Old San Juan
It was a dark night in Old San Juan. I’d only been there a few hours when suddenly I heard a mechanical thud and boom, out went the lights. Holy Scheisse. I was in my hotel room watching, “A Christmas Story”. I jumped up and looked out the window. It’s what I didn’t see that freaked me out. The lights on the cruise ship were out. A minute ago it was all ablaze, and now the thing was totally black. Those poor people! What happened to them? And it’s so quiet…
Before
After
Let There Be Light in Puerto Rico
Finally, the lights came back on. But, the ship remained dark. Then it dawned on me that the ship wasn’t even there anymore. That ship had sailed. So the power failure and the departure of the ship happened at the same time, almost giving me a heart attack. I was relieved that those people were all safe and plowing the seas in that death trap – I mean magnificent sailing vessel; a marvel to mankind, actually. Just a side note: if you ever go missing or are murdered and/or kidnapped on a cruise ship, the FBI may, or may not, investigate. It depends on what waters you happen to be floating around in at the time, so heed well my words.
The next morning I mentioned this blackout to the guy at the front desk and he flapped his hand and said, “Oh, that. The whole quarter lost power.” As if this happens all the time. Nice.
Hotel Casablanca, Old San Juan
There are bathtubs on the roof for guests who wish to sunbathe or stargaze. However, don’t go near the edge. The railing is rather low.
The huge windows are complete with hurricane shutters, and they open!
If you like the movie “Casablanca”, you are in luck because it plays continuously in the lobby.
However, there is no phone in the room. The morning I was leaving I scheduled a “wake-up knock” for 4:45 a.m. No one came. Fortunately, my alarm worked and I made it to the airport on time. The satellite dish and wifi connection are spotty. Maid service is not daily. Although, she does come by and ask if you need towels. It’s 9 a.m. and you can’t get a coffee because the waiter hasn’t shown up for work. When he finally does show up, the coffee is $3.75 – no refills. And if the nice lady at the front desk assures you that getting a cab at Piñones beach is “no problem”, don’t believe her. It’s a problem. Other than that, I enjoyed my stay.
2 Comments
Rico · January 10, 2022 at 7:02 pm
Having grown up in San Juan I can attest to the unreliable electrical service. More than once did my poor family have to throw out a full wild boar carcass that we had stored in our freezer due to these failures. My hard-working father, Manuel, would then have to venture back into the jungle for another of these delicious beasts. (They make a fine sausage.) He could not afford to buy more boar on a cobbler’s wage.
Complaints, or requests for compensation from local government for our losses were always met the response, “No refunds for those from East San Juan.”
Great Blog!
Rico
Moe · January 10, 2022 at 11:42 pm
Thank you for that interesting story, Rico. Wild boars have always been one of my favorite topics of conversation. However, I’m not sure what you mean by “those from East San Juan” unless it’s what I think you mean. If that’s the case, we’ll leave it for another blog.