“You know, travel does broaden the mind!” Elisabeth Sladen exclaimed, holding back tears, as she played Sarah alongside Tom Baker’s Dr. Who. It was one of the last things her character said to her best friend, the Doctor, as she was leaving the TARDIS for a final time as a regular companion during the concluding moments of her swansong television serial, The Hand of Fear. Sarah is one of the most celebrated, fan-favorite characters to ever appear in Doctor Who, and her parting moments in the series are some of the most understatedly touching scenes, two best friends saying goodbye to each other while acknowledging a cliched truth, but a truth nonetheless.
And you know what? Travel does broaden the mind! And as triste as it is when unas vacaciones están finitas, I would never, ever stop traveling even though I know I will always feel such debilitating sadness whenever the next trip is over.
Our last morning in Jayuya was misty and slightly damp, just as it was on our first morning. Nuestra casa pequeña en las montañas se llama Monte Niebla, after all, and it was a fitting description of an impossibly gorgeous area of the island. We engorged ourselves on the exquisitely glorious views from our gazebo down the hill, coffees in hand, tiny lizards scurrying into the brush as we passed by.
But soon it was time to bid adiós to our little house in the mountains, to make our way back to San Juan through those hilariously ridiculous mountain roads, winding and twisting and turning through steep grades and lushessly green forests, to eventually an area to the east of San Juan and just north of el aeropuerto called Piñones, upon the recommendation of Ricardo, our food guide tour, who explained that we can find some of the best comidas fritas on the street there.
We decided to visit Mi Casita Seafood, a lovely little outdoor restaurant/bar with a pavilion, to enjoy some piña coladas, beers, carnes fritas con arroz y frijoles, trifongo, and rice pudding. While it was splendid to enjoy one, last, authentic Puerto Rican meal, I wouldn’t say that the food at Mi Casita was the absolute best but also not the absolute worst. Just middlingly average but satisfying nonetheless.
Mi Casita is also located right near the ocean, so we allowed ourselves one, final, lengthy, indulgent view of the hopelessly brilliant sea, wind in our hair, the sea breeze refreshingly exhilarating against the skin, the roaringly elegant crashes and clashes of the ocean’s neverending undulations, the shoreline constantly and invisibly shaping and re-shaping, footprints in the sand as ephemeral as lifetimes, the waves washing impressions away from a fickle memory. It took incredible energy to turn our backs to the sea and return to the car, moving away yet also onwards, away from magic, back towards reality, not knowing when we’ll see this breathtakingly beautiful island once again, its people, its food, its cocktails, its sites, its churches, its castles, its museums, its cities, its towns, its cats, its mountains, its roads, its streets, its heart of gold, its hardship of the ages, and its resilience of steel.
Travel does broaden the mind, and the more I do it, the more I know that I’ll never fall out of love with it, the memories it creates, the perceptions it shapes, the connections it forges, and the lives it enriches. I’m already looking forward to the next adventure, wherever and whenever that may be.
Until then, take care, Puerto Rico. We will meet again, and it can’t be a moment too soon…