Running head: PUERTO RICAN CULTURAL HERITAGE

People of Puerto Rican Heritage

Culture and life in Puerto Rico

Maria S. Jimenez and Gloria Aznar

4/29/2014

Puerto Rico has one of the richest artistic, cultural and historical heritages of all periods.

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The culture of Puerto Rico has been greatly influenced by its history. This written

presentation is designed to illustrate the social and cultural developments of the island of Puerto

Rico and how Puerto Ricans have lived and shaped their way of life. With the blend of Taino

Indians, Spanish and African cultures, comes a melting pot of people and traditions, as well as

the impact of the United States political and social exchange into every aspect of life. Therefore,

Puerto Rican culture is somewhat complex. The people of Puerto Rico represent a cultural and

racial mix (Rivera, 2013).

Taino Indians inhabited the territory, called Boriken or Borínquen which means: “the great

land of the valiant and noble lord” or “land of the great lords”. On November19th 1493,

Christopher Columbus discovered the island in his second voyage to the New World. He found

the island populated by as many as 50,000 Taino or Arawak Indians. Originally the newcomers

called the island San Juan Bautista, for St. John the Baptist and the town Puerto Rico (rich

harbor). Often spelled Porto Rico in 19th century, the name was officially changed in 1932.

Puerto Rico quickly became Spain’s most important military outpost in the Caribbean. The

arriving Spaniard settlers, many of them gold-seekers, brought no women on their ships. To

populate the country, the Spaniards took Indian women. Some Taino words still used in the

Puerto Rican vocabulary are: Buricua- valiant people, Boriken- great land of the valiant and

noble lord, cabuya- fishing line, cacique- chief, coki- coquí - small tree frog, colibrí-

hummingbird, cucubano- lightning bug, fotuto- sea shell trumpet, guaraguao- red tail hawk,

jicotea- land turtle, and mime- fruit fly, among others (Rivera, 2013).

Sugar cane had been grown in Puerto Rico from the very beginning of Spanish rule. The

Spaniards came to depend on sugar cane as a valuable resource. Planting and harvesting sugar

cane was hard work. In the beginning the Spaniards depended on the Tainos, but with time there

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were not enough Tainos left to work for the Spaniards. Many Tainos had rebelled, others had

fled, and others became ill and died. With the demand on the sugar cane plantations, Spaniards

were in need of more slaves. In January of 1513, African slaves are introduced into the island.

By 1530 there were more Africans in Puerto Rico as slaves than all other people together.

Besides the slaves imported from Africa (Sudan, Congo, Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leona, and the

Gold, Ivory, and Grain coasts), other ethnic groups brought to work on the plantations joined the

island’s racial mix. Africans were part of the formation of the “Puerto Rican” culture and identity

from the very beginning, helping to shape our music, art, language, and heritage. The African

imprint in Puerto Rican culture is apparent in many ways, food such as gandules- pigeon peas,

cocos- coconuts, bacalao- salted fish, ñames- a type of starchy root, funche- cooked corn meal,

platanos- plantains (a kind of banana), pasteles- a mix of mashed plantain, yautia, other roots,

species and meat wrapped on banana leaves, among others. Our religion is influenced by the

Yoruba tribes in Africa (Santeria) and our music is seasoned with African rhythms (Sabor

Africano). Also our culture is influenced by this peculiar speech pattern brought in by the West

Africans which spoke “bozal” Spanish, a mixture of Portuguese, Spanish, and Congo. Many

Puerto Ricans have the habit of swallowing the “s”, and often pronounce “r” as an “l”. This is

because in the African tongue there is no “s” or “r” sound (Figueroa & Rivera, 2014). Some Afro

Antillean vocabularies used by the Puerto Rican culture are bachata- party, bochinche- fight,

burundanga- dish made with heterogeneous ingredients, fufu- spell, gandinga- a heavy soup like

dish made with pork liver, heart, kidneys and condiments, conga- type of instrumental drum, and

griferia- black hair (Figueroa, 2013). Besides the slaves imported from Africa, French families

flocked from both Louisiana and Haiti, and from Scotland and Ireland journeyed to Puerto Rico

in search of a better life. They were joined by Spanish people from the Canary Islands,

