We have taste tested much of the coffee around Old San Juan, but this one wins the prize by far.
In 2006 Café Cola’o was opened by local entrepreneur Erica Reyes, using coffee grown in the mountains of Puerto Rico. This local grown coffee has a smooth, full-bodied flavor, which attracts tons of locals, as well as tourists to the little Café which is located at Pier by the ferry to Cataño.

Not only is the staff very friendly but they are very qualified too. You can tell that they are “real” baristas because they put creative designs with steamed milk on your coffee.  So not only do you get a tasty coffee but one that is esthetically eye-pleasing as well.

They offer the regular coffees like Café Latte and Cappuccino in various sizes, hot and cold, but if you are a Starbucks fanatic and can’t live without a syrup mixed into your coffee, Café Cola’o’ has got you covered with their creative specialty coffee flavors, without the Starbucks specialty prices.  After trying all of them we found the Nutty Desire and the White Nut Cappuccino are our favorites.

You can either enjoy your hot coffee in the cool, air conditioned inside of the Café or you can take an iced coffee with a pastry or a healthy snack to the outdoor area and enjoy the view of Cataño across the bay.

We know that once you tried this good flavor, you will want to take it home with you, which Café Cola’o made possible by selling their coffee beans such as a House Blend, Hacienda Ana, Seleccion Caracolillo among others.
See you there!

Written by:
The Sunshine Girls
Nina & Nora

Souvenir Sauces

In one afternoon I saw: a wall covered in shot glasses, a barrel full of tambourines, frogs in every article imaginable  and coffee cups shaped like butts and breasts. Going souvenir shopping in Old San Juan is the very definition of quirk.

Ranging from artful crafts like handmade cigars or wooden mask, all the way to the cliche key chains and t-shirts, no matter what your friends back home like, you will find something in OSJ for them. Hand made soap? Check. Fancy jewelery? More than you could afford to look at. Towels with scantly clad women in them? Oh yeah.  They even have Bruce Lee posters, and Chinese weapons…I don’t know why, but they have ‘em. Check La Tanca street.

Wooden and ceramic signs declaring “Captains booty” with skull and bones sailors grinning their dead smiles liven up the otherwise standard coqui and El Morro pieces. Not that there is anything wrong with our iconic vistas, but speaking as a citizen of this great island, sometimes its good to see the goofy stuff right up there with the classics. Classics that are everywhere from shot glasses to ashtrays!

The stores are scattered throughout the city and almost none are alike. Like the restaurants, you will keep running into them, so stopping by for a quick look is really part of the tour experience. And also like restaurants, in some of them you will be able to find traditional foods, candies, sauces, and rums, with the exception that you take these home with you with out the doggy bags.

Souvenir Vejigante Masks

Remember the main things when getting a souvenir for someone, is asking yourself: “what do I want to tell them with this gift.” If you want to enlighten them, you might get them a “Vejigante mask” (above pictured) and instruct them about a fun, time honored tradition in Puerto Rico. But if you want to make them laugh… then maybe your best bet is the pair of breasts coffee mug.

So in the spirit of helping out , here are some recommendations on where to begin scavenging for souvenirs:