The events of January 2nd shall always be burnt into my mind. An awesome day with one of my best friends.

I woke up at 7am, and after showering headed downstairs to the hotel restaurant. As a Platinum, I did have access to the lounge, but it was both crowded and didn't have any hot foods available so I went to the restaurant. The buffet was $25 and had a huge spread of available foods and an omelet station. A good filling breakfast later, and it was back to my room to relax and read until my friend arrived.

I had been to San Juan a few times but I had never managed to visit when my friend was also back visiting. He and I work together in D.C., but he lived in Puerto Rico from birth until just 2 years ago. Since working together we've become fast friends.

At 11am he picked me up from the hotel. Driving in Puerto Rico is quite a challenge. It reminded me of other South American countries where traffic signs and rules seemed to be advisory only and ignored by most drivers. Add to that the Puerto Rican government is bankrupt and the roads are crazy terrible with potholes big enough to swallow most cars!

We made it out of San Juan and in about 45 minutes we arrived at El Yunque. El Yunque was absolutely gorgeous. We headed to the visitor center which was very crowded with bus and van tours so just grabbed a hiking map and headed to the end of the road for the Mt. Britton trail. The scenery was spectacular even though clouds had moved in and it started to rain. Verdant green was all around us as we booked it to Mt. Britton a tower that is almost at the peak. Thanks to the rain and cloud cover the trail was uncrowded and we made good fun of each other and we slipped and slid our way on the trail.

The tower was completely shrouded in clouds and we could see nothing. Absolutely nothing. My friend then challenged me to race him to the top of El Yunque, but his sales pitch was a bit off:

Him: We need to race to the top.
Me: Why?
Him: Because if you don't you're a ..... and it's amazing
Me: Seriously?
Him: Yes, I've been there like 20 times and I've...never...seen anything.
Me: ?

SO instead we raced to the bottom. He won, but I swear it's only because I let him.

Our next stop was the La Mina falls trail. Halfway down the mountain it was amazing the difference in conditions. Hot and humid, no breeze and no rain. We started down the trail which ran right alongside a river. The trail was rated as difficult, because although paved, the trail was very steep. But, it was well worth it! The falls were spectacular and many people were enjoying the cold water pool at the base.

After exhausting ourselves, we headed another 1/2 hour to Fajardo where we grabbed dinner at an excellent seaside restaurant: DiYukas. We sat outside and enjoyed drinks and some excellent food. I had yucafungo, a dish of mashed yucca stuffed with skirt steak. He had mofungo, masshed plantains stuffed with shrimp. It was extremely filling...and awesome.

Once exhausted and stuffed we drove back to San Juan. Now, it was dark and driving was really quite the experience. My friend really pushed his Kia Soul to its limits as we drove in and out and around traffic. I suddenly wished for a bubble suit for my own protection!

Back at the hotel by 8pm, and it was time for a nap. After all we were going back out at 11pm for clubbing!