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Dominican Republic, and Venezuela. To build roads, initially, Chinese workers were imported

followed by workers from Italy, France, Germany, and even Lebanon. The most significant new

immigrant population arrived in the 1960s, when thousands of Cubans fled from Fidel Castro’s

communist state. The latest arrivals to Puerto Rico have come from Dominican Republic

(Figueroa & River, 2013). According to the study funded by the U.S. National Science

Foundation, 61 percent of all Puerto Ricans have Amerindian mitochondrial DNA, 27 percent

have African and 12 percent Caucasian (Kerns, 2003).

As a result of the Spanish-American War in 1898, Cuba became independent and Puerto

Rico was annexed to the United States. When the United States took control of Puerto Rico, the

island underwent another enormous cultural transformation. English became a common second

language, and has at times been proclaimed the official language. The U.S. dollar became the

legal tender. American corporations set up shop, bringing with them an influx of American

expatriates whose ways of dress, cuisine, and art were integrated into the existing culture. Puerto

Ricans are citizens of the United States by birth. They were granted citizenship in 1917.

Puerto Rico is actually an archipelago of islands within the archipelago of the Antilles. The

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is located north of the equator, which makes it part of the

northern hemisphere. It is about 1,000 miles southeast of the state of Florida. The Atlantic Ocean

is north of Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean Sea lies to the south. Puerto Rico belongs to a cluster

of islands known as the West Indies. Puerto Rico is a volcanic island, rectangular in shape, about

100 miles long and 35 miles wide. It is the smallest and the most eastern island of the Greater

Antilles (Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico). The smaller nearby

islands are also part of Puerto Rico. Two of them, Vieques and Culebra, are municipalities and

most of the other small islands are used for wild life reserves and recreational areas. The

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territory is very mountainous (covering about 60%), except in the regional coasts, but Puerto

Rico offers an astonishing variety: rain forest, deserts, beaches, caves, oceans, and rivers. It has

three main physiographic regions: the central interior mountain ranges, northern karst, and

coastal plains. The climate is tropical marine and an average temperature year round of 70 °F to

80 °F (26 °C).

Spanish and English are the official languages, but Spanish is the dominant language.

English is spoken by about a ¼ of the population-with limited capabilities. English is required in

all federal matters. Spanish or Castilian is, like French, Portuguese, Italian, an Iberian Romance

language, derived from Latin. Spanish is a phonetic language, words are pronounced exactly as

they are spelled. Puerto Ricans integrated thousands of Taino words, adopted some

pronunciation habits from African dialects, and incorporated English words or phrases (known as

“Spanglish”) into the language.

About 96% of the people in Puerto Rico are literate. School is compulsory and free for

children between the ages of 5 and 18 which comprises the elementary and high school grades.

Students in Puerto Rico may attend either public or private schools. Puerto Ricans have higher

levels of education than the Hispanic population overall but lower levels than the U.S. population

overall. Some 16% of Puerto Ricans ages 25 and older -compared with 13% of all U.S.

Hispanics and 29% among the U.S. population- have obtained at least a bachelor’s degree

(Brown, & Patten, 2011).

Puerto Rican cuisine is a unique tasty blend of Spanish, African, Taino, and American

influences using such ingredients as coriander, papaya, cacao, and plantains. Locals call their

cuisine “cocina criolla”. Cocina Criolla (creole cooking) can be traced back to the Arawaks and

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Tainos, who thrived on a diet of corn, tropical fruit, and seafood. When Ponce de Leon and

Christopher Columbus arrived in 1493, the Spanish added beef, pork, rice, wheat, and olive oil to

the island cuisine. When slaves were imported from Africa, they brought with them okra and taro

(known in Puerto Rico as yautia) (Rivera, 2014). This mingling of flavors and ingredients are

passed from generation to generation resulting in a blend of Puerto Rican cuisine. Diet is

generally high in calories, complex carbohydrates, fats, and sodium. A Puerto Rican typical meal

will have chicken and /or beef, with rice and beans. Other dishes include: pigeon peas with rice

