Invading the South

Pictures of Guayama's town center

Being the coffee lovers that we are, I wanted to go visit Hacienda Buena Vista, which is a working coffee plantation located near the city of Ponce. It is the second largest city in Puerto Rico, and is located in the southern part of the island. So, my Mother and I hit the road. Driving around the island is something my family and I have always enjoyed. We love road trips. Amazingly, we rarely carry a map around with us. After all, we're in an island, how lost can we get?

Well, as it turns out, we got lost. We never made it to Hacienda Buena Vista. It certainly didn't help that the highway, which was newly constructed, didn't have any signs posted anywhere. We asked several people, but they just pointed us in the wrong direction and it also started raining quite hard. To make the most of our trip, we decided to visit Ponce instead. Unfortunately, we didn't find anything interesting. We started heading back to San Juan, when I saw a sign for Guayama, which is a small city not too far from Ponce. I was curious, and feeling a bit adventurous, so we just took the exit. We drove around this small city and came across various local bars and the town center. It was practically deserted, but I thought it was really pretty. Unfortunately, these days, most people prefer to visit the local shopping mall instead of taking a stroll in the plaza. What a shame!

All in all, it was great getting out of San Juan. We didn't end up at our intended destination. However, it was a fun and spontaneous road trip. Nevertheless, I'm going to purchase a map and put it in my car.