This was our neighborhood dog in Rincon. We nicknamed him Pants because he looks like he’s wearing black pants.

On our last full day in Puerto Rico, we spent the morning swimming and walking down the beach . Then we drove south to the town of Paraguera, where we rented a motorboat and toured the mangroves in the bay. The mangroves are trees and shrubs that grow in salty tropical waters. Bunched together, they have the appearance of small tree-covered islands, with visible roots. As Captain Matthew navigated our boat around the bay, we also saw some seagulls searching for fish. That night, after it was dark, we went on a bioluminescent bay tour. I couldn’t get any pics, but trust me when I say it was by far one of the coolest experiences I’ve ever had. It was a great way to end our vacation.

Matthew perfected his surfside handstand.

We noticed these interesting ducks on our walk down the beach.

Fun with shadows!

Captain Matthew in Paraguera

Mangroves! (and stormy skies)

Seagull on the hunt.

Our 4th day turned out to be the perfect weather day - clear and sunny all day. It was a good day for relaxing, swimming and reading, and that’s all we did. I also had the chance to observe some of the local wildlife.

Body surfing is a favorite activity of ours.

Gecko comes out to play.

Yay for beach day!

Modesty

Matthew plays peek-a-boo in the palm tree.

Um, maybe we should move our beach chairs back from the surf.

I avoided sun burn with lots of sunscreen (SPF50!), my favorite hat, and a beach umbrella.

Matthew also needed to hide from the sun at some point.

Dog paw prints in the sand

Little crabs popped out of the sand every day to enjoy the afternoon sun.

After a long day of relaxing, it was time to admire the sunset.

And what better way than with a piña colada in a fresh coconut!

Mmm mmm good!

Perfect ending to a perfect day!

Our 3rd day started out bright and sunny, and we spent the morning swimming at our local beach. The water was warm and clear, a perfect day for snorkeling and diving. We decided to try a discovery dive, for people who are not certified for real scuba diving. The folks who run the dive shops suit up novices with tanks and gear and take them 20 feet below. Sounded like a cool idea to us. Unfortunately, the weather turned cloudy and the water became choppy while we waited for everyone to be set up, and in that time, we got cold, and I became sea sick. I eventually made it down to the bottom, but admittedly, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped. Matthew had some equipment problems and had a hard time sinking to the bottom, so he didn’t like it either. I guess we’ll stick to snorkeling from now on. Despite everything, I was still able to get some cool underwater photos.

The sun was still bright and warm for the boat ride to the dive spot.

We snorkelled while the crew set up the tanks and gear.

Underwater self-portrait

Fish sightings!

Matthew with his scuba gear

Going down!

Views from below

In addition to lots of abandoned dog poop around Rincon, we found this pile of horse poop, complete with mushrooms growing out of it. Magic mushrooms anyone?

Rincon, Puerto Rico