(arroz con gandules), stew (like sancocho) or soups, and a variety of dishes made from plantain

like the twice-fried fritter called tostones, which is also made from mashed breadfruit (panapen),

and the mofongo, which is made from mashing fried plantains, garlic, oil and deep fried pork

skin (chicharron). Tostones is the single most popular dish served in Puerto Rico. Coconut is

probably the most common dessert ingredient in the island. Almost 70 percent of the food on the

island of Puerto Rico is imported from the United States. Because of this, the Puerto Rican diet-

particularly the diets of younger generations has become more Americanized. High blood

pressure, obesity, and diabetes are conditions affecting Hispanics, a major risk for heart disease

(American Heart Association, 2014). According to Dietician Vilma Calderon, the Caribbean

island has reached epidemic proportions and is affecting from children to the elderly. Bad eating

habits are to blame for 67 percent of the obesity cases in the U.S. commonwealth. Calderon said

that 80 percent of her patients are overweight. She also pointed out the consequences to which

obese people are exposed to such as cardiac, visual, kidney, and circulation problems, as well as

breast, uterine, and colon cancer. According to Gans (2012), Puerto Ricans have a higher

prevalence of many fat-related eating behaviors compared with Dominican, Colombian, and

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Guatemalan. The four most prevalent fat-related behaviors were similar: cooking with fat/oil,

eating higher-fat sweets, eating higher-fat snacks, and eating dinners with meat.

In modern times, Puerto Ricans dress similarly to individuals in any Western country. The

guayabera shirt is among Puerto Rico’s most prevalent traditional garments. Taino people had

little clothing, with the men, children, and teens wearing nothing at all. Only married women

wore simple skirts called naguas. Men and women used paints to decorate their bodies and wore

jewelry made from bones, rocks, feathers, and coral. On the other hand, the Spaniards who first

arrived in Puerto Rico wore full uniforms despite the island’s extreme humidity (Hill, 2010).

Puerto Rico observes the traditional holidays of the United States and also observes nine

local public holidays. In Puerto Rico Christmas season is long, starting right after Thanksgiving

and officially lasting until Three Kings Day on January 6. The season combines delicious food,

great music, and festive merry making. On January 5th, the feast of Epiphany’s Eve, children

place water and grass under their beds for the wise men’s (or the Three Kings as they are better

known locally) camels, and in return, the Three Kings bring presents, which they leave under the

bed after the camels eat the grass. Epiphany commemorates the day in which the three wise men

arrived bearing gifts for the Christ child. Each town celebrates an annual festival to honor its

patron saint. The festivities usually last a week and features dances, food, parades, and religious

processions. There are also other holidays, sometimes called carnivals, that have been adopted

from Catholic or pagan traditions. Vejigante masks are commonly used in this type of carnivals.

Vejigante (vey-hee-GANT-eh) were demons meant to terrify people into going back to church

and symbolized the devil in the battle between good and evil (Figueroa & Rivera, 2013).

Weddings in Puerto Rico are unique. A bridal doll identical to the brides’ gown is usually placed

on the center table with souvenirs attached to the dress. The groom and bride thank each person

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for their presence in their nuptials and each person is then pinned with a souvenir. The

Quinceañera tradition started centuries ago with the indigenous people as an important social

ritual to commemorate the transition from adolescence to womanhood. This celebration often

includes a religious ceremony at church, usually the Catholic Church, followed by a party. The

girl wears an extravagant white or pastel gown, similar to a wedding gown.

Puerto Rico’s political status is officially described in its 1952 constitution as a “freely

associated state” with the federal system of the United States (Mathews, 2014). Commonwealth

status links Puerto Rico to the United States through common citizenship, common defense,

common currency, and a common market. However, Puerto Ricans do not pay federal taxes, and

are denied voting representation in the U.S. Congress. Almost without exception, the same

federal rules and regulations apply to Puerto Rico as a commonwealth as to the States.

