En Rincon

So, this is the first post in a bit - But there's much exciting news! Since I started this blog, we've finally made the move down to Rincon and have settled in a bit. I felt like I needed to hold off on the posts for a bit until I was really down here and felt like I could give a more authentic look at things. We arrived here on December 7 (after a little mishap with the keys to our house and an extra night stay in San Juan). We lived in a friend's house up in Rio Grande for the first few weeks (it's a barrio (neighborhood) - in the hills just above the main town plaza) but the owners of the house were coming for a long visit so we had to move on. We found a great place in Puntas to rent for the next five months and now we're walking distance from the beach and a great selection of fun bars and restaurants (Casa Verde/Rock Bottom, Tamboo, Bungers and Casa Islena are right down the street).

We had really started to grow fond of Rio Grande, it's very local and you definetely feel like you're in Puerto Rico. We were right on Carr. 414, so it was a little noisy (speakers blaring ads and kids rolling by at night with the bass bumping), but it was close to both downtown and the beaches and it was rare to see another "gringo" up there (which we liked). Bar La Ronda is the local neighborhood bar right down the street, which we frequented quite a bit ($1.50 Medalla's are hard to beat) and home to our now favorite pincho ("kebob") stand. Mary's pinchos are by far the best we've found to-date. Mary is Puerto Rican but was born and raised in NYC (and she's hasn't lost that great New York accent even though she's been back in Puerto Rico for over 20 years). She just started back up with her pinchos and Bar La Ronda is homebase now. Trust me, we've made the "tour de pinchos" several times since we've been here and are making it our personal mission to try every stand we come across, but so far none have beat Mary. Mary made us feel right at home and even introduced us to our first pastel (yuca or sweet banana stuffed with pork) and cuajilo (savory broth with pork or chicken gizzards). I'm kind of a wimp when it comes to "weird" foods, so I haven't been able to eat the cuajito since I found out it was gizzards, but I have to admit - before I knew what it was, I thought it was pretty damn good.

So, although it was hard to leave our new neighborhood in Rio Grande, we're getting settled in Puntas now.

What's the difference you ask? Well, Puntas is definetely known as the land of the "gringos". Just about any Puerto Rican that we talked to that we told we were living in Rincon asked if we were in Puntas. It was kind of cool to be able to tell them that, no, we were in Rio Grande - and most seemed pretty surprised (and/or impressed?). Puntas definetely has the highest concentration of both gringo residents and visitors, and when walking down the street or heading to the beach, that is primarily what you see. The restaurants and bars are geared toward tourists and travelers (not that all tourists here are "gringo" - there are many Sanjuaneros that visit Rincon as well). If you work in a restaurant in Puntas, it's not a requirement to be fluent in Spanish, as most of your clients will speak English. So, I guess you could say that Rincon might be the most gringo place in Puerto Rico and Puntas is the most gringo place in Rincon. We just have an appreciation for the local culture and we didn't want to move to Puerto Rico only to live in a little sub-section that feels like the US. Do I sound like I'm anti-gringo? That's not exactly it, but after living in a resort town for so many years I'm almost paranoid about being a tourist and I know how tourists can come off to the locals. When I travel it's as off the beaten path as I can get and I abhor anything "touristy" - so, I don't know if that answers the question, but there you go. I guess you could say - not "anti-gringo" but sort of "anti-tourist". (ok, I'm just digging a hole, I'll stop now)

But, all that said - Puntas is attracts so many tourists because it is such a great little area. There is an endless stretch of beach right down the street (Pools Beach, Sandy Beach and Parking Lot) - all with great surf breaks and, like I mentioned above, a great selection of fun bars and restaurants. Rock Bottom is obviously the place to party if you're a 20-something local or visitor, with tons of young people crowding the street and the bar from about 10 pm on. We like El Nuevo Flamboyan, which is an old, traditional Puerto Rican restaurant just up the hill from Pools Beach. It never seems busy, so you can always get a seat at the bar, and they have great empanadillas (meat or seafood pies) for only about $2 (and they're BIG). One pie and a few tostones will fill you up and after you top it off with a cheap medalla, you've just had a great dinner for under $5. I'm still curious why Flamboyan is so quiet - I don't know if it's fallen out of favor with the locals for some reason, or if the owner is just content with the way things are.
Flamboyan also has great mofongo which we're heading back for as soon as we have jobs (mofongo tends to be a little more expensive).

So, that's about it - a quick little recap of our first few weeks here in Rincon. I'll continue to post as we take trips outside of Rincon or find anything new and interesting to report. Like I mentioned, you'll find that our trips tend to be off the beaten path and lean toward the rustic - so if that's your thing, I'd say take my advice. If you like staying in the comfort of a five-star branded hotel everywhere you go - DO NOT listen to me. :)

Peace out for now -

Rincon Puerto Rico Lodging