Day 7 - 04/18/12 Puerto Rico

Day 7 – 04/18/12


Puerto Rico



Today was our last ride day. It was another early start. We met at the Promenade Café at 06:15 for a quick breakfast then headed down to Deck 1 to get the bikes ready. This is going to be a short day since we have to have the bikes back on board by 12:00. We were off the boat almost as soon as the boat was docked. I was one of the first bikes off for a change so I had to sit the longest. We were greeted by a group of motorcycle officers; the Governor’s special task force. They were to be our escorts for the day. First we had to get fuel. We pulled into the street and next to a truck. In the back was a drum full of gas with a pump. Each bike was refueled and now we were ready to go.



We took off through the streets of San Juan with the police officers blocking the streets and lights for us. This allowed us to get right onto the freeway where they blocked the on ramps and traffic for us. We raced along as a group at over 60 in the 45 zones, zooming around construction zones and just blowing through traffic lights. The police escort really speeds things up. We turned off the main highway and started up the back roads up into the rainforest. The road was full of curves and was mainly a sharp uphill. It was a fun ride with all of the curves. We stopped at the base of a waterfall for some pictures then turned around and headed back to the city of San Juan.

Waterfall Stop

The Streets of San Juan

On the way back to San Juan we really opened up, over 70 in some spots, all with a police escort and blocking. We turned off of the main highway and continued along the oceanfront. Here the roads weren’t so great. We had to continually point out pot holes to following bikes. We entered the city, still with the police escort and rode through old San Juan, down the cobblestone roads. Everywhere we went people were taking photos and waving…much like the parade atmosphere of Bermuda. We parked in the median strip of the road on the waterfront, as directed by the police, and walked around the shopping district for about an hour before it was time to load the bikes back on the ship. We did the nitrogen thing and the inspection thing one last time then loaded the bikes.



After we finished with the bikes we met in the Promenade Café. There we made plans for the afternoon. We went to Johnny Rocket’s for lunch. It’s a 50-60’s diner that serves great milkshakes and burgers. After that it was time for a nap but first we went to the photo studio to check out the latest photos. While in the studio we came up with an idea. At 17:30 we met at the photo studio in our biker garb. They shot the pictures with a plain white background. We’ll get to see the pictures tomorrow. We went back to the room and changed into our ‘evening clothes’ to go to the big show at 19:15.

70's Dance Party in the Royal Promenade

The show was pretty good. It was a singing and dancing tribute to singing and dancing movies. We left the show and went right to dinner. Tonight it was John and Carrie and Barb and I. We had a really nice dinner. Good food, good people, good conversation. After dinner we went down to the Royal Promenade for the big dance party. It was a lot of fun. The place was packed, the music was loud and people were dancing everywhere. When that ended we went up to the outdoor solarium for an adult dance party. It was too cool and windy up there so we took a short walk then turned in for the evening.