1	Escape The surprising unspoiled beauty of the tiny island of Vieques, Puerto Rico. read more...
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3	Spice Bringing brave new twists to the traditions of Basque cuisine. read more...

Escape

The Rebirth of Vieques

Unspoiled by development, the tiny island of Vieques, Puerto Rico boasts beaches and sea life, authentic celebration and traditional cuisine.

After conducting naval maneuvers on the island since the Kennedy Administration, the U.S. Navy officially left Vieques entirely in April 2001, and since then, the little island has been taken over and cared for by conservationists. Since most of the population had left the islet, called La Isla Nena by mainlanders, the beaches are still pristine.
With a consistently warm year-round temperature with an average of 76° F in the winter and 80° F in the summer, Vieques is alluring from season to season.
To reach the tiny destination travelers come by Jeep, boat and plane, from the Isla Grande or Muñoz Marín airports, and hydroplane from Old San Juan. Another pleasant and inexpensive alternative is the ferry, which leaves from the town of Fajardo and costs a mere $5 or less.
Arriving in Vieques, visitors find a fishing town, since most of the folks in the area live off the fishing industry and the incipiently booming tourism. And there are absolutely no businesses; only hotels, rental villas, places to rent kayaks and scuba equipment and restaurants.
Among its many attributes, the natural islet is famous for its amazing Bioluminescent Bay. The underwater attraction, glows on account of the 720,000 half-plant, half-animal microorganisms that emit a bluish light at night under the water’s surface.
The bay is actually called Puerto Mosquito (Mosquito Bay), and resides on the southern shore of the island. It was declared the brightest bay of its kind in the world and was recorded by the Guinness book of world records in 2008. Visitors as well as natives deem a visit to the bay as magical. Island Adventures Biobay Tours offers nightly excursions of the bay aboard their electronically powered double-pontoon boat, while bilingual guides explain the phenomena and ecology of the bay. Then the vessel comes to a stop at the point that has the highest concentration of luminescence, and folks can actually swim and snorkel in the shimmering water.
Another gorgeous manifestation of marine life is the plethora of starfish, orange-colored and the size of a human head that can be found anywhere off the island.
Aside from kayak and boat riding and scuba diving, an appealing activity includes walking—on the beach, on the pier and by the seawall.
For the most part, Vieques has a laid-back, life’s-a-beach attitude. But that’s not to say the locals and visitors are not up for a good (cultural, religious or otherwise) party, as there are some yearly events worth noting.
The year kicks off with the Epiphany Festival, or Festival de los Reyes Magos on January 6. Next is Via Crusis, celebrating the traditional Catholic Passion play, during Holy Week. Spring brings Festival Cultural Viequense (Vieques Cultural Festival) during either March or April. And summer sees Fiestas Patronales, the traditional local cultural festivities held in July. Winter has two festivals, both in the spirit of an island Christmas. The First is Trova Navideña and the second is Festival Navideño.
And Viequenses, just as all Puerto Ricans, appear to be a friendly, outgoing people. There is a saying that corroborates this. Locals might be known to say: “¿Cuál es el día feriado de Puerto Rico? El día menos pensado.” Meaning, “When is Feast Day in Puerto Rico? When you least expect it.”
Vieques is still reasonably untouched by tourism, so as you stroll by the beaches you might just find the occasional native sipping on a coco frío or cold coconut. Puerto Ricans delight in boring a hole into a coconut, sticking a straw in it, and just chilling. And there are small restaurants where you can sit right on the ocean. Besides the dining spots at the hotels, there are some new places worth checking out.
The coquí (pronounced coh-key) is a little frog indigenous only to the island, and they have cushions, or little pads on their hands, with which they make a most beckoning sound at night, like little elfing cymbals. Inside the Enchanted Garden Inn, The Coquí Fire Café, open only on Tuesday and Thursday night, sees a Mexican fiesta menu including huge burritos, carnitas (grilled meats) and chiles rellenos. It’s pretty authentic, though giant burgers are also on tap.
The Blue Macaw is inside the Blue Horizon Inn, and like The Coquí, it is not typical Puerto Rican. Instead, its fare is similar to that of New England. Think clam chowder, frogs legs and duck. You can sit al fresco at the seafront terrace and mingle with guests from all corners of the world. The bar is a favorite among international press folks.
Finally there is Bili Restaurant, owned and operated by Eva Bolívar, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. Bolívar’s famous yuca salad and fresh seafood draw raves from diners.
Of course, there are some typical Puerto Rican restaurants, which pop up everywhere as the visitor walks through different places on the island. One favorite is arroz con gandules, or rice and beans; also the mofongo, mashed plantains with chicharrones, or pork rinds, and bacon, with either seafood or meat.
A terrific munchie is the alcapurria, a dough made of mashed green bananas, filled with meat or crab, and deep fried.
As visitors enjoy the sounds and sights and tastes of Vieques, communication with the outside world remains iffy at best. In some places the cell-phone signal is very weak to almost nil. As for laptops, some hotels do offer wireless connections.
The tourism industry in Vieques is just beginning to boom, and it won’t be long before it explodes. Get to the island paradise before everyone else arrives and have it pretty much to yourself.

island tips

A passport is not required for Americans traveling from the States to and from Puerto Rico, but it is required for foreign nationals. For more information call:

Puerto Rico Department of State
787-722-2121

From San Juan Isla Grande airport with Vieques Air Link run about $90 round trip.

From the San Juan International Airport, flights to Vieques run about $165
round trip.

The flight from Fajardo to Vieques costs about $42 round trip for a
10-minute flight.