El Final

Our last night in Puerto Rico has come so fast. The time has seemed to just fly by while we were enjoying ourselves and learning down here. On Tuesday we had the opportunity to visit a local university, University Sagrado Corazon. It was quite an adventure getting there and figuring out the public transportation system. We used our Spanish skills the previous night to ask some local university students directions and the correct buses to take. Luckily, they didn't steer us wrong and we made it there. This university reminded us all a lot of AU, especially since it was a small campus which gave it a similar atmosphere. The staff there was extremely welcoming and helpful and gave us a tour of the campus. We even had an opportunity to have a taste of student life and see the inside of the dorm rooms and eat in the cafeteria. After that, we ventured off to one of the larger shopping centers to converse with native speakers closer to our age. While walking around, we observed and compared the surroundings to those back home. It was a lot of fun and we were able to learn a lot about the people, language and culture.

Wednesday, we had class in the morning where we read the local newspaper, along with other materials, and continued in our pronunciation proficiency of the language. Afterwards, we began our adventure and long trek back to Old San Juan to visit the San Cristobal and do some souvenir shopping. The San Cristobal, like El Morro, was used to protect the island from the pirates..Arrg! This fort was set up much more like a museum with tons of replicas and explanations. We even had the chance to lock up Dr. Hatcher in a dungeon! :) Afterwards, we got something to rehydrate and were off to shop. While shopping, we had the opportunity to converse with the store owners and ask them about how life is in Puerto Rico. The true test of our language proficiency was using it to get directions back to our hotel. Luckily, we all made it back and even learned a lot while doing so.

Yesterday, was Mackenzie Kerby's birthday so we helped her celebrate it. We had some class time in the morning followed by the long walk back to the grocery store to stock up on some snacks for the plane ride back home on Saturday, as well as a delicious birthday cake! On our way back, we got caught in a downpour and had to wait it out for a little while. This gave us the opportunity to really observe the neighborhood and see all the differences in the houses and the beautiful vibrant colors they were painted. We learned that their houses have to be painted once a year due to all the wear and tear from the salt water. We had a really fun excursion planned for Mackenzie's birthday to the bioluminescent bay, where the organisms glow when the water is disturbed. This would have involved kayaking, in the dark, out to the bay. Unfortunately, it got canceled because of a thunderstorm and lightening. :( We were all pretty sad about it, but we made the most of it.

Our last day here we adventured off to the Camuy Caves in the west side of the island. The bus ride there was quite lengthy, but it was amazing to see a different area than where we are staying. The land here was hilly, mountainous and very green. There were cows, horses and chickens everywhere! The cave system was so unbelievable and slightly treacherous in rain. Our guide was able to call the bats out of the bat cave and we even saw some ginormous spiders. Next, we went to the Arecibo Observatory, which is the world's largest radio telescope. They use this to gather radio signals from the atmosphere, far off galaxies, planets and stars. In order to help us all remember this trip, we even got matching glow in the dark Einstein t-shirts. We can't wait to wear them!!

For tonight, we are going to eat some authentic food for the last time as a family. We are all sad to have to leave this beautiful island tomorrow filled with amazing, extremely kind people. The information and experiences we have had will never be forgotten. As a group, we have grown together and become more proficient in the Spanish language we all love so much. Adios! :)