Mayaguez, the friendliest town around

November 19, 2007

Having arrived in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, on a Saturday we were unable to clear customs and immigration until Monday. So we had two days to explore the industrial town of Mayaguez and meet some of its residents.

Mayaguez is definitely not a tourist destination. There are no palm tree lined beaches, fancy hotels, or gourmet restaurants. Nonetheless, it is one of our favorite places so far on our trip. To say that the people are friendly would be a gross understatement: the fruit vendor who insisted that we sample (for free) all of her fruits; the friendly hellos as we walked down the street; one guy (Andy) who keyed us in on all the local foods in the neighborhood bar; another guy (Angel) who teemed up with Hans in a rocking karaoke rendition of “Come on Feel the Noice”; the surfer dude who wanted to teach us surfing on the beach the next day after a five minute conversation; and, finally, the couple who are meeting us tomorrow in Boqueron in their car to give us a guided tour of the west coast of Puerto Rico just so that they can show us their island. Not to mention the super friendly, helpful and efficient customs officers who checked us all in on Monday morning. So far, we both agree, Puerto Rico has vastly exceeded our expectations. We may have to stay here for a little bit longer than we thought! Especially since rumor has it that the Virgin Islands are expensive and crowded.


Comparing the Dominican courtesy flag (with 5 months of use) to our new Puerto Rican courtesy flag.



Hans looks for some shade under the mainsail while motorsailing south to Bouqeron.



Kristen acts as a preventer as Whisper SAILS (!!!) downwind for a few hours.