Manufacturing is the most important industry in Puerto Rico. The private and public sector have

developed five clusters: pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical devices, communications and

information technology, and health services. There is a large variety of fruits in Puerto Rico but

the most important commercial fruits of this island are bananas, plantains, pineapples, avocados,

coconuts, and oranges and other citrus fruits. Puerto Rico is a major hub of Caribbean commerce,

finance, tourism, and communications. San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico, is known as “La

Ciudad Amurallada” (the walled city), it is the second largest cruise port in the western

hemisphere and the second oldest European-founded city in the Americas (after Santo Domingo,

which was officially founded on August 5, 1498) (Figueroa, 2013). The Puerto Rican flag

consists of five alternate red and white stripes. On the left of the flag is a single white five-

pointed star resting in a blue triangle. The white star stands for the Commonwealth of Puerto

Rico while the three sides of the equilateral triangle together represent the three branches of the

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Republican government (executive, legislative and judicial branches). The three white stripes

symbolizing the rights of man and the freedom of the individual are a perpetual reminder of the

need for vigilance of a democratic government that is to be preserved. The flag is not flown

except in company of the U.S. flag. The Puerto Rican flag was adopted officially by the

Commonwealth in 1952 but was originally designed over 100 years ago. The Puerto Rican Coats

of Arms uses symbols of the history, culture, and religion of the island. It was first recognized by

the Spanish Crown in 1511, but it wasn’t until March 9, 1905 that a law establishing the official

Coat of Arms was signed. After numerous investigations and amendments to that statute, the

final version was approved and signed into law in 1976. The motto reads: “Joannes Est Nomen

Ejus”, it means “John is it name”, the original name of the island. Our Coat of Arms is the oldest

in use in America, other countries created a new Coat when they became independent, ours is the

only one that remembers the Spanish presence in the “New World” (Horváth, 2011).

Puerto Ricans are friendly people who often smile while talking, outwardly warm and

hospitable; Puerto Ricans are also conservative and traditional. They like to be very direct about

issues and feelings, and they may be a bit emphatic while doing it. Shaking hands is common for

both men and women. Men and women who are friends may kiss each other on the cheek. Older

people are respected and usually introduced first. Puerto Ricans tend to stand close when

conversing, at about 1 to 1 ½ feet with direct eye contact. They often touch other people when

talking such on the arm or patting them on the back. Puerto Ricans consider their country to be

part of the United States, therefore, avoid saying something like “We Americans…”, as if they

are not. Sitting or standing with arms crossed or putting your hands on your hips are considered

challenging or aggressive postures. It is important to mind your manners and not appear overly

friendly before you have developed a personal relationship (kwintessential, 2013). Do not inquire

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about families or marital status and do not talk about Puerto Rico’s status as a U.S. territory

because these are sensitive and controversial topics (Soon Lee & Roberts, 2014).

A deep attachment to family life is the most outstanding characteristic of Puerto Rican

society. The family structure is a tight one. Puerto Rican children and young adults cherish the

love and approval of their parents. Family honor is of primary importance to Puerto Ricans, and

they value an extended family, or modified extended family, which is the basic support system

for first- and second-generation families in the U.S. Individual achievement is not considered as

valuable as family loyalty. Dignity is also important for most Puerto Ricans. The home is the

center of social life and most people prefer to celebrate birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, etc. at

home rather than in public places. Music, dance, and food play an important role in Puerto Rican

festivities. Changes in the American family unit have affected Puerto Rico in recent years, and

Puerto Rican values have changed slightly, therefore, affecting family structure. Nevertheless,

the home continues to be a place of comfort, warmth, and family solidarity. It is quite common to

find three generations living under the same roof and married couples tend to live in a house or

apartment near their parents. Placing elderly relatives in nursing facilities is unusual.

Grandparents usually live with their children (Serpa, 2005).

