Tinbergs on Tour

March 7, 2026 – San Juan, Puerto Rico – Mostly Cloudy – 80F

Port Information.  Puerto Rico is a self governing US territory and Commonwealth.  The island became a territory after the Spanish American War in 1898.  Puerto Ricans are US Citizens but have no Congressional reps and are not able to vote in Presidential elections.  Puerto Rico has a Governor and Legislature.  Puerto Ricans do not pay federal income tax but are part of the Social Security and Medicare systems.  The island is home to 3.2 million people with San Juan being the most populous city at 342,000 people.  I used to travel to Puerto Rico when I was working as we had a manufacturing plant in Barceloneta.  The island is home to scenic rainforests, bioluminescent tides, and friendly people. In 1978, the Pina Colada was declared the official drink of Puerto Rico (I thought it was the mojito).

We have sailed into San Juan numerous times but it continues to be a fascinating sight.  The Castillo de San Felipe del Moro, the foritification commissioned during the reign of Carlos I in 1539 and achieving its current configuration in 1787, has guarded the entrance to San Juan Bay during the Age of Discovery until now (sort of).  The fort was designated a World Heritage Site in 1983.  

Insignia then sailed parallel to Old San Juan 

before turning left into the cruise terminal and finally pulling alongside. 

After three consecutive sea days, we have reached our first port of call and that means that the shake and bake ride is on pause.  There are other ships here today – our sister ship, the Nautica, is parked along side of us and, on the other side of the Bay, the Valiant Lady and our old friend, the Jewel of the Seas, are berthed. 

I did manage to sleep through most of the motion but navigating the cabin in the dark in the middle of the night on a shaky vessel was challenging.

The dining venues opened a half hour earlier on port days to give people a chance to eat before heading out on an excursion or tour.  I was up at the Terrace Café at opening – I had my usual delicious breakfast of pancakes, cottage cheese and two mini jars of jam, scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese that I procured from the omelet chef.  (I am still amazed that how good the already made pancakes are).  The salt shakers are problematic in the humidity (the staff will bring one from inside the Café if yours in stuck). The Illy coffee continues to be good and always there.  The view, as always, was priceless.

We decided to get off the ship and reclaim our "land legs" by heading over to Walgreens, which today, because of where we are docked, is directly in front of us as we leave the cruise terminal. Ellen is still looking for a pair of reading glasses. The walk to Walgreens was relatively short (a good thing since it is already getting hot) but she was unable to find what she needed.  Since rain is always in the mix here, we decided to head back to the dry cool environment of the ship.  Before we did that, I got a great shot of both Oceania vessels docked side by side.

I noted that security was better here (World Card and picture ID) but not as good as it should be at a US port.  

We had lunch outside in the Terrace Café – today, I tried their made to order pasta – fusilli with a cheese sauce, onions, and asparagus.  It was pretty good along with a small salad. That pasta was the only one made in that pan (per Maria the pasta chef) so I didn’t need to worry about treif getting into my dish.  Thank you, Insignia.

After lunch we found some open loungers on Deck 5.  Not too hot and good views of the San Juan port area.

We went to Horizons for Afternoon Tea.  A quiet break with tea, sandwiches, and sweets.  Regretably there were no scones.  The sandwiches were OK and the tea (I had the Ceylon) was good.  It was probably not a good idea to have food so close to dinner.

There aren't a lot of superyachts here (unlike Charlotte Amalie or Philipsburg, where they are plentiful) but I did spot one, Starfire, in San Juan Bay. This 177 foot yacht has a current asking price of $16,750,000.  

Our kosher meals tonight out on the Terrace Café Veranda were ribeye steaks – they had to be sent back because they were under.  No problem, our assigned "suit' took them right away and said they would take of it.  They came back OK and were delicious.  Back home, right now, each steak would run at least $40 at the market and if you ordered it at a kosher restaurant, who knows?  A nice perk on this cruise.

Old Sand Juan is a short walk from the cruise terminal so many of the passengers will be heading out to the bars and restaurants to check out the local fare (like Mofongo - poi with benefits) and dorado (aka mahi mahi).  That means we have a late departure tonight – 10 PM – so there is no show tonight.  Instead, there is a movie in the Insignia Lounge (“The Roofer”) that I never heard of.  

We spent the evening listening in on the trivia in Horizons and then to the Terrace Cafe for some tea and desserts.  We watched the Jewel of the Seas depart and then the Valiant Lady slowly made her way through the bay.  The Valiant Lady put on a little show during her departure; she used the red, white, and blue lights on her verandas to display a heart and the words "Puerto Rico".  Now, that's an exit.

We ended the evening in our stateroom.  As soon as the bow thrusters finished their job, lights were out.