February 8, 2017 by coloradotravelingducks

Puerto Rico’s Isla Verde Beach with the Colorado Traveling Ducks

We are going to the beach! We ducks love all the activities and exploring in old towns, but the beach is our favorite. Isla Verde Beach is our place today. First we rent beach lounge chairs and umbrellas. We have never seen this. We pick our spot on the beach and the gentleman uses a drill with a wide, long attachment to dig a hole to secure our umbrella in the sand. Now the umbrella is firmly anchored in the sand, but extra ropes are needed to protect our umbrella from the wind.

Attaching lines to secure umbrella

Since we needed two umbrellas and four chairs, how did he carry them to our favorite spot? On this lounge chair, adapted with large sand wheels.

Tools of the trade

You can also see the drill and long attachment behind the carrying chair. This man really knows what he is doing. The chairs are arranged, water bottles available, and we are ready for a day of sun, sand, water and fun.

Chairs and umbrellas ready

Sitting on the beach, we enjoy the soft sand.

We love the sand and water

Time to rent jet skis now. Jet skis are so much fun. Each human gets a separate jet ski. It is more fun to drive. Here is Bucket’s dad driving his jet ski.

Bucket’s dad on a jet ski

Warm sun and beach activities do make humans and duck hungry and thirsty. Not to worry. A food stand is right behind us on the beach.

Food and drinks are near

We have a lot of food now, so Bucket’s mom is sharing with some new friends.

Bucket’s mom sharing with birds

There are many water activities available at the beach. These are kite boards.

Kite boarders here

The kites are so colorful and look great sailing above the water. We did not try them today. Maybe another time. You can see there are many people enjoying Isla Verde Beach today, but it really is not crowded.

Nice wide sandy beach

This is a big beach. This is our last day in Puerto Rico so we are all happy to spend it at the beach. But we are getting hungry again. Let’s try some real Puerto Rican food for our last evening. Nearby at Los Platos restaurant, we order mofongos.

Mofongos

These are green mashed plantains. One has chicken inside and one has beef inside. We have a choice of white garlic sauce or Puerto Rican creole. We tried each sauce. Three of us had mofongos and one had a delicious fish dinner. This meal was very tasty and a great way to end our Puerto Rican vacation.

February 6, 2017 by coloradotravelingducks

Wandering Old San Juan, Puerto Rico with the Colorado Traveling Ducks

Who are these people? What are they doing?

Ponce de Leon

Here, in the Plaza de Colon in Old San Juan we found Ponce de Leon, the first governor of Puerto Rico. Searching for the Fountain of Youth, in Puerto Rico and in the American state of Florida, today he is promoting benefits of drinking clean water. It must work, he was born in 1474 and he looks pretty good. A short walk took us to the Franciscan Chapel, built by the Third Order of Saint Francis.

Franciscan chapel

This is not the most popular church, so it was almost empty.

Inside chapel

But so beautiful and made humans and ducks feel at peace. On the walls, the Stations of the Cross, were intricately carved.

Station of the Cross XI

This is number 11, the nailing of Jesus to the cross. Much of Old San Juan features restaurants and tourist shops. But, it is part of the city and many people live here. From the 1500s, the cobblestone streets are quite narrow.

Narrow Street

The humans just wanted to wander down these streets, not wanting to eat or shop now. On the main, wider streets, tourist buses take people between the two Spanish Castillos that we previously showed you. Also taking humans to the cruise port. Yes, the cruise ships leave from this area also. Look at the decorations on this bus.

Very colorful bus

From the bus, we saw the government building for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, flying the flag of the United States of America.

Puerto Rico Government building

Some people in the world are trying to reduce their life, their possessions, and reduce their carbon footprints. This house does that. This little house is only 5 feet wide.

Little house is only 5 feet wide

That really is little. Not everybody wants to live in a space that small though. On this narrow street, the apartments are fairly small, but the curved balconies seem wonderful.

Great balconies

And, no buses on this street. You could spend several days exploring Old San Juan, but we were only here for one day. We loved it, but we wanted to go to the beach. We will take you there next time.

