Things to do in Puerto Rico & other things to ponder everywhere
Viewing entries in
Puerto Rico
n.
The quality of being calm and even-tempered; composure.
n.
Evenness of mind or temper; calmness or firmness, especially under conditions adapted to excite great emotion; a state of resistance to elation, depression, anger, etc.
n.
Evenness of mind; that calm temper or firmness of mind which is not easily elated or depressed; patience; calmness; composure.
There is no one definitive language, per se, in Puerto Rico. Spanish, English, and the native tongue known as Taino are all used. What one often hears in everyday conversation is a somewhat dysfunctional marriage of all three. Adding to the challenge is the widespread use of truncated words and abundant hybrid slang. All in all, a tricky lexicon to understand.
That said, making an effort to speak in Spanish is always appreciated. I often beat myself up over what I assume (and am most likely correct) is my awful re-fried pronunciation and general lack of nuance. However, when I try I am more often than not met with acceptance (throwing in a smile never hurts). Like all things in life, it’s the intention behind our actions or words that truly count, si?
As I approach my seven-year anniversary in Puerto Rico, I am reminded of how disoriented I was when I first arrived. When asked what brought me to PR, one of my glib responses was that the Universe wanted me to learn patience. As it turns out, I didn’t want to truly learn- but I certainly did, slowly at times, but surely nonetheless. I am still far from patient, but I walk towards that goal everyday- sometimes just one little baby step. Progress, not perfection.
My dear friends, fellow travelers, and I are embarking on a journey of discovery- we aim to unpack and explain how we made our way on this beautiful yet deceptively complex island. We strive to help us all navigate this land with kindness, insight, and compassion.
“Everything you read about Puerto Rico in the media is crisis, crisis, crisis. But there’s another reality to our island,” she told me. “The first phase of this campaign is intended to change the way we look at our own country internally, because many people here feel sad about the situation. I think the first stage of promoting love for country has been a success, because we’ve seen people starting to have a new appreciation for our island.”
The campaign started by enlisting 10 of the island’s top young Instagrammers—with a total followership of 200,000—to do their thing. Their posts inspired a bevy of other Puerto Rican instagrammers and foreign tourists alike to join the movement. In one month, the hashtag campaign has resulted in more than 6,000 user-generated photos uploaded to Instagram, and nearly 14 million impressions on Instagram and Twitter, according to Portela.
The basis of the hashtag campaign, similar to Guatemala’s recent IG tourism-promotion campaign, is to harness the power of social media to influence public opinion about a country whose name is often uttered in the same sentence as the word crisis. But unlike the #VisitGuatemala campaign, which was funded by that country’s tourism board, #CrisisIsland is completely independent and pro-bono.
