’ve been so connected to Puerto Rico recently – yes, I’ve read quite a bit about Vieques’ interesting past and am amazed at how much it’s been transformed in the last few years. You’ll definitely have to make it over there the next time you’re in PR, even if only for a day or two. Thanks again for saying hi, so glad you’re doing well!