February 1, 2017 by coloradotravelingducks

Castillo San Cristobal, San Juan, Puerto Rico with the Colorado Traveling Ducks

We are loving our time in Puerto Rico. Last time we showed you Castillo San Felipe del Morro, the Spanish defense from sea attacks. Now we will show you Castillo San Cristobal, the Spanish defense from land attacks. This was the biggest European fortification in the Americas.

Castillo San Cristobal

Canons were once housed here, to defend the Spanish claim to Puerto Rico.

Canon was inside

Let’s walk up this incline and enter the fortress.

Let’s go up

Looking to the sea, this fortress offered an advantageous view of the sea and the land.

View of Atlantic. Love the colors of the water

As we enter Castillo San Cristobal, we notice we will be climbing more inclines.

Entering the fortress

This Castillo has three levels. We are on level 1, sitting on the window of the Troops Quarters.

Troops Quarters

Remember that ships sailing from Europe, 4,000 miles to the east, sailed down the coast of Africa where they used the winds and currents to reach Puerto Rico, and then on to the rest of the New World. We are now on the top level, and it is windy here.

View and three flags

These three flags flew over Puerto Rico. The bottom is the Burgundy Cross. This was the Spanish military flag that flew here during most of the Spanish colonial period. It was adopted in 1506 by Philip the Handsome, King of Castile, to honor his mother, Mary Duchess of Burgundy. The middle is the flag of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. And the top flag is that of the United States of America. Here is the bell.

Bell

We love the old bells. From here, you would be able to see any approaching threat, by sea or land.

View to the east

We like this panorama of the coast between the two Castillos.

Panorama with markings on building roofs

This is a favorite photo from Bucket’s dad. Looking toward Castillo San Felipe del Morro, again we admire the strategic location of these fortresses.

View to the west and Castillo San Felipe del Morro

We, the Colorado Traveling Ducks, and humans enjoyed exploring and learning about our history and the Spanish defenses to protect Puerto Rico. We think you would enjoy wandering through this part of Old San Juan, also.

January 30, 2017 by coloradotravelingducks

Castillo San Felipe del Morro in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico with Colorado Traveling Ducks

This is our first full day in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Our cab took us to Old San Juan, the original walled city of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Christopher Columbus arrived in San Juan in 1493 on his second voyage to the New World. For Spain, he claimed all the riches of what is now called Puerto Rico. This included gold, silver, gems, and spices, in addition to the first deep water port between Europe and the New World. Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States and Old San Juan Historic Site is under the protection of the U.S. National Park Service. There are two old fortresses, built by the Spanish, here. The Castillo San Felipe del Morro was to defend against attacks from the sea. The Castillo San Cristobal, about a 30 minute walk away, was built to defend against attacks from land. We, the Colorado Traveling Ducks, will show you Castillo San Felipe del Morro today.

Here is the sign. Where is Castillo San Felipe del Morro?

We can see the lighthouse in the background, and realize we have a long walk ahead of us. This cemetery was conveniently located on the coast near the Castillo.

Cemetery by the sea

The city, like many old cities, was protected by a wall.

Looking through the wall

Today we have a peaceful view through that wall. The grass here was incredibly soft in places.

Keep walking ducks

This was once a golf course, but we still must keep walking. We think this building, built partially underground is interesting.

We like this building

Let’s go inside Castillo San Felipe del Morro.

Entrance to Castillo San Felipe del Morro

Bucket claimed this chair and seems to be enjoying a short rest.

Chair fit for a king. King Bucket?

This space, once the living quarters for the commander of El Morro, but later, a place of punishment.

In jail. Looking through bars to the sea

Zeb and Soapy enjoy the view, through the bars, of the sea. Bucket found another prison cell.

Bucket and Chip–don’t go inside that prison cell.

Don’t go inside there, Bucket and Chip. We found this canon, now inside a room.

Canon. No longer in use

But it was not always inside this room. This path takes us to the former home of the canon.

Where the canons used to be

The canon was pointed through this lookout.

Canon pointed out this space

We ducks wanted to sit on the ledge, but the humans said it was too windy for us. But we love to watch the water. Castillo San Felipe del Morro has six levels and we found the bell on the 6th level.

Bell

This lighthouse looks pretty new, doesn’t it?