Puerto Ricans are predominantly Catholics, yet their beliefs, rituals, and practices often

stray outside the orthodox boundaries of Catholicism. Some Puerto Ricans practice a hybrid form

of religion called Espiritismo, which combines elements of the Catholic religion and Indian

beliefs in nature-dwelling spirits that can be called on to affect change in one’s life. Similarly,

some Puerto Ricans of African descent practice Santeria, introduced to the island by Yoruba

slaves from West Africa in which is known today as Nigeria (Van Atten, 2013). It also observes

multiple gods and combines elements of Catholicism. In addition to the rich homage paid to

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saints, parts of the island still host beliefs in the evil eye, saints’ miracles, faith healing, and

witchcrafts. Mal de ojo, or evil eye, is believed to result of excessive admiration or envious looks

by others. Having newborn babies wear an azabache (a gold bracelet or necklace with a black or

red coral charm in the form of a fist), is believed to protect them from the evil eye. Once United

States arrived in Puerto Rico in 1898, Protestantism began to grow on the island, and all major

sects are represented, and there is a small Jewish community on the island as well. Baptisms,

marriages, weddings, vigils, processions, and funerals all come within the scope of Catholic

ceremonies. In addition to this, Puerto Ricans celebrate religious and political holidays with great

enthusiasm –singing, playing music, drinking, and feasting in recognition of a sacred day, a

historical event or figure, or a time of the year (Rank, n.d.).

There are lots of recreational activities in Puerto Rico. Although baseball is the national

sport, boxing is also very popular. Basketball, golf, kite surfing, sports fishing, diving and

snorkeling, horse back riding, horse racing, trail walking, and rock climbing are among the most

popular.

Language barriers are common, even when native speakers are available to translate. The

family plays a central role in health practices and healing in the Puerto Rican culture. Illness is a

family affair and not just a problem of the individual. May stream providers may find that Puerto

Rican patients have had and may be acting upon a preliminary diagnosis which is based on a

family member’s opinion or the advice of a traditional healer. The problems among Puerto

Ricans today are compounded by cultural traditions. Many Puerto Ricans still rely on folk

medicine to cure their ills. Compared with persons of other ethnic groups in New York City, the

Puerto Ricans are more suspicious of scientific medical care, tend to use general health services

less, and more limited health horizons than any other ethnic group. Aside from the

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unsophisticated health practices stemming from knowledge of Puerto Rican folk medicine, the

cultural phenomena of spiritualism plays a significant role in retarding the health status of the

Puerto Rican. Puerto Ricans who view illness as possession by evil spirits will consult a medium

or curandero for treatment instead of a physician. Curanderos (native curers) and brujas

(witches) are still prevalent through the island; these individuals often mix herbal remedies with

religious ritual and Western medicines in their cures (Galli, 1975). Agua de azahar (orange-

flower water), tilo (linden tea), yerba buena (peppermint), anis estrella (star anise), and

manzanilla (chamomile) are common herbal remedies used by Puerto Ricans to treat nerves and

digestive disorders. There is a high incidence of alcohol, smoking, and HIV in the Puerto Rican

society. In Puerto Rico, death and passage into the afterlife are commonly marked by vigils, or

wakes, and novenas, which are days of prayer for the dead.

There is a difference between Hispanic and Latino. Hispanic is a term that originally

denoted a relationship to ancient Hispania (Iberia Peninsula). Now it relates to the contemporary

nation of Spain, its history, and culture; a native of Spain residing in the United States is a

Hispanic. Latino refers more exclusively to persons or communities of Latin American origin.

The term Latino is restricted to immigrants and their descendants from Spanish, French, Italian,

Romanian or Portuguese speaking countries in North, Central and South America, and it includes

the French-speaking areas of Haiti, French Guiana, French speaking Canada, and the French

West Indies. While there is a significant overlap between the groups, Brazilians are a good

example of Latinos who are not Hispanic (they speak Portuguese) (Diffen). Skin colors in

Puerto Ricans vary from “white” or pale skin to dark skin or “black” and passing by all shades of

brown. Skin color and other physical characteristics are used by residents in the island of Puerto

Rico to identify themselves in terms of race. The terms trigueño (light brown or olive-skinned),

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blanco (white) or moreno (dark brown skin) are perceived by Puerto Ricans as racial

classifications. Other aspects considered for racial identification are color, class, facial features

and texture of hair, thus resulting in a variety of racial classifications that are not recognized in

the North American society (Peña-Perez, 2005).

