Honesty hour. Traveling with children can SUCK. It can be a huge headache making sure the little humans are fully occupied with full bellies and empty bladders. While that is the case, nothing beats seeing the joy on your families face as they enjoy the beach, see unfamiliar animals, and taste flavorful food they’ve never heard of.
A love for Wander
If I could sum up my ultimate dream life it would be to travel the world with my kids. I would travel different countries and experience different cultures while tasting unique foods and coffees. I get excited at just the thought!
Since becoming a mom, I've always wanted to instill this same love of wander and adventure in my children.
I am a natural wanderer. Whether I go to a different town or hop on a plane, I love the idea of being somewhere different, learning from my surroundings.
Puerto Rico 2018
Although Puerto Rico wasn’t my son's first plane ride, it was his first real experience of being in a place where the culture and language was totally different from his. I was able to see him learn through shock, confusion, frustration, curiosity, and fun.
These emotions filled his face multiple times throughout our trip. My favorite was when he saw large lizards walking around as we would see squirrels or wild pigs walking through the neighbor’s yard. Through his curiosity, he often asked me what people were saying in Spanish and how the animals knew what they were saying.
I purposely chose for us to go to Puerto Rico. The goal was to help support organizations that needed assistance after the hurricane (a year later). Although we were unsuccessful finding an organization to help, our experience blossomed as we explored the island, worked through language barriers, met with people, and ate some really good food.
Activities worth doing.
There were lots of things to do with my then 8-year-old who is just as adventurous as me; loves being active, making new friends, talking to no end and LOVES food just like his momma.
The activities that we did were fun, budget friendly and engaging. Although these activities are ones from 2018, I’d recommend giving them a try with your kids if PR is on your list.
1. El Yunque National Forest
Exploring the forest was one for the books! The forest was beautiful and the waterfall toward the beginning of the forest was gorgeous, my son had an amazing time playing in the water.
2. Playa Hobbie Carloina, PR
Check out this beach! Since we stayed in Carolina the beach was only about 10-15 minutes from where we were. One of the prettiest beaches I had ever been to; the water was very clear, warm, and the waves were subtle which made me feel comfortable with my son playing a little further from the shore.
3. Castillo San Felipe del Morro
A historic site worth seeing! Aside from having fun and enjoying the island, I felt it was important to get some education in while on vacation. On this tour we learned more about the history of El Morro and old San Juan.
4. Old San Juan
All of San Juan is amazing and we loved every inch of it. Old San Juan was something special. We went out with some friends and had the pleasure of witnessing a little of the night life. We got to see everything from street performers, food trucks and live music.
Takeaways
I LOVE traveling and I realize that when I took this trip, I wanted to increase my travel game and really set myself up to have great experiences especially ones that my son would enjoy. Puerto Rico was fun and exciting for so many reasons; the island was beautiful; the food was amazing and learning about the history made this a great experience for both adults and children. My only regret was not taking enough pictures.
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