Fourth and newest lighthouse

It is the fourth lighthouse built here. This one is 51 feet above the 6th level of El Morro. The lamp is 182 feet above sea level and this lighthouse and lamp still serve ships every night. This lighthouse was built in 1908. Originally made of bricks, it was restored in the 1990s. We ducks are impressed by this castle. But we are also impressed and a little frightened by the wind here. We like the sea, but we don’t want to be blown into it and lost forever. The humans kept us safe. More about Old San Juan next time.

January 23, 2017 by coloradotravelingducks

Floating Tiki Hut in Sint Maarten with the Colorado Traveling Ducks

Today we swim, snorkel, and shop in Sint Maarten. First we take a water taxi to Philipsburg, the capital of St. Maarten.

To the Water taxi

After transferring to another boat, we all arrive at the floating Tiki Hut.

Floating Tiki Hut

Isn’t this beautiful? That pool has water from the Caribbean and we saw tropical fish there, eating bread. Bucket’s dad is already in the water.

Bucket’s Dad

It looks fun, but again, no snorkeling mask in our size. Some humans are enjoying stand up paddle boarding.

Stand up Paddle Boarding

Oh this exciting. We, the Colorado Traveling Ducks, are swimming with Bucket’s parents.

We are swimming in the Caribbean Sea

They are having a little problem keeping us together. This is so much fun. We are bouncing along on top of the waves. Back on the Tiki Hut, we ducks needed to rest and lounge in the sun.

Ducks resting

Swimming can be tiring, but it sure was fun! Look what we saw.

Fish

We could see the fish under water. We looked through Bucket’s parents snorkel mask! Bucket’s parents are on the floating platform, waiting for another snack.

Bucket’s parents

We already ate lunch here, but they are hungry again. Taking ducks swimming causes hunger. It is time to leave the floating Tiki Hut, so we take the first boat back to Philipsburg. Then another water taxi to the ship. This is our cruise passenger shopping area.

Shopping area

Beautiful tropical flowers also. These steps are very inviting.

Let’s wander

Let’s explore. We like these crafts that are for sale.

Crafts for sale

Following our moms on a shopping trip is exhausting. So, snacks and beverages anyone?

Snacks anyone?

Have a seat humans. There is just a little time before we board the ship, so hurry.

January 18, 2017 by coloradotravelingducks

Snorkeling in St. Kitts with the Colorado Traveling Ducks

Today we are in St. Kitts. And we love it. All of us are going on the same shore excursion today. Let’s go on our Mini Speedboat and Snorkeling Adventure. We are going on these mini speedboats.

Mini Speedboats and snorkeling equipment

Two humans in each boat–ducks going also. You may notice that we have a new friend. Chip, the chocolate chip cookie, from Doubletree Hotels is with us. Bucket’s parents work for Doubletree Hotel, a division of Hilton Hotels. Bucket, Chip and Bucket’s parents are ahead of us.

Bucket’s parents heading to snorkeling area.

We loved driving the mini speedboats. The snorkeling was fun also, but the humans did not take photos of us. Maybe next time. After snorkeling and driving the speedboats, we wanted lunch. We walk along the beach, and Soapy’s mom saw a man with a monkey. Now she has us, Chip, a monkey and the monkey’s doll.

Soapy’s mom with monkey, Colorado Traveling Ducks, Chip and a doll

That is a lot to hold, so the man holds the monkey now. He seems to be holding Soapy’s mom, too.

Soapy’s mom and monkey owner

We loved that cute monkey, but the moms said we could not take it home. Look, here is a place to order food.

We are getting hungry

We are really thirsty.

We were thirsty

What is this? A snowman in the tropical Caribbean.

Snowman–in the Caribbean??

We would like to eat here, looking at the beautiful water.

Let’s eat here

After lunch and a brief swim, a taxi took us back to our ship so we could get dry clothes. Now we head to the shopping area for cruise passengers.

Shopping area for cruise passengers

These wandering dancers and musicians are very colorful.

Wandering dancers and musicians

We like them. There are lots of places here to shop and eat. Sailing away on our cruise ship, we look back at beautiful St. Kitts.

Leaving St. Kitts

When mom and I return to our room, our new towel art makes us laugh.

Towel monkey in our room

We love this monkey towel. We had fun in St. Kitts and are looking forward to tomorrow’s adventure.

