Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
www.parquesnacionalespr.com
;
parking $3)
is perhaps the greatest seaside refuge in
metro San Juan for travelers craving privacy and nature. There isn't much here except some
shade trees, some gazebos for picnicking, a rocky seashore, waves and litter. You can fish,
but the offshore currents are too dangerous for swimming. The ruins at the north end of the
island mark a late-19th-century leper colony.
On the island's south end stand the remains of
Fuerte del Cañuelo
(Cañuelo Fort). The
fort, which is nothing but ruins today, dates from 1610 and once shared the responsibility
of protecting Bahía de San Juan with El Morro, which is across the channel marking the
entrance to the bay.
Museo de Oller
MUSEUM
( 787-785-6010; 8am-noon & 1-4pm Mon-Fri)
Located in the former city hall on
the plaza of Bayamón's historic district, this art and history museum pays tribute to nat-
ive son Francisco Oller (1833-1917), considered the first Latin American impressionist.
Most of Oller's great works are displayed elsewhere, but the restored neoclassical museum
building is worth a peek if you are in the area. The collection includes some Oller portraits,
Taíno artifacts, and sculptures.
Caparra
MUSEUM
This is the site of Juan Ponce de León's first settlement on the island, established in
1508. The site was rediscovered in 1936, and only the foundations of a few buildings re-
main. There is a small
museum ( 787-781-4795; Hwy 2 Km 6.4; admission free;
8am-4:30pm Mon-Fri)
featuring Taíno artifacts that is open irregularly. Located on a
highly commercial section of Hwy 2 east of Bayamón in Guaynabo, the site is only worth a
visit to ponder why the great conquistador ever imagined this spot on the fringe of a mam-
moth swamp could possibly be suitable as a location for a colony.
Piñones
Of the many arresting cultural contrasts visible in Puerto Rico, none is as striking as the
abrupt transition from modern San Juan to pleasantly ramshackle Piñones, gateway to the
east coast. The two worlds are linked by Punta Cangrejos, a small bridge on Rte 187 that
spans Boca de Cangrejos (Crabmouth Point); once you cross it, 'resort-land' quickly be-
comes a distant memory.
Do as the visiting
sanjuaneros
do on weekends and saunter along the sandy curves that
are backed by spiky pine groves, nosh on seafood snacks and
coco frío
(ice-cold coconut
