The Brilliant Colors of Isla
I guess I'll interject some hard truth into this semi-trip report. My last trip to Isla in February/March 2007 was not one of my favorite trips. I really enjoyed seeing some good friends from prior trips, and enjoyed making some new friends, but I detested walking out the front door of the hotel and being instantly surrounded by a crowd. I'm not a fan of crowds in general, so staying in the center of town at Plaza Almendros was not a great choice for me in high season! That being said, I met some great people at the hotel that trip, including a big group from Oregon/Washington and their friends from all over the country. But I just felt a disconnect the entire trip. I love to stay close to the water where I can hear the sound of the waves, see the sunrise/sunset, etc... Since I planned that trip last minute, the places I would have chosen to stay away from town were already booked. Anyway, I still enjoyed seeing all my friends from years past, but without the tug of close friends to pull me back, I'm not sure I would have returned to Isla this soon.
So, I was pleasantly surprised on my walk into town on the afternoon of October 29 (after dropping my bags at Luna d'Miel on the airport strip) to just be blown away by the brilliant colors of the island. Walking down Juarez by the Navy base, I was absolutely excited to be back on the island! After being surrounded by the browns and earth tones of the desert for the past year, the blues, oranges, yellows, pinks, lavenders, etc... absolutely thrilled me. And that set the tone for the rest of my trip! Not to mention, friends had included me in a special lobster dinner at Sancocho's that first evening, and the lobster was absolutely fantastic! I wish I'd gotten a picture of those lobster tails!
The walk up Juarez by the Navy base.
The Eternal Toucan. It sits in a cage on Juarez across from the Navy base.
Love the bright colors on this house!
The local neighborhood mercado.
Colorful mosaic tiles on Juarez sidewalk
Interesting door on Juarez.
La Lomita.
I'm ashamed to admit I've never tried the bean soup here, but I love the exterior colors of the restaurant. (Actually I HAVE now tried the bean soup here as of May 2008 and it and the enchilada suizas are out of this world!)
Some days, I walked 10 miles including my circular morning walk around town, my second roundtrip into town for the beach and lunch, and an extra early evening walk back into town for shopping and dinner. I always took a taxi back out to the room after dark because I won't walk the airport strip alone at night. I got familiar with most of the homes, people, dogs, etc... on that strip of Juarez leading into town. Maybe too familiar. There was an older woman at the base of the hill before it climbs up to the Navy base that would absolutely give me the 'evil eye' every time I passed. I even heard the word 'puta' slip her lips once as I passed, and I have no idea what THAT was about!
Some days, I walked 10 miles including my circular morning walk around town, my second roundtrip into town for the beach and lunch, and an extra early evening walk back into town for shopping and dinner. I always took a taxi back out to the room after dark because I won't walk the airport strip alone at night. I got familiar with most of the homes, people, dogs, etc... on that strip of Juarez leading into town. Maybe too familiar. There was an older woman at the base of the hill before it climbs up to the Navy base that would absolutely give me the 'evil eye' every time I passed. I even heard the word 'puta' slip her lips once as I passed, and I have no idea what THAT was about!
But back to Juarez! There was also an unfriendly pitbull mix in that vicinity and his thoughts of me were evidently similar to those of the 'evil eye'. The first few times, his surprise bluster from the roof scared the holy crap out of me!
That stretch of Juarez by the Navy base is now a neighborhood in transition. I guess you'd call it gentrification. Way back on our first trip to Isla, I remember renting a golf cart and just trying to speed through that stretch because my perception was that of a really bad neighborhood. At that time, there was still a lot of rubble left from Hurricane Gilbert. One afternoon in November, as I was walking home, I noticed three guys in a rental mini-van coming down that stretch of Juarez with absolute 'deer caught in the headlight' looks on their faces. Gawking with looks of disbelief! I thought to myself -- it must be their first trip to Isla!
Anyway,I digress again. There's a lovely new three-story home on that stretch now that absolutely takes my breath away! The view through the glass front doors (it appears to be a very fashionable duplex) looks all the way through to the blue Caribe! In contrast,at the bottom of that hill, there's still a shack with trash, including an old mattress, heaped about the exterior. But as I was passing by the hovel one evening, I overheard the sounds of a happy family round the dinner table. What a great reminder to me that money is NOT always necessary for happiness!
And that's the intrigue that keeps pulling me back to Isla. It's that gritty third world charm! The beauty of Isla is not only in the cool vibrant colors of the Caribe, but also in the warm hearts of its people.
6 comments:
I remember this from Bob's board & it is wonderful to read again! Great way to start the day--hope your 1st week at work went well....
Wow, walking 10 miles a day. Geez you have more energy than me.
I have not been going to Isla as long as you but I have seen it change quite a bit in the years I've been going.
I also remember reading that report before I went to Isla for my first time in February. We stayed on Juarez in the Villa Makax Townhomes and walked up and down that street a couple times a day also. Now that I've been there I can see in my mind the sights you describe. We came to love our little neighborhood. We’re researching places to stay for our next trip and looking into more budget-minded apartments downtown, but like you I need to be close to the sight and sound of the waves crashing outside my door. What a wonderful way to wake up and to wind down at the end of the day.
Gorgeous photos, by the way! That's a lot of walking; I killed my feet just walking from (near) the far end of Juarez!
Thanks Ann, Bennie, and Nancy. The nuttiest walk I ever tried on Isla was from Mar y Sol into town last May! Talk about a foot killer!
Ann, my first week went fine, but it's kind of like Lucy in the chocolate factory only it's computer work. Hopefully, I'll get quicker!
Nancy, I've had my eye on Villa Makax townhomes for quite awhile. Maybe next trip! It'd be ideal for me if my husband's not along. Take a look at the Casa El Pio rooms Nancy. I think you can see/hear the ocean from at least one of the rooms and they're in the $60 a night range? http://www.casaelpio.com/index2.html They're about one block up from the basketball courts by Steve's B&B. And if you're going in the fall, Luna d'Miel is extremely budget minded ($49 a night or $800 for the month). That's where I stayed in that report.
I though I committed all your trip reports to memory but I must have missed this one. Fantastic post Beck. Luna d'Miel sounds like a good spot for us when we get our papers sorted out. Glad you made it through your first week at work without too much stress.
Thanks Jeanie! There's not a lot of stress -- just a little. Luna d'Miel was fine. It's a really good deal in low season! Truthfully, I'm not sure I'd stay there alone again because it's a walkout on the airport strip, but I kept it locked up and never had any problems. The one thing I would do is get a stronger broomstick to fit in the sliding door track. I noticed that they've put in some type of a small dipping pool!
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