January 11, 2014 by coloradotravelingducks

South Beach is so Cool

I, Zeb the Duck, am in South Beach. South Beach is the southern end of Miami Beach in south Florida. Girls in bikinis riding bicycles, a man driving a Segway,

Man riding Segway in our restaurant

a lady with a tray selling cigars, and that was on the sidewalk that is inside our restaurant!

South Beach is also famous for its Art Deco.

Art Deco with curves

Lots of curves and bright colors. The day I was on South Beach it was 88 degrees. You can see the date on this photo.

Warmer than Denver today

December 5, 2013. On that day in Denver the temperature was below zero and snow on the ground. We picked the right day to be in South Beach.

This weekend there were three art shows.

One of three art shows

So many people and so much art. This the second piece in Tom Fruin’s celebrated ICON series.

By Tom Fruin

One of the main attractions of South Beach; the beach is very wide and so pretty.

We love wide beaches

I had to sit on the sand, adding to my South Beach experience. Not sure if this guy is a friend or an actual distant relative.

I find friends everywhere

I like him!

This is where Mom and I ate.

Ocean’s Ten in South Beach

We like Ocean’s Ten for lunch, or any time. You can see the sidewalk goes through all the restaurants. It is great. Humans must get really thirsty in warm weather.

This drink is bigger than Zeb the Duck!

I could swim in this drink!

Walking down the street I saw entertainment at another restaurant.

Dancer at Clevelander restaurant

So many thing I have never seen other places. South Beach is so alive and fun! Even the palm trees seem different.

The trunks of these palms on South Beach are a little different than the palms I saw in St Thomas last month.

Pretty trunks on these palm trees

So much to see and learn in the world.

We could not stay here very long today. Tomorrow we leave Florida for another Caribbean island. We are going to Cuba!

Go to South Beach soon. You will be amazed at all you see there. It is so much fun. I want to return soon!

January 8, 2014 by coloradotravelingducks

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, USVI

Today we took cab into town. St. Thomas is a very popular stop for cruise ships, but today there was only one ship in the harbor. We discovered that many shops and businesses close if the ships are not in. Plenty, but not all were open today.

We walked along streets like this, stopping in many stores.

Charlotte Amalie

As our humans wandered, we found Emancipation Garden and Educators Park. We saw a smaller version of the Liberty Bell,

Smaller Liberty Bell and plaque for Virginia Settlers

with a plaque honoring the Virginia Settlers. The settlers stopped for three days in St. Thomas on their way to the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States.

Educators Park featured statues of famous early residents of St. Thomas. There is a statue honoring Edith Williams, an educator; another dedicated to Rothschild Francis, an educator and author

Statue honoring J. Antonio Jarvis

with a third statue recognizing J. Antonio Jarvis, a founder of The Daily News. Also enjoying the park, we admired this prancing rooster.

He has an attitude!

Shopping and wandering around Charlotte Amalie makes humans hungry and thirsty. We stopped at Blackbeard VI Brewing Co

Blackbeard Virgin Island Brewing Co

and at Big Kahuna Rum Shack.

Humans were energized so we visited this market.

We love markets

We saw the souvenirs and crafts of St. Thomas, but we saw a lot of Larimar. This is a blue stone, famous in the Caribbean. Larimar is a rare pectolite found only in one location in the Dominican Republic. Many pieces of beautiful jewelry were on display here.

Charlotte Amalie is big, so buses carry tourists to some locations.

Charlotte Amalie is big, so tourists can get rides

Our humans purchased a few souvenirs and then we went back to our resort. Something special was happening tonight. We will tell you about it in our next post.

Charlotte Amalie is a nice town with lots of shopping and eating, but you could find many other things to do. We decided to take advantage of our beach since in a few days we leave the Caribbean and return to Denver.

January 6, 2014 by coloradotravelingducks

St. Thomas Sunset Dinner Cruise

We are on another sailboat! My Alaska cousin, I, Zeb the Duck, my Alaska uncle and my mom are on a sailboat where we will see the sunset and have dinner.

On a sunset dinner cruise!

This is great! We love boats. This is New Horizons Dinner Cruise. It is good tonight.

Mark is the captain of this boat. Mark is nice, friendly and a great captain. He talks to all of us, explaining where we are going tonight and what we should and should not do. John is the second crewmember. John helps us leave the dock, and brings us drinks. The humans are drinking champagne with a strawberry! It looks so pretty.

