The world around us has become still as we wake up for our last activity day in Puerto Rico. The island’s song flows through the trees, harmonizing with the sound of the coquis. Breakfast began at 6am, though I doubt any of my companions had the energy to greet the day at that time. Our previous day of activities has significantly drained our group but that does not stop us from enjoying a fully prepared breakfast. The call time for the bus was 8:20am, it was no surprise to see everyone down in the lobby at 8:15am, ready to start the day. We all greeted Francisco, warmly as always, as we boarded the bus. It was only a 10-15 minute bus ride before we had to hop off and continue the day on foot. Natalia informed us that the streets we were walking used to be so full of life before the pandemic. I did happen to stumble across an orange tabby cat during our walk to Plaza del Mercado, he made me believe that this place could still be full of life. This little tomcat allowed me to be a part of his life for a brief second and provide me with an absurd amount of joy.
I will not lie, the market was surprisingly different than what I thought it would be. On the mainland, we are so used to outdoor farmers markets with everything in sight. It was very peculiar, to me, to see everything still so quiet mid morning. I feel as though I am so used to the hustle and bustle starting from 7am and not calming down until 5pm at the earliest. At Rio Piedras, it did not start getting crowded til noon and we had also learned that the shop owners leave at 4pm. Going on a Tuesday also probably had some effect as to why the market was not as busy. Very similarly to our farmers markets on the mainland, the Rio Piedras Plaza del Mercado had many stands that were similar in produce but the prices varied. I found that this observation was made by my fellow peers too.
We had one group that hosted us at the market, Capicu Adentro. With Capicu, we learned from a local legend, Milagros, how to make sofrito. It smelled like a lush garden in the middle of spring. The smell of the sofrito was comforting and it tasted delicious. We got to dip some treats into it and it was the perfect touch.
Our friends at Capicu then taught us all about dominoes. A few of us had played it before as children but never knew the real rules. It was an eye opening experiences to learn about the history of dominoes and how important it is to the community. Outside of the market, there are actually many domino tables for people to play at. At the end of our game, once we had a winner, everyone got a reward but they were all things that are unique to Puerto Rico.
After we finished up at the market, we headed back to the hotel for some free time before dinner and our final presentations. Unfortunately, I do not have much memory on what I did during my free time before dinner. Our dinner was graciously provided by our professor and everyone had a good meal. For dinner we just walked to a place that was right around the corner from our hotel. Afterwards, we all headed back to the hotel and prepared to present our final presentations.
All of our presentations consisted of research, experience, and reflection. I do believe that everyone’s presentations were wonderful and truly captured every aspect of their topics. I enjoyed listening to everyone’s reflections on what we did and how it made them feel. I found that it was really important to not only express why you liked something but also how it felt for you. In the end, we all felt at home.
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