Paradise Island :: Culebra, Puerto Rico

Hello everyone,

Do you know what the best antidote is to living in a cold/snowy place like Boston (or Iowa) during the winter?  Dreaming about being a mermaid on a paradise island...  like... maybe Puerto Rico.  =)

I must say, going through the pictures of our snorkeling adventures was the perfect way to spend a snowy afternoon in Boston.  In case you are also stuck in a snow wonderland and want to see more, here are a few more photos of our time near paradise island called Culebra.

On our last full day in Puerto Rico, our wonderful hotel front desk set us up with a catamaran island tour involving snorkeling.  

Though the ride over was a bit rough and half of the boat got sea sick, once we got there, all agreed that it was completely worth it!  I mean would you look at this view!  This crystal clear water!!

And it got even better once we got to the beach!  We 'parked' the boat, and swam to shore.

clearly, we were very happy!  haha

the sand was the softest I had ever felt, and it was so clean!  

We lounged about on the beach, enjoyed the sun (a little too much, as we found later that night), and tried to take a jumping photo.  

we.... almost succeeded...  haha

we just needed one more frame!  haha

After having spent some time sun bathing, we went back out into the ocean to continue our transformation into mermaids.

 with goggles and snorkeling equipment...  mermaids have these, right?  haha

Anyway, this was the closest we had ever been to a reef, and it was so amazing!  

We also swam closer to the shore to see if we could find turtles.  After all, we were on a beach called Turtle Beach!  Sadly though, we never saw turtles.  We did see a giant stingray though!  That was the most exciting wildlife sighting of the trip  haha

We were initially a bit wary of going with a tour company, but we are so glad we went with East Island Excursions! The crew was very friendly (without being overbearing), the boat was very clean, the food was delicious, and the captain really took the time to get to find us the best place to snorkel!

and we really did have the best time!

a day spent snorkeling, lounging, swimming, jumping off of boats, eating amazing food (especially fruits).. all surrounded by incredible views everywhere?  I would do it again in a heart beat!

Boston is about to be hit again with a giant snowstorm tomorrow.  All of the schools are closed except Boston University, and I have an 8 AM class to teach...  I think it's time for another girls trip to Puerto Rico, don't you think?  haha (but really....)   =p

Hope you are all staying safe, dry, and warm!

Thanks for stopping by!

--Janny

Cancun Postcard =)

Hello everyone!

just wanted to stop by and share a little video we made in Cancun  =)
since we got the GoPro for our anniversary, we thought we should put it to good use, right?  It's not the best editing work since I had to use the GoPro's app for editing, and it's pretty rudimentary, but hope you enjoy anyway  =)





Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!
--Janny

snorkling!

Hello everyone!

While we were in Cancun, we went on a catamaran with the lovely Ms. Pamela (actually, Mrs.  ;) haha).  the main reason we went on this was because it provided snorkeling tour of the underwater museum that is right off of the coast of Isla Mujeres!  I had never gone snorkeling before, so that was on the very top of my bucket list for Cancun  =)

and I have to say... snorkeling alone was totally worth the tour!!

I was a bit worried at first because the weather was a bit chilly, but once we got in the water and started seeing fish(!!) the coldness was all but forgotten.

these fish have no fear of people! 

and these 3 were pretty funny because they kept thinking this seaweed was food and were fighting for it haha

the underwater museum!!   I don't have a lot of pictures of the museum because it was too far away from where we were snorkeling... but next time, we'll have to go scuba diving to see more of it =)

having too much fun with Pamela  ;)

Then, the boat allowed people to do this parasailing(?) thing, and it was so much fun to see people trying it.  I was going to try it as well, but I was too cold to go back into the water..  haha  Pamela and David did it though!

 I have David's ride on film, so I'll put it on the blog once the video footages get edited  =)

for lunch, we were dropped off at a private beach/club house sort of a place and were let loose to explore.

We found a shark,,

a snuffy faced David,

a cute little shop full of coverups

and an incredibly peaceful and beautiful beach

If you've never gone snorkeling before, I think it's totally worth a trip on the boat  =)  Of course, you can snorkle off of a pier on your own as well, but we had a great time on the Catamaran seeing the underwater museum, meeting people, getting to do other activities like the parasailing, and seeing the sunset from the boat  =)

It was such a fun trip, and I can't wait to go back to Cancun again!

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful week!

--Janny