The typical Puerto Rican musical instruments reflect the influence of the different ethnic and

racial groups existing in Puerto Rico during the colonization of the island. The güiro and the

maracas came from the Taino Indians who inhabited the island when the Spanish conquerors

arrived. The cuatro and the tiple are several of stringed instruments brought by the Spaniards,

such as the guitar. The drums, timbales and marimbolas represent the Afro-Antillean black

influence. Because musical instruments were difficult to get to the interior of the island,

draftsmen made them from local materials. While they were at it, they made alterations to suit

the taste of the costumers often decorating them with carvings and inlays representing flowers,

birds, and landscapes. To make these instruments, the Puerto Ricans used the fruit of some

tropical trees like the higüera and the marimba. They also use the trunk and bark of other trees.

The Puerto Rican Danza is of Spanish origin. This dance forms part of Puerto Rico’s musical

culture. Danza La Borinqueña is the national anthem of Puerto Rico. Other dances of Spanish

origin with Indian influence are the Cadenas, the Fandanguillo, the Sonduro, the Seis and the

Puntillanto. There are a great variety of dances of African origin, including the Mariyanbda, the

Guateque, the Curinqueque, the Candungue, the Bomba and the Plena (Christoforo-Mitchell,

1991). Although usually grouped together, bomba y plena are actually two entirely different

types of music that are coupled with dance. Bomba pure African was brought over by black

slaves who worked on the island’s sugar plantations in the 17th century. It’s a rhythmic music

using barrel-shaped drums covered with tightly stretched animal skins and played by hand. This

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form of music is produced by one large drum plus a smaller drum called a subidor. The drums

are accompanied by the rhythmical beating of sticks and maracas to create a swelling tide of

drumbeats, in which “aficionados” can hear drummers bang out a series of responses one to

another. Bomba is described as a dialogue between dancer and drummer. It’s as if the drummer

were challenging the dancer to a rhythmical duel. The dance can go on just as long as the dancer

can continue. Although critics are uncertain about the exact origin of bomba, it is divided into

different rhythmic backgrounds and variations such as the Euba, Cocobale, and Sica. As the

dance and the most purely African version of this music and dance, may come from the northern

coast town of Loíza Aldea. Bomba y plena remain the most popular forms of folk music on the

island, and many cultural events highlight this music for entertainment. The major type of music

coming out of Puerto Rico is salsa, the rhythm of the islands. Its name literally translated as the

“sauce” that makes parties happens. Originally developed within the Puerto Rican community of

New York, it draws heavily from the musical roots of the Cuban and the African-Caribbean

experience. Salsa is a combination of fast Latin music that embraces the rumba, mambo, cha-

cha, guaguanco, and merengue. Highly danceable, its rhythms are hot, urban, rhythmically

sophisticated, and compelling. Today, the center of salsa has probably shifted from New York

back to Puerto Rico. Salsa has definitely made Puerto Rico famous in the world of international

music (welcome.topuertorico).

Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome is a rare genetic disease that is most prevalent in people of

Puerto Rican descent. It is said that 1 in 1,800 Puerto Rico natives carries the HPS gene. Little is

known about Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome (HPS) but its most common symptoms are albinism,

legal blindness/visual problems, bleeding disorders, gastrointestinal/digestive difficulties, and

sometimes fatal pulmonary fibrosis (scarring of the lungs) (caliricans.). Puerto have high

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incidence rates for disorders such as oculocutaneous albinism, Herman-Pudlack Syndrome,

Spondylothoracic Dysostosis (Jarcho-Levin syndrome) and Bardet-Biedl Syndrome (Carlo, et al.,

2008). Sarcoidosis is a disease that causes inflammation of the body’s tissues. In sarcoidosis,

immune system cells that cause inflammation overreact and cluster together to form tiny lumps

called granulomas. People of Scandinavian, German, Irish, Asian, and Puerto Rican origin also

are more prone to sarcoidosis than the general population (lungusa.org).

