Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Left
Relaxing on the beach in December
Right
A local church
General Information
!
Time Zone
church plays a limited
role in daily life. Every
town has a patron saint,
and many Puerto Ricans
venerate a preferred saint
or saints. Adherents of
santería (see p43)
meld
Catholic and African
religious traditions. About
15 percent of Puerto
Ricans are Protestant.
Spiritualism is ingrained,
especially among the
lower-income classes.
emergencies. Canadian
and UK consular affairs
are handled by offices
in Florida.
d
Canadian
Consulate: (305) 579 1600
• UK Consulate: (305) 374
3500, askmiami@fco.gov.uk
)
Gays and Lesbians
Puerto Rico is 1 hour
ahead of US Eastern
Standard Time (EST)
and 4 hours behind
Greenwich Mean Time
(GMT). There is no
Daylight Saving Time.
@
Electricity
Gay and lesbian
rights are protected by
US federal law. The gay
community is fairly overt
in cosmopolitan San Juan
and Boquerón, while the
lesbian scene remains
largely hidden. The rest of
the island is conservative.
The electricity supply
works mainly on a 110-
volt system. Some out-
lets are 220 volts - these
are usually marked. Plugs
are the two-pin type, so
visitors from Europe may
need adaptors. Power
cuts are frequent, but
most tourist facilities are
backed up by generators.
£
Opening Hours
^
Language
Spanish and English
are both official languages.
Spanish is spoken by
everyone, and most
people also speak and
understand English.
Public Holidays
Jan 1 (New Year's Day);
Jan 6 (Epiphany); Jan
11 (Birthday of Eugenio
María de Hostos); Jan
19 (Martin Luther King
Day); Third Mon in Feb
(President's Day); Mar
22 (Emancipation Day);
Good Friday in Apr;
Third Mon in Apr (José
de Diego Day); Last
Mon in May (Memorial
Day); Jul 4 (US
Independence Day);
Third Mon in Jul (Luis
Muñoz Rivera's
Birthday); Jul 25
(Constitution Day);
Jul 27 (José Celso
Barbosa's Birthday);
First Mon in Sep (Labor
Day); Second Mon in
Oct (Columbus Day);
Nov 11 (Veterans' Day);
Nov 19 (Discovery of
Puerto Rico Day);
Fourth Thu in Nov
(Thanksgiving Day);
Dec 25 (Christmas Day)
&
Machismo
Shops are usually
open 9am-6pm Monday
to Saturday; some are
also open 11am-5pm
on Sunday. Banks open
9am-3:30pm Monday to
Friday and 10am-noon on
Saturday. Museum hours
vary - many are closed
on Monday. Most offices
and businesses open
8:30am-5:30pm Monday
to Friday and close for
lunch (noon-1pm).
$
Public Holidays
Machismo
is mostly
limited to flirtatious solici-
tations (often indiscrete
or vulgar) to women, but
can also include expres-
sions of bravado or even
aggression intended to
demonstrate male pride.
*
Climate
Puerto Rico is warm
all year round. The best
weather occurs from
December to April,
while the rest of the
year is rainier and hotter.
Hurricane season is
from June to November.
Puerto Rico recog-
nizes all US federal
holidays in addition to
its own commonwealth-
established ones. All
public offices and many
businesses stay closed.
(
Embassies and
Consulates
Many countries maintain
consulates in San Juan
and can provide assistance
to travelers with lost or
stolen passports, legal
issues, or other
%
Religion
Puerto Rico is pre-
dominantly a Catholic
country, although the
103
Canada and the UK do not have consulates in Puerto Rico.