We pass homes and many yachts as we leave Sapphire Marina. Everybody is happy and smiling. So wonderful. Some people are sitting on the back of the boat; several on the front of the boat and some are inside the boat. Captain Mark said we could sit on any blue cushion.

We sail toward St. John, but we are not going to dock there. St John is a beautiful island and part of the U.S. Virgin Islands. See our post about our day in St. Johns. This beautiful evening we sail past St. John. While we enjoy the gentle movement of the boat and the ocean greeting the mountains, John brings us more beverages and starters. First we have tomato and basil bruschetta, followed by smoked salmon and caviar over cream cheese rounds. The sun is setting now and the sky is gold.

Beautiful Caribbean sunset

We sailed to Christmas Cove for dinner. Anchoring in the calm water we enjoy the beautiful island scenery. Captain Mark gets the food ready for us.

Captain Mark

Our menu for tonight consists of fresh mahi mahi, island-style Caribbean chicken breast baked in a sweet and sour sauce,

Everything is fabulous, but we love chicken and mahi mahi best

Everything is fabulous, chicken and fruit here

and peel and eat shrimp. Yum! We also have classic Caesar salad with toasted croutons; green beans tossed with crumbled feta cheese, spices and Italian dressing, fresh cut fruit, and assorted fresh breads. For dessert they present fudge brownies and New York style cheesecake. We are offered fresh coffee, soft drinks or beverages from the open premium stocked bar. Captain Mark and John pamper us and we love it.

My Alaska cousin and I take a turn driving back to Sapphire Marina.

Ducks driving the sailboat!

We are not the only passengers that love this cruise. We talked to a couple that has taken this sunset dinner cruise from New Horizons four times. They said it was perfect every time. With a recommendation like that, you should check www.newhorizons.daysails.com On the left side, click on sunset dinner cruise. You will want to get on this boat. It is fantastic!

January 4, 2014 by coloradotravelingducks

St. John, USVI

We are on a ferry going to St. John.

We love this ferry

St. John, another U.S. Virgin Island, is about 3 miles from St. Thomas. 60% of St. John is a national park. I, Zeb the Duck, and my Alaska cousin love boats. We did not know how much fun they were until this vacation. Our humans love them too.

On St. John we hired a taxi to take us around the island. This taxi was a truck.

What a great taxi

We had so much room and we could see so much. Leaving Cruz Bay, we rode along the coast, stopping at beautiful beaches. This is Caneel Bay and beach.

Beautiful!

We saw the very exclusive beach resort. It is owned by Laurance Rockefeller. He also bought and donated much of the land for St. John National Park.

Virgin Islands National Park in St. John. Park is 60% of island

So glad he did. Now we all can see and enjoy this beautiful island.

Trunk Bay, white sand meeting the blue Caribbean water, is said to be the most beautiful beach on St. John.

Wow! Love these beaches

We thought it was beautiful! Continuing along the gorgeous coastline, we saw Annaberg Trail

Annaberg Trail

and restored ruins of the Annaberg sugarmill. The fork in a tree trunk held what appeared to be a large pile of mud. This is a termite hill or house.

Termites?

Always something new to see.

We acquired some additional passengers during our tour. One couple from the cruise ship in St. Thomas, took a ferry to St. John because they wanted to snorkel at their favorite reef. St. John’s beaches and reefs are perfect for snorkeling and diving.

On the way back to Cruz Bay we saw some wild donkeys.

Wild but friendly donkey

They were right next to us on the road. So nice to see them!

The town square in Cruz Bay had a gazebo, iguanas and chickens.

My favorite chicken

The people and animals all get along fine. They even like the Colorado Traveling Ducks.

After a little shopping, we stopped for beverages and coconut shrimp at the High Tide Seafood Bar and Grill.

Coconut shrimp are tasty here. Relaxing by the Caribbean Sea is very nice!

Our kind of place

Soon it was time for our ferry back to St. Thomas.

Ferry is waiting for us

We loved St. John, but we enjoyed the boat ride back and our resort is beautiful also. You will love to visit St. John. We hope you go soon and enjoy the beach and maybe some snorkeling or diving. Visit www.visitusvi.com/stjohn/homepage for more information.

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