Day Two: Kat, Chase, and Kade

MORNING 

3/13/23. We had breakfast at Carthage Express, and after breakfast we met in the plaza with our tour guide Jorge. Jorge gave us a brief overview about the three different flags that are represented in Puerto Rico, employment on the island, and the history of the plaza that we were standing at. The main part of the morning consisted of a visit to the fort in San Juan, Castillo San Cristóbal. The fort was completed in the year 1783, while touring we stopped at a few spots to discuss the significance of that part of the fort. The tunnel leading through the fort was designed to make it extremely difficult for the enemy to enter the main part. The dungeon was built a certain way so that echoes wouldn't travel, this made it impossible to hear the screams from prisoners. It also had one window, this lack of light would make soldiers overtime slowly lose their sense of time, and their minds. As strangely as it sounds the cannons were one of the most interesting parts of the tour. To get cannons onto the roof of the fort, they were hauled up a somewhat steep ramp by both horses and soldiers. These cannons were extremely heavy, they could weigh up to two and a half tons. While at the fort we discussed deeper about the different types of flags that represent the Island. The three flags consist of Light Blue Triangle with a star, American Blue triangle with a star, and Light Blue and Red squares with a star. Light blue represents the country before it became a commonwealth territory. American Blue represents the push for statehood, and the light blue and red with the cross represents the independence movement. 

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(Chase) After hearing a tour guide Jorge speak on this matter, I was eager to hear his opinions on the independence vs. statehood movements. Jorge explained to me he sees the motivations towards both sides, yet neither are ideal. Statehood could result in a loss of much of Puerto Rico’s culture, especially their language, while freedom could lead to instability and economic downturn. Jose believes that becoming a free country is the right choice in the end, yet he understands that this would not be viable for the welfare of the region given their alarming debt crisis. I was glad to hear the point-of-view from a Puerto Rican citizen regarding my project. I plan to present all sides of both arguments before making my final conclusion for Puerto Rico’s political status.

There was a moment today when our guide mentioned the way taxes are set up on the island. He talked about how people with money are starting to move to the island due to this. This pushes out people who live in the city, and forces them to relocate elsewhere. Aside from being pushed out of their homes, this also makes it harder for people who once lived there to find jobs. Some of these people are switching to farming because agriculture is one of PR’s biggest exports, but with the climate shifting at an alarming rate, the hope for being a successful farmer on the island may be drawing to a close. This aspect of the tour helped me (Kat) understand that tax incentives benefit the United States long term, however, at the expense of Puerto Rican citizens. This part allowed me to receive perspective on my research project: how taxes and policies impact the prevalence of access to medicine in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rican citizens pay taxes, yet wealthy U.S. citizens who move to Puerto Rico from the United States, do not need to pay taxes and are allowed other benefits such as Medicaid and Medicare. Puerto Rican citizens continue to struggle with increases taxes, and less income to acquire and keep benefits such as Medicaid. 

MID-DAY 

After touring the fort, we ventured around the historic colonel district of the city of Old San Juan. Jorge took us around the beating heart of this city’s history and culture, presenting the fantastic attractions of shops, restaurants, hotels, parks, etc. Old San Juan’s architecture was vibrant, with narrow, colorful cobblestone streets, stone yellow/blue buildings, and flat roofs. The city’s lively squares were filled with families and friends who enjoyed the cultural and artistic influences of artists, musicians, and performers to entertain the audience with their music and talent. Our group had the opportunity to watch a festival in the center of Old San Juan. Filled in the plaza were circus performers, a live band, and food! Our group witnessed dance routines, acrobats performing tricks and flips on a vertically tight rope, and rope dancers balancing and walking on a thin strip of webbing anchored between two points. Our group was mesmerized by the talent and entertainment they displayed. It was an amazing afternoon! After watching the entertainment, we headed toward lunch. We ate at a restaurant called Stuffed Avocados. This restaurant was a good place to sit down, cool off and enjoy a fresh healthy meal all together in Old San Juan. After the healthy lunch, the group hung out together, walked around a market area displaying items such as jewelry, wallets, and instruments, and had snacks to enjoy!   

NIGHT 

After touring the historical streets of Old San Juan, we headed to Santurce, a vibrant neighborhood of San Juan and home to the famous street of Calle Cerra. While touring around this legendary street, we got to see the contemporary part of San Juan, filled with grandiose murals painted on the walls of abandoned buildings. The emptiness of many of the buildings contrasted with the loud music and chatter from nearby restaurants. The murals were not just fantastic works of art, as many of them spread a message regarding political activism, human rights, or other surrealist ideas that none of us could decipher. One showed a Puerto Rican flag intersecting with a Dominican Republic flag to show the two nation’s diplomacy. Another showed three different women of European, African, and Taino descent to show the region’s three main ethnicities. 

Next we walked to the Plaza of Santurce to start our salsa lesson. Our teacher first explained the history of salsa dance, how it originated in New York City and its differences from other dances such as bachata and merengue. We started slowly, with slow movements without music, following the salsa beat of 1-2-3-and-5-6-7. This evolved into doing a variety of movements with a partner to the tune of fast-paced salsa music. We switched partners every five minutes, adding new moves and variations as we went. Salsa was a success! 

After a long day of exploring and dancing, we made it back to our new hotel before heading to dinner. Los Pinos included more traditional Puerto Rican cuisine and an exhilarating baseball game. Everyone in the restaurant was cheering as Puerto Rico clawed back against Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic. We came back to the hotel to rest and be ready for tomorrow.