San Juan Puerto Rico

After being told by the local people that Old San Juan is one of the biggest
and best natural harbors in the Caribbean and is the second
oldest city in the Americas (after Santo Domingo, which was officially founded on August 5, 1498.

I had to see for myself, and they are right.
San Juan is full of rich history and beautiful waters.

Being located in northern coastal Plains region in the karst zone, north of Aguas Buenas and Caguas; east of Bayamón; and west of Carolina and Trujillo Alto.

San Juan is a major port and tourist resort of the West Indies and is the oldest city under the U.S flag. The metropolitan area known as San Juan has 3 distinct areas: Old San Juan, the Beach & Resort area, and other outlying communities, the most important: Río Piedras, Hato Rey, Puerta de Tierra, and Santurce. Río Piedras was founded in 1714 but became incorporated into San Juan in 1951.

Visiting Old San Juan would not be complete without taking a bus tour around the island and visiting downtown. The quaint shops, the friendly people,and the history behind the forts that protected them from pirates in the 1400's will leave you amazed and wanting to come back again and again.

My favorite fort was El Morro, sounds pretty powerful doesn't it?

And this six-level fortress certainly is. Begun in 1540 and completed in
1589. San Felipe del Morro was named in honor of King Phillip II. Most of the walls in the fort today were added later, in a period of tremendous construction from the 1760's-1780's. Rising 140 feet above the sea, its 18-foot-thick wall proved a formidable defense.

It fell only once, in 1598, to a land assault by the Earl of Cumberland's forces. The fort is a maze of tunnels, dungeons, barracks, outposts and ramps. El Morro is studded with small, circular sentry boxes called "garitas" that have become a national symbol.

The views of San Juan Bay from El Morro are spectacular.

The area was designated a National Historic Site in February 1949 with 74 total acres. And has the distinction of being the largest fortification in the Caribbean.