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Family-Related articles pertaining to Puerto Rico
Many publications overlook families traveling with children, especially in terms of Puerto Rico publications. We've enlisted the help of an experienced parenting columnist to work on this department, as well as inked a syndication deal with one of the biggest and oldest parenting newsletters.
Since Puerto Rico is the number one destination for Americans traveling to the Caribbean, even those with children of various ages, we've decided to dedicate a large portion of our time reviewing family-friendly events and attractions, tell you which car rental agencies have children's car seats, and what places are not appropriate for traveling with children of various ages.
Latest Family Headlines:
Waterproof Sunscreen Ineffective Against Crying - When selecting a brand, type and configuration of sunscreen, it's important to bear in mind your needs, lifestyle and personal habits. For us, it was easy to choose a high SPF rating, opt for the waterproof, and go with a trusted name brand. What I didn't take into account was my personal propensity for crying, and none of the brands had anything to protect me from that.
Expatriation Rumors Heat Up, Pickup Steam, Verily Smolder - Assorted grumblings have been wafting across the gossip airwaves. I've seen boxes packed, tourist guide books perused and luggage equal parts purchased and packed. I'm not sure if it amounts to anything, but I'm guessing probably not. By the way, when is this "Puerto Rico" time period I keep hearing about?
Puerto Ricans Unwilling to Exchange My Money - I knew when we landed in Puerto Rico we'd need money, and we'd need it equal parts "bad" and "fast," but what I didn't realize was that nobody would exchange my money for the local currency. The obvious snag in the nylon would be that Puerto Rico isn't a sovereign nation and uses US currency just like back home, and what I've experienced points to a very different problem.
Botanists Shocked by Porcupine Tree Discovery - I've established my reputation as a discoverer over the past few years to the point where there's plainly no need to defend myself any further, so when I discovered this latest thing, the Caribbean Porcupine Tree, I expected immediate acceptance and recognition, but it seems those so-called "botanists" are an elitist group, somehow deferring instead to their "existing record of known plants."
Semana Santa in Puerto Rico (an Easter Thing) - So, my favorite Swede living in Puerto Rico (not that there are that many anyways!) asked me how Puerto Ricans celebrate Easter and semana santa in comparison to Spain and other parts of Latin America.
Terrible Game Review: Chicken Shoot for Nintendo Wii - There is no shortage of reviews that show just what a terrible game can be bought in "Chicken Shoot", but I somehow let my desire to get a good deal overcome me when I made my purchase, even though I had read the reviews, and I really did know better. It's not so much that you should expect something spectacular for $14.99, but the real problem is that stores simply shouldn't be carrying garbage of this sheer incomparability.
Crush on Dora of Explorer Fame Finally Realized - Like any good American, I watch an inordinate, almost embarrassing amount of television. Personally, I'm partial to cartoons and shows involving adults dressed as oversized animals, typically dancing around while pretending to teach some lesson or other, but what I'm most partial to is that most alluring of child-centric starlets, Dora the Explorer.
Movie Nights in Puerto Rico - What with all the hype about a recent blockbuster movie I won't name, thought I'd remind people of a couple things.
Airlines All Equally Yucky at Customer Service - With all the articles I spread and share the world over, you've got to hold an ounce of doubt about me. I'm young, less-than-seasoned and juvenile in more ways than I'd ever admit short of my own daddy paying it unduly upon me after I've already cleared an article to run. Beyond that, a big thing I've learned is that there are no good airlines left, not even a single one, and that they're all just a bunch of clowny-jerks. That's right, I said it, "Clowny-Jerks!"
Saunter Ponies-Up Fun, Regardless of Naysaying - Think back, if you're able, to a time when you were outweighed by a load of groceries. Sure, it was a simpler time, a time when even the littlest things made you happy. I know this because I am myself so unafflicted by the confines of gravity, and the things of greatest minutia indeed delight me in spades. In this case, specifically, it's a pony.
