Saturday:


Wooooh. Another picture heavy day. I had to break it up into 2 pieces. If you get too bored of all the pics on this page, feel free to skip ahead away to lunchtime.

Saturday we went to The Caguana Ceremonial Ball Courts Site, which, as that Wiki link would be proud to tell you..."is considered one of the most important archeological sites in the West Indies. Studies estimate it is over 700 years old, built by the Taíno around 1270 AD". As usual, it was also very green and very photogenic, even with the occasional overcasteyness, which is why there are so many pictures, even after I weeded through them twice.

Here's the traditional shot everyone gets first to prove they've been there...



Even the entranceway to the place was gorgeous. These people must be neck deep in gardeners to keep a place in the middle of a jungle looking this nice...



Here's a nice shot of Michelle enjoying the sights...



This was my favorite plant on the way in. Apparently it starts out green, then the leaves turn white, and then they turn pink and start looking like flowers. I have no idea what it is, sadly, but it's awesome.



The interpretive center before you walked in had some neat little artifacts to show you the sort of thing that might've been found here, way back in 1270 AD.

Oh, by the way, same rules as before apply. Any pictures from Karen will have a (K) before them and pictures from Michelle will have a (M) before them.

(M)



Here's a nice shot Michelle got of the entranceway to the actual park... (M)



They had litle huts to show what the Taino housing was like...



Here's a nice shot from the interior...

(K)



Thankfully it brightened up shortly after we got there... Look! Ancient ball courts! We didn't listen in on the information lecture because none of us understood enough Spanish.



Pretty little bromeliads, all in a row...

(M)



While most living things thrive in a jungle, some things do not...

(M)



"What do you wanna look at first?"....Michelle, Martin, Karen.



The next pictures, while cool, don't need a lot of introduction, so just breeze through and enjoy what you like... Firstly, scenery...



(K)





(K)





More of the ball courts, and a touch of fauna...



(K)



Some of the more interesting flora about...



(K)



(K)



Michelle got a LOT of nice closeups, including a canopy of flowers...

(M)



Nature's own planter... (M)



(M)



(M)



(M)



(M)



(M)



(M)



If you thought this was one place in Puerto Rico not overrun by lizards, you were wrong...



(M)



On our way out, we caught yet ANOTHER lizard...



Here's a very tranquil shot of Michelle on the way out...



And one more shot back, because the pathway Looks Cool.



Do you remember that big Caguana sign when we first came in? On the way out there was a hen and her chicks wandering about it. Naturally Michelle and I wanted pictures of the funny little chickens. Here's a shot I got of the group (they were VERY uncooperative...)



...Michelle got a better shot of a couple of the chicks, though.

(M)



And right about now, you totally understand why it is that I broke the pictures up into two different pages, huh? Okay, let's all catch our breath.... Ready for the next page, yet?

Okay, I'm ready...