Banana Farm
Right after the banana farm was this HUGE home. We guess it belonged to the banana farmer.
Green, lush rolling hills were in the distance.
A pretty plant.
We arrived at the little fishing village of Boquerón, one of the destinations for the day.
Boquerón
The beach is a government run beach and it is nice for swimming.
One end of Boquerón Beach.
The other end of Boquerón Beach.
Then we drove past the salt flats on our way to Faro Los Morillos Lighthouse, the lighthouse in Cobo Rojo.
Salt Flats
Pile of Salt
Lighthouse in the Distance
The water in this area is very salty. For generations, they have been mining salt in this area. They flood the "pits" and then let the wind and sun evaporate the water. This leaves very salty water behind, and salt crystals form and fall to the bottom of the pit. Once there is enough salt built up, they drain the pits of water and then scrape and scoop the salt crystals out using heavy machinery. They put the salt in large piles. The salt is used for non-food purposes, like swimming pools, ice melting, and soil additives.
We arrived at the lighthouse and learned that it is still working. It was restored in 2007.
We arrived at the lighthouse and learned that it is still working. It was restored in 2007.
Staircase to the top of the lighthouse.
One view from the top of the lighthouse.
Limestone Coast
Beautiful turquoise La Playuela close to the lighthouse. Some call it Playa Sucia.
After the lighthouse, we went to Combate Beach. It was a windy beach, but we had our picnic lunch there and enjoyed the view.
After the lighthouse, we went to Combate Beach. It was a windy beach, but we had our picnic lunch there and enjoyed the view.
Pier at Combate Beach
Combate Beach
As we returned to our condo, we took a slight detour to "Pork Highway" in Guavate. Highway 184 is a winding road in the mountains with several "lechoneras" or restaurants specializing in slow roasting the whole pig over an open fire for several hours so that the pork is tender, moist, and full of flavor. They also have the traditional Puerto Rican foods; rice and pigeon peas, yucca, and blood sausage, to name a few. They hack the pork with a machete. It was very good!
Los Pinos Lechonera
Roasting the Pig
Roast pork, rice and pigeon peas, and blood sausage.