Pizza Trailers Find Profit in Licensed Cartoon Theft - I love pizza and commercially licensed, protected cartoon characters as much as the next guy, but when it comes to full-price pizza sold at a cost equal to the piracy of the very same cartoon characters who lured me over in the first place, I've got a beef, and it ain't that mystery meat sprinkled liberally between the melted mozzarella.
Butcher Ponce de Leon Still Revered in Slaughto Rico - I'm new to the history game, having only recently learned that things happened before I was born. As an American, I prefer the narrow view, believing instead that everything important throughout all of history happened since I was born, specifically to me. This respect for Ponce de Leon, however, defies my limited comprehension. I thought he was kind of a bad guy, but just goes to show what I know.
Age Exaggeration Aids Airfare Budget by Hundreds - I may be many things, but one I'm not is a liar. Sure, I may fudge when it comes to curiously missing chocolates or point the finger when it comes to my turn in the blame game, but I don't admit to lying, even when I'm lying down. If not telling the truth is lying, then here's hoping we all can make a tidy fistful of Benjamins everytime we do it. Tell you one thing, we sure did this time.
Roadside Zoo Offers… Wait, Roadside? - As you drive the Puerto Rican countryside, it's not uncommon to see a truck parked off the highway with a huge "Exotic Birds" sign, but the offering is almost zoo-like in variety. They boast chickens, ducks, rabbits, kittens, puppies, pigeons, ponies, land crabs of assorted colors, and even the big draw, exotic birds… but it's on the side of the road, so um, what gives?
Gúanica Dry Forest Has Something for Everybody, Except Humans - Deep in the heart of the bowels of the east, southeastern portion of Puerto Rico lies an unusual place. Not just unusual on the island, but across the world. Puerto Rico is home to one of the exceptionally few "dry forests" and it's a site to behold, assuming you have the hydration to behold it… which statistically, you don't.
Wii Review: Offroad Extreme: Special Edition - Since our purchase of the Nintendo Wii last year, we've been doing our best to consider games as they come around, and do our best to review them as it's appropriate. We've been shopping since then like regular folk, but we've been suckered in to at least a couple lackluster Wii purchases, and this terrible game is just one such example.
Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga for Nintendo Wii - Of all the cut-rate games I've bought for the Nintendo Wii, none meant much for me than headache. After buying the Nintendo Play (which came with a controller, so I was warned to have low expectations,) and falling for another title I won't even bother naming, my faith in the system was entirely shaken… and then I found Lego Star Wars, and my modern gaming life just may now be complete.
Chaseable Pigeons Revel in Survival-Based Fitness - Unbeknownst to most animals, they are among the chaseable creations. I have proven that even scavenger and parasite species that require our presence to survive are never more than a few rapid steps away from being chased. Research further proves that these chased critters just love being pursued.
Travelocity Successfully Books Longest Route Possible - Over the course of the past day I've enjoyed many firsts. My first trip to the airport, first nightmare through security screening, and even my first flight on an airplane. Thanks to Travelocity, I not only saved a bundle, but also got to experience my second flight and my third flight as well. Who knew saving money could be so sucky?
Nintendo Wii Offers New Incentive for Autistic Children - It was a good few months ago when we first had an opportunity to let one of our staffers try his hand at the most unusual of modern-era video game systems; the Nintendo Wii. Our own senior staff contributor, Patrick, is himself doubly qualified to love this system. First of all, he’s autistic, and secondly, he’s played the Wii… and his love of it went so far beyond “like” it wasn’t even funny.
El Taino Restaurant Fails to Fail Customers Any More - Over the years we've gone to places we've loved for free and we've gone to places we liked well enough without any consideration. Heck, we've even gone to places without consideration we've hated, but imagine this; we've gone to places by invitation and for free that we've also strongly disliked… this is one such place.
Despite Appearance, Tribal Native Denies 'Ninja' Status - It was the strangest thing. We were having a runaway, rampant day out, doing our darnedest to span the landscape of the Puerto Rican interestosphere, regardless of the locals' patent refusals to engage us in our media-istic capacities. It was a trouble we'd faced everywhere, but a resistance I hadn't expected to face was that upon meeting a poorly-wigged tribal re-enactor, who obviously looked like a ninja, that he'd say he wasn't a ninja.
