Puerto Rico...you lovely island. Island of yummy tostones...

Okay...so Puerto Rico was never on my list of places to visit. I'm from a tropical place, so spots like Tokyo and Venice hit the top ten for me. That being said, I am SO glad I got to experience Puerto Rico!! It's a beautimous place with a lot of history and cool spots to check out. As soon as we arrived, the view of the Atlantic ocean took my breath away.

I've said this before..I'm a total beach snob. I'm from Hawaii..hello! PR did not disappoint and I loved how San Juan was such a beach community. One night, there were tons 'o people walking around in their swimsuits and surf shorts carrying around coolers at like 2 in the morning! Rad.

Anyway, I was in Puerto Rico for "work"...now if you're randomly reading this blog right now and have no idea who I am or what I do I put the word work in quotes because I'm part of a kids show called Hi-5 and our "job" consists of singing and dancing for kids and playing around with your friends on stage. Don't believe me? Check out www.hi5us.com and see for yourself. The shows were great and the audiences were AH-MAH-ZONG( amazing according to the Sydney James dictionary!) It was cool to be back with the gang again and it was like we had never left. We even threw some Spanish into the show!! Now, I don't know how to speak Spanish...AT ALL! I took Japanese in high school, so I was pretty proud of myself for picking some phrases up. It's inspired me to learn the language. I'll let you know how I do:) Special thanks to my girl Margaret and our new PR gal pal Luisa for the help. And a shout out to Gabriel and our little Chiqui Chef friends too! Love to all of you guys! The gang and I had a lot of fun performing for all of you and I'm so glad I was still able to rock those yellow wedges. It's been awhile:) Thanks to everybody who came out to see us. It meant so much to me to meet all of you!

tu eres maravilloso!!! beso beso!!

Anyway, back to PR. We got there on Sunday night and started rehearsals Monday morning, so my schedule was pretty packed with Hi-5ness. I don't know how, but we managed to fit in some sight seeing...

Old San Juan:

We hit Old San Juan the first night we were there. We had rehearsal for a couple hours and then took a cab to check it out. The cobblestone streets and colorful architecture were too inspiring. It's weird to think how old this place is. Even their Pizza Hut looks old. Anyway, we walked around for a bit and stopped in a restaurant called The Parrot Club for lunch. Fellow Hi-5er Sydney highly recommended this place and I'm glad he did. The Empanadas are too die for! Thanks for the suggestion Syd...we loved it!

El Castillo San Felipe del Morro (Fort San Felipe del Morro):

We had one more free day before starting the shows, so we headed back to Old San Juan to check out El Castillo San Felipe. Amazing! It was a beautiful, sunny day (a little hot, but it was worth it) and the fort was breathtaking! It's been their since 1539!! Craziness. It was fun to walk through and read about the history of the place. I love that kind of stuff!

El Yunque National Rainforest:

So after all the shows were done, my boyfriend John and I stayed back an extra day to do more sight seeing. I'm glad we did 'cause I wanted to feel like we really experienced Puerto Rico. We rented a car and headed out to the Rainforest. I'd never been to a rainforest before! It was wet and rainy, but I liked it. I totally rocked a plastic poncho! We kinda hiked to a waterfall (I say kinda because it was a pretty easy trail) and got to go swimming there too! It was a cool experience and we met some really nice people along the way. We also saw a lot of snails and heard lots of birds too. I really wanted to hear the famous Coqui sound of the Puerto Rican frog...but I'm not sure if I heard it or not. I sure did try to get them out though.

Ya know, I'm usually not much of an outdoorsy type of girl... but I really enjoyed this! I loved it and highly recommended it if ever you're in Puerto Rico.

Pikayo:

Okay, I'm so addicted to Bravo! Project Runway, Top Design, Shear Genius...I love those shows. Top Chef...Hello! One of my faves! Anyway, if you don't watch the show, this season's finale was in Puerto Rico and the guest judge was Chef Wilo Benet. I totally googled him and absolutely had to dine at his restaurant Pikayo. I'm a dork like that. It reminded me of the time a fan took a picture of themselves in front of my old high school while on vacay in Hawaii (you know who you are and I love you for that.)

Anyway, Pikayo was FABULOUS!!

We couldn't decide what to get and all the appetizers were calling out to us, so we created our own little tasting menu and ordered a bunch of appetizers like risotto, crispy duck, tuna tartare, pumpkin soup, scallops, yum! They were all so delicious and the service there was incredible! The restaurant is located in a museum, so that was a neat little treat. They also have paintings throughout the restaurant. On our visit they had artwork that looked like Tyra Banks. I'm pretty sure it was her. www.wilobenet.com


Restaurante Botin:

I had to check this place out! I found it while flipping through a magazine in my hotel room. Because our schedule was pretty packed, the only time we had to eat here was on our last day. It was worth it! It's the oldest restaurant in the world in the oldest city in the new world (that's what the ad said and I was sold!) This place was too cool. It used to be a bank and was established in the 1700s. I had heard that the Paella (one of my all time fave foods) there was amazing too! So, boom-crack...sign me up. They weren't lying! Their Paella rocked my world!

We also had to order their blood sausage because our friend Robbie in San Francisco loves that stuff. Now it tasted really good, but let's be honest..it looks like a turd. Don't let the looks fool you though...it was delicious. Their sangria was refreshing and the service was fabulous. Tip: If you order the Paella, call ahead or tell them as soon as you get there. It takes about an hour to cook (now you know that's good). Again, if you're ever in PR...it's a must go. We were there for lunch, but I think they have live performances for dinner. www.restaurantebotinpr.com

Whew....so that's my trip and there goes my first blog on this blogger thingy dingy. Thanks Jenni for telling me how easy it was and congrats on the new baby too! Can't wait to meet her!

See ya'll soon and thanks again for stopping by!

Love love,
Kimee
www.kimeebalmilero.com