Puerto Rico Part 1 | 10 Year Anniversary | Travel Photography

The night before our trip I could not sleep. It was a combination of getting to go on vacation and dreading the flight. I don’t think anyone can say they enjoy plane rides. Vu is the type that can sleep anywhere. I mean, anywhere and anytime. I’m the opposite. Luckily, I gave in to a thirty minute nap on the plane ride and for the first time, I took a nap on a plane! Getting off the plane was filled with a rush of excitement and my usual thoughts of “What to photograph first? What to eat? Oh thank God we made!“

WHAT really went through my head was how we made it through ten years of marriage! Twelve years of being together and ten getting to call Vu my dear husband. You guys, marriage is hard! It’s not like everything was peaches and cream. Learning to love someone even when they are not the most lovable is sacrifice and the kind of giving that is selfless. It’s a Christ-like kind of love. To be honest, and you may have heard me say this a thousand times, but it’s the way Vu loves me that makes me reflect on how to be less selfish. He’s the patient one. He’s the prime example of how to love unconditionally and has really shown me what that means. I love this man. I am in love with this man. He still makes me laugh when I want to cry and his ‘I love you’s’ are still the same as when we first said those words. We don’t have all the answers to life but what I treasure most about our marriage is how we work things out and grow from our hardships. Ten years has been amazing and I can’t imagine what else is in store for us! So, on to Puerto Rico.

First things first, we got coffee! But can you guys guess what Vu was most excited for?  Street vendors. It was all that he could talk about. Reading up on the empanadas hyped it up for him so, at the heart of Old San Juan, he found a street vendor selling those savory fried pastry. I dare say this was the highlight of his trip. 

Drinks and what was suppose to be light appetizers, at Al Fresco. I picked this spot in advance just because google said it had vegetarian options. There really was not a huge selection but I also picked it because it had outdoor seating and it was on a rooftop. The space is small and I’m sure you can find a better ambience space on a rooftop but the food was good so we were happy.

Puerto Rico on a Monday and Tuesday is much more quiet and slow paced. That was totally okay with me. That meant unobtrusive views and the ability to photograph without too many tourists in my way. Old San Juan isn’t that big! We walked around on day one and I hadn’t planned too much outside of the tourist city. So for the most part we just ate, drank and took pictures! I have quite the collection of doors and windows now y’all.

Doesn’t Old San Juan remind you of Charleston? I mean, it does for me. Old cobblestone streets, colonial architecture and rows of colorful homes. The only thing missing is the Spanish moss. You guys know that this isn’t all the photos right? Come on back for part two!