Puerto Rico Gimmes the Best Summer Birthday Ever - Poor Patrick. Him and his fellow summer-baby brethren have no idea what it's like to enjoy a during-the-school-year birthday the likes of which me and my other (non-Patrick) brother so consistently enjoy. The parents have always done their best, but it's never been so much as "good," at least until this year.
Cabo Rojo Lighthouse Coolest Thing on Puerto Rico's Southwest Corner - Of all the things to do on the Southwest corner of the conspicuously small spit of land that is invariably Puerto Rico, one of the -- if not the -- greatest things to do is check out the Cabo Rojo Lighthouse. Now, I'll admit I've spoken highly in the past on the virtues of the tourist center and the saltiest flatlander areas, but the lighthouse at the tip of it really takes what little cake there is to be had.
Arecibo Lighthouse Museum Is Freaking Awesome - Puerto Rico doesn't have a lot for kids to do. I'm not being mean I'm being honest and, with as long as I lived there this past summer, I'm sure I'm qualified to say it. One thing it does have a mere hour outside of San Juan is the Arecibo Lighthouse Museum. It's not really a museum but it's well run, exceptionally maintained and all kinds of fun like we could hardly believe.
Municipal Cemetery Offers Wide Selection of Free Bouquets - Especially during summer months, it's common to arrive at the famous Camuy Caves to find they have already sold out for the day. In such cases, turn that frown about halfway upside-down, kind of into a straight line across your face, because there's something half as good just around the bend.
Cuevas de Camuy: the K-Mart of Puerto Rico Spelunkholes - Fresh flowers are hard to come by, especially when you live in a warm climate, as we ephemerally do. These are that much harder to find when you add on the language barrier and my total unwillingness to pay any amount of money for them, but I've found a place that has a wide selection, always fresh, and unless I miss my guess, they're free.
McRestaurant McAlmost McReminds McMe of McHome - If you've ever traveled, whether it was across town or across the world, the one thing you wanted more than unlimited outgoing calls from your room was something familiar that reminded you of home. In my case I could think of nothing better or more familiar than passage of those golden arches through which kids come out happy and cows come out hamburger.
Baby Pony Silent, Technically a Little Horse - We had our third shot at giving our local Puerto Rican hotspot a chance the other day and it went pretty well. We once again enjoyed fine food and a good half-hour on the playground, but this time we upped the auntie's ante and partook of the diminutive equine staff on hand and enjoyed ourselves a rousing round of pony rides to boot, despite our wearing sandals.
Michel Thomas Spanish Lessons Effective, Hysterical - I know I'm being a bit juvenile here, but we got four different language courses for our big trip to Puerto Rico, and they're all very different. Some are lousy on a good day, others pretty good (but much too long) and one is really, really great, but it's still comical to me. What can I say, Spanish is a funny language.
Fort Caprón Perfect for Everything Except a Visit - We've traveled far, wide, deep and always shallow, so when we were looking for fun things to do in the humble, seaside town of Gúanica, Puerto Rico, we dug in our research heels as best we were able to find things worth writing up. As it turns out, Fort Caprón should be omitted from this list in every case.
Hurridean Cain is Super, Man: Category-3 - We're a bit behind the ball reporting on this one, but Hurricane Dean swept through our Puerto Rican quasi-paradise, and we lived to tell the tale. Sure, you might point out it was barely a category-3 hurricane when it swept across the open ocean some 300-miles to the south of us, but we were pelted with torrential rains, screaming winds, and it was still the sort of thing that makes news, and not just by our own admittedly low thresholds of newsworthiness.
August Christmas in Full Swing at K-Mart - I'm no chronologist but I do know that Christmas is a time of reindeer, penguins, polar bears and bitter cold. Snow is hit and miss, and I guess that since none of these things exist in Puerto Rico, the launch of the Christmas season is open for interpretation. Thanks to K-Mart, we now know it starts in August.