Some major landmarks and attractions in Puerto Rico are:

El Castillo San Felipe Del Morro- Since 1983, the fort has been a designated World

Heritage Site, along with Castillo San Cristobal and Fortin San Juan de la Cruz, two

additional fortifications located in San Juan and dating to the 16th century.

El Yunque- El Yunque or “The Anvil,” is home to the only rainforest in the U.S. National

Forest System. The Tropical Rain-Forrest in Luquillo is one of the rainiest zones in our

planet. Approximately 200 inches of rain fall in this area each year.

Observatorio de Arecibo - The world’s largest single-dish radio telescope and most

sensitive radio telescope in the world, is located in Puerto Rico. The dish measures a

thousand feet in diameter and spans about 20 acres. In the climatic last scene in the James

Bond movie Goldeneye, the showdown between 007 and the bad guy takes place right

there.

Cuevas de Camuy- A 20-story building would fit inside the main chamber of Cueva

Clara. The Camuy River Cave Park is home of more than 13 species of bats. The bats in

Batman Forever were filmed here. The Rio Camuy is the world’s third-largest

subterranean river. Seventeen entrances, over 220 caves, two other smaller cave systems

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and more than 10 miles have been mapped so far and experts still say the cave system

could be larger.

San Juan Cathedral and Iglesia de San José- Two of the oldest churches in the Americas

lie in Old San Juan. More famous and beautiful, is the Catedral de San Juan (or San Juan

Cathedral) originally built in the 1520s but fell victim to two hurricanes, attacks, and

lootings. The cathedral includes the remains of Ponce de León and a wax-covered, glass-

encased mummy of a saint. Built in the 1530s, the Iglesia de San José (or “Church of San

José”) in Old San Juan is the second oldest church in the western hemisphere, a

wonderful example of Spanish gothic architecture.

Isla de Mona- Puerto Rico has its own “Galapagos Island.” Off the western shore of

mainland Puerto Rico, lies Isla de Mona (Mona Island), which has been compared to the

Galapagos Island for its unspoiled-by-man natural beauty and its colony of Iguanas. The

Mona Iguana is found nowhere were else on the planet.

Tibes and Caguana- Puerto Rico’s Taino heritage is best preserved in two different

locations, Tibes and Caguana. Tibes, located north of Ponce, has many replicas of Taino

dwelling and is the location of historic ceremonies. Caguana, an ancient ceremonial site,

lacks historical ruins but it makes up for with dramatic botanical gardens and a few

petroglyphs among the ruins of “bateyes,” court used for sport by the ancient Taino

people.

Puerto Rico is home of three bioluminescent bays: Mosquito Bay in Vieques, Laguna

Grande in Fajardo, and La Bahia Fosforescente in La Parguera. The bays are filled with

a species of phosphorescent dynoflagellate, making the water glow.

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Puerto Rico has over 270 miles of beaches. It has beaches with black, magnetic sand to

beaches with rusted military tanks left as a poignant memorial; from secluded, idyllic spots to

glitzy, star-studded stretches of resort-front property; and from surfing havens to tranquil waters.

Puerto Rico has a tremendous variety of beaches. Puerto Rico’s unofficial mascot is a tiny tree

frog native of the island. The inch-long amphibian has a powerful and melodic voice, and its

high-pitched, chirrupy song can be heard for miles. The Coquí, is the much-loved symbol of

Puerto Rico.

The Puerto Rican culture is colorful and complex, a mixture of history, traditions, food,

music, nature, and religion. Puerto Ricans are friendly, outwardly warm and hospitable, where

friends become family, and hugs and kisses are the order of the day. They value and honor

family. Family is the most important structure of the Puerto Rican culture. Although Americans,

Puerto Ricans will always be Boricua and their love will always be Puerto Rico, Isla del Encanto

(“The Enchantment Island”).

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References

American Heart Association. (2013). Hispanics and heart disease, stroke. Retrieved from

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