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Culebra, Puerto Rico {History, Culture & Familia}

One of my goals during our vacation this past summer was to spend time with our extended familia in one of the most beautiful places on earth: Culebra, Puerto Rico!  Bonding with nature, immersing ourselves in the culture and language was a priority for my li'l family; and Culebra was ideal for creating memories for ourselves, and the rest of the familia.



However, getting all of the familia (my mom, my sister and her family; and my brother and his family) to coordinate their busy schedules with ours so we can all vacation together in Culebra took months of planning; and  I'm so happy that we were able to pull this off.

Since Culebra is located approximately 17 miles east of the Puerto Rican mainland we traveled by ferry. Once there we checked in at this beautiful condo resort strategically located on top of the mountain. From here we could see the aqua blue ocean, and the magnificent greenery of the mountains. It was breathtaking!



Photo courtesy of my brother!
During our stay we spent most of the time in the most beautiful beach in the world: Flamenco Beach.  Really it is! Needless, to say when my child set foot on the beach he gasped in awe and amazement, and his first words to his Titi Eddia was, "This is the most beautiful beach in the world!"  My husband was truly impressed! Nothing compares to the white sandy beach in the form of a horseshoe surrounded by palm trees, and a mountain backdrop.
Our child was so excited, and thrilled.  He chased the ocean waves, jumped over them, and even made sand castles.  The highlight of the day was feeding pieces of bread to the seagulls at the beach. :)
  
La familia relaxed in the beach, and we even ventured out to walk from one end of the beach to the other. We also came across two abandoned military tanks.

Not the prettiest site, but yet it was a vivid reminder that Culebra was once used as a gunnery and bombing practice site for the U.S. Navy since 1939. It wasn't until the early 1970's when the residents of Culebra started protesting the military presence on the island that the gunnery range ceased and all operations were moved to Vieques.
Culebra is a small island.  It is rich in history, and it's also a wildlife preservation refuge.  Their objective is the conservation, management, and restoration of the fish, wildlife, and tropical flora and fauna; and their habitats. 
We also toured the island looking at the houses, their streets, and the small bays located throughout the coast. They also have a small runway for small charter planes, if you don't want to travel by ferry. 

The streets are very small, and you see will a lot of locals and tourists driving around in golf carts. 



Photo courtesy of my sister!
One thing that really caught our attention were the signs they had all around the coast warning about the dangers of a tsunami. The picture speaks for itself! "Run to higher grounds." I can't even fathom the consequences of a tsunami in Culebra! Scary! 

When not in the beach we spent our time at the resort's pool, and we even found a wandering "cobito" (type of hermit crab) by the poolside. :) 
Photo courtesy of my brother!


On the last day before leaving Culebra my sister had a birthday cake for the two littles of the family, my son who turned 5 in July, and my sweet little niece who turned 3 in June. It was a celebration of the youngest two members in the familia.  The children were so excited, and thrilled! 


I am truly blessed to have been able to spend time with the familia. Especially have little one immersed in the Spanish language, his Latin culture, the food, celebrate his birthday with his prima, and spend time with the familia.
Three generations of nuestra familia in paradise. 
I wanted to take my husband and our son to enjoy an awesome tropical vacation. I wanted them to see a side of Puerto Rico they've never seen before. I wanted to create memories with the familia that will last a forever... I'm pretty sure that I've accomplished my goal of creating the memories of our vacation in paradise!

Do you have a memorable vacation? I would love to hear about it. Please comment, like, share or pin!

¡Hasta la próxima mi gente!

This post was featured in Jump Into a Book's: Weekend Links: Showcasing Multicultural Books for Kids Pinners