Hotel Coral by the Sea – A Fair Last Option - Our reservations in San Juan, Puerto Rico, were goofed up at the last minute. A staff member thought it was reserved, it wasn't, a conference was in town, and we were left scrambling at the last minute for a place to stay, and the first place we found was the decidedly cut-rate casa de slumber; Coral by the Sea.
Taco Maker Makes Decent Tacos at Lackluster Prices - A fairly common chain around the island of Puerto Rico is Taco Maker, and it looks to be an upscale Taco Bell, a Taco Time sort of place, if you will. The problem is that you're an awfully long ways from Mexico, and that's not a concern in and of itself, since Taco Bell ain't exactly Mexican food. Still, if you want to know if you should pay a visit, consider this.
Puerto Rico Children's Museum No Place for Kids - We took a trip to San Juan, Puerto Rico last week and we saw a bunch of newsworthy things that really rocked the boat of our ability to take the cake. We'll cover all of them in uncomfortable detail in coming weeks, but first I have to point out the horrible travesty on child-named attractions that is the Puerto Rico Children's Museum. All I can say is that it's no place for kids.
Puerto Rican Restaurant Boasts Playground, Pony Rides - Just off Highway-2 in the south of Puerto Rico (about twenty minutes west of Ponce) is the sort of restaurant you read about. I know I read about it on roadside signs in a good 30-mile radius, so when I had the chance to dine at Gaby's World, I jumped all over it and was rewarded in ways no restaurant has ever even tried.
Arecibo Radio Dish Must Get Like a Billion Channels - When traveling through the parts of Puerto Rico that are not the capital city of San Juan there are many "must see" attractions, but there are only two that really take whatever cake it is that people love so much. One is the caves at Camuy, but the one that's just about as popular is the radio observatory at Arecibo. I've seen satellite dishes before, but this one must get, like, a billion channels.
Superb Lookout for/from Cabo Rojo Lookout Fort - If you're driving south from Cabo Rojo to the southwest corner of Puerto Rico, also known as Cabo Rojo, which is a bit odd, be on the lookout for the tree fort to end all tree forts. I'm just sure that you, as you read this, are surely on the verge of driving this route, so I'm glad I can offer this great advice at such a timely juncture in your life. Hey man, it's what I do.
Arecibo Lighthouse Pirate Cave Worth the Trip Itself - Every once and so often there comes around a noun that leaves such an impression on me that it deserves a double-review. Last year, Remlinger Farms got that much and more. The Boudin Bakery in San Francisco got two. For our stay in Puerto Rico not much was deserving of two reviews except for Fun Valley Park and the amazing Pirate Cave at the Arecibo Lighthouse, which is just that good and it gets a second review too.
When in Puerto Rico, Check out the Camuy Caves - Assuming you are in, or shortly going to be in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and you have enough time to pop out of town for a jiffy and check out whatever sights there may be to see, a not-to-be-missed attraction is the Camuy Caves. They're rich in bio-diversity (despite the tourists), fun enough for all to enjoy (despite the hike) and well worth your time (assuming you can get in on your first or last try).
Parque de Bombas, Ponce, Puerto Rico Doesn't Suck, Kind of Funish - If you're ever in Ponce, Puerto Rico and you hit the old downtown area, you'll find it almost impossible to miss the Parque de Bombas, which is the age-old firehouse which has been converted to a free museum run by the city. It's an odd spectacle, but at the all-time low price of "free" it's worth almost every penny for the journey.
Fun Valley Park Celebrates 6th Anniversary - It's been a tough go for the good folks at Fun Valley Park in Puerto Rico, and they've weathered the economic and political storms quite well. Most of their local competitors have fallen since they've been around, but smart business, and fun business too, has made them a veritable staple of the Puerto Rican landscape of entertainment, despite a most unfortunate beginning.
Zoo the Only Place Not Run by Monkeys - I've traveled far and wide; I've seen zoos in four different countries and I've loved them all. Nothing surprises me at the zoo any more, but plenty of things delight me. What does surprise me is how poorly visitors are treated in Puerto Rico pretty much everywhere except for at the zoo. Leads me to believe the zoo is the only place in Puerto Rico not run by monkeys.
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