Honeymoon: Day 4

Our last morning at La Concha started well enough. Jason ordered room service while we got everything packed up and ready to go, when it arrived we ate breakfast on the patio and convinced ourselves the rest of our trip would be just as nice. I had arranged to have a town car take us from San Juan to Fajardo the day before with the concierge, diligently we were downstairs waiting at 10:30 a.m.. At 10:45 I started questioning where this guy was, but Jason told me to hold tight and that they would be there soon. At 10:50 a.m. I couldn't hold tight anymore and went to the front desk. After a few unsuccessful attempts to get in touch with the driver they assured me they would keep trying and let me know as soon as they heard anything. I went back to waiting outside and was informed 10 minutes later the town car wasn't going to make it because he didn't know he was supposed to pick us up. I will be writing a review about Paradise Tours on trip advisor.com under never to use.

No worries though, the bell hops got us a cab at the same rate and we were on the road to Fajardo and the Vieques ferry by 11:15 a.m. It took about an hour to reach the ferry, at which point we we able to buy round trip tickets for $4.00 per person. Much better than the $230 plane ticket. It once again became painstakingly obvious that we need to learn Spanish. There were two lines: resident and special passengers. Going with the assumption that we are not residents we got in the special passengers line. We made to the to gate where we were then informed that 'special passengers' is handicapped boarding, we then had to go to the end of the resident line. Now I was stressed by this point, I had read in several places that the ferry oversells tickets so sometimes even if you have a ticket in hand you won't be able to get on the ferry. Since we were now at the back of the line I was a tad panicky. With four people left in front of us the attendant taking tickets stopped the line and started speaking in rapid Spanish. I didn't think we were going to get on the ferry. Fortunately, they started letting people on again at which point I pushed forward in line threw our tickets at the attendant and made for the boat as quickly as possible, they couldn't kick me off the boat once I was on right?

With the stress of getting on the ferry behind us, I tried to relax while people continued to board. I saw people around us pulling out blankets and jackets and while it was chilly I was sure they would cut the air. They didn't. It stayed a drudges 50 degrees or less the entire ride. Thankfully they had a good headwind and the whole trip only took about an hour. Martineau rental car picked us up at the dock when we landed and traversed the narrow streets of Isabella Segunda, the main town on Vieques. On our way we passed a herd of native island ponies and a flock of chickens. This place is off the beaten path!

We got a banged up Dodge Durango and a map of the island and headed off the the Hix Island house. The roads looked narrow when someone else was driving, but they were super narrow when I got behind the wheel. When someone comes the other direction both cars slow down and have to gently ease onto the shoulder. We ran into a couple more ponies and some very happy looking dogs before we reached the hotel.

The Hix Island house is completely made from concrete and has three separate buildings. We stayed in the roudando, which came standard with a open air patio overlooking the pool, a hanging day bed and an open shower. Amazing. Amazing. Amazing. They also stocked each room with fresh baked bread, coffee, jam, and eggs. There is no Internet, no television and while there were electric outlets there really weren't any electronics. Once again. Amazing.

For dinner we decided to venture into Esparanza. A nice easy going sea side town only 10 minutes away. After checking out the pier and the beach we settled on Duffy's for dinner and drinks. While looking over the menu a couple of locals drinking at the bar next to us bought us a local shot, which i can't remember how to pronounce, but is 1/2 rum and 1/2 anis, totally delicious. We talked with them and did a few more shots until they left. We both order burgers and took in more of the local scenery.

Navigating the winding roads back to the hotel was easier at night because there were fewer cars and ponies. Once back at the hotel we lit tea light candle lamps around the room and listen to the coqui ( local tree frog ) until it put me to sleep.