Old San Juan is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and by San Juan Bay or “Bahia de San Juan” on other. I find San Juan city very romantic and unique as one end of the island is full of rich history and old style architecture, grand forts from 16th and 17th century and other end is the center of modern construction of 20th century. Old San Juan city is consisted of almost 400 buildings from the 16th- and 17th-century Spanish colonial period. The old city is distinguished by its narrow, blue cobblestone and brick streets and houses with flat-roofs made of brick and stone, characteristic feature of 16th and 17th century construction. Puerto Rico was a Spanish possession during that time, and the architecture have a touch of Spanish construction, especially the brick roads reminded me of Madrid. Old San Juan city was declared a World Heritage Site in 1983 by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization)
We picked the evening time to explore the area, as it was just 10 minutes walk from our residence. People of San Juan are very family oriented, if you go for a walk in the evening you will come across local families having fun in the area. During weekends, you will come across abundant small shops and stalls by the roads, selling refreshments, Italian dough toys, local art and craft items. If you visit the area during day time, you will come across all types of stores like Coach Factory Store, Hilfiger outlets and Polo, Louis Vuitton and art galleries like Exodo and Botello.
The best place to eat on the island was a Mexican restaurant Tijuana’s. I must say, during my two week visit, I never saw that place empty. Even if it is not lunch or dinner time, people still come there for coffee or for drinks. The marvelous location, reasonable pricing, warm service and sea facing sitting arrangement with deck made it the most popular place among tourists. In words of a tourist:
“Pleasantly surprised by the food and the prices were very reasonable. If you look at the menu and think about $11 or $14 is too much for a burrito, you will think again when it comes out. The portions are huge and the food is excellent. Amazingly, it is one of the few places we have found that don’t overcharge for drinks.”
Transportation was not a problem in the city, since public transport was abundant, however we preferred to walk. If you are planning to take heels and slippers there, let me warn you as brick roads are not very nice for walking with uncomfortable shoes.
San Juan is wrapped with world famous forts, such as the Fort San Felipe del Morro, Fort San Cristóbal, and El Palacio de Santa Catalina, also known as La Fortaleza. These acted as the primary defenses and guarded the city for centuries from numerous attacks. La Fortaleza is still used as Governor of Puerto Rico office.