So, After finishing watching.. It was time to return to the Sub (boy.. we were tired for walking so much! mother complained of why she had to bring elevation sandals instead of tennis lol)
Anyway, we walked all the way from El Morro towards the entrance rotunda. luckily we didnt have to wait much and there were some benches available to sit down.
After 15 minutes, our tour operator came for us and we went to check the oldest San Juan section.
My mom unfortunately had a big disappointing as the second oldest church was under renovation as it was literally falling apart (according to our tour operator)
We passed a few landmarks including the Statue of Ponce de Leon. Who "found" and conquered San Juan to start the era of Spanish dominance.
And a few other landmarks that were under heavy renovation.
Then we went towards the main church, which was my mother request from the start (der god, everything has to have religious stuff for her lol)
The church was very similarly built as the one in my hometown. Just more detailed and cream colored with gold details.
With a "floating" Christ Cross right above the main ceremonial table.
The church had nice stained glass and a lot of statues.
The damage to the church was also very apparent. Paint was coming off and walls were damaged. It indeed was for a renovation.
Then they also had the tombs of famous spanish governors and rulers. Including Ponce de Leon's.
And some crypts and Chapels.
And as usual of latinamerica. Big devoting towards the virgin Mary.
After visiting the church , my mother wanted to buy a memoralia. But she took EONS to decide what to buy.
The driver took 3 turns and she was still inside.. argggghh..
After literally pushing her as we had limited time left... we returned to our Van...
Our driver took us to the "avenue of presidents" (where theres tons of statues of the past presidents/governors of PR and USA presidents)..
We got dropped down 4 blocks from the Cruise terminal so we could go "shopping" once our time slot ended.
We were dropped on the Colon statue plaza
The place was filled with antique shops and other stuff. Nothing very fancy and kinda expensive.
The stores nearby are cheaper and offer wider variety.
Unfortunately, becoming a trend.. even "puerto rican" trinkets and mementos, are mostly made in china.
After that, We went to return to the ship.. where a huge crowd of angry people was lining up.
Imagine 200 folks trying to get into the Terminal, with only 3 security guards checking the Ids.
Bonus points for these security guards being brave and dead set to respect the rules. As a group of 5 young adult aholes tried to skip not only the lines, but remove the metal rods that made the lines to try to skip the security line. Everyone shouted at them to get back to the line. They tried to have their way with a small officer of latin origin. But she stayed put and got the attention of 2 other big guards.. Until then it was clear the young adults were going to get a good beatdown or arrested.. so they pretty much sulked being sent to the longest line and told to stay put.. aaah!!! sweet justice and karma!.
Once inside, we made up to the cruise and we went towards our room for a quick shower and change of clothes.
Then we decided to head to the windjammer to have lunch. Which was pretty decent and was not as busy as other days...
Once out, it was time for a "tour" behind the scenes on the opal theater. With a talk with some of the staff of CATS. including some dancers.
They were really nice. The backspace of the Opal theater is very interesting, since they do 3-4 shows per trip.. so they have a lot of content cleverly tucked in the backend and along tons of equipment and control stuff.
They also said some of the staff actually do more than one show. Example, some of the dancers/gymnasts etc...
CATS and Singers staff..
Left girl = Computer center and control room (top floor on the opal theater stands)
Left man = Cargo, props, systems, helper. right behind the opal theater and sides.
Right girl = One of the "Cats" singers and acrobats.
Right man = "come fly with me" singer.
After talking, we literally were kicked by the guy who does "Munkustrap" of CATS(the singer in the videos of the Schooner Bar in my prior reports). Because they were closing the doors to practice.
So, returning back to the room to meet with my mother.. we found this fellow..
Then we went downstairs to the Casino area and then towards the STUDIO B ice Rink. As we went to see FROZEN IN TIME again!.
Place was packed again because the reservations were full. but we lucked out and found 2 spots right infront on one of the sides. (right side of the main entrance).
We managed to see the "Writer" and the "Artist" segments from very up close!. Plus everyone in ourline high fived the guys who did the most dangerous stunts in the ice ring during the "Emperors new clothes" segment.
Once out, it was time for dinner!
Nothing fancy as we got our usual food (no photos again sorry). Which was ok again.. and then returned to our room to sleep. As tomorrow was the last docking day before returning to fort lauderdale.
It was time for Labadee Haiti.
I also like to walk around old forts, bunkers, buildings, etc. But I was shocked to read about those kids who were bent on destruction, just to be jerks. The fact that their parents didn't pay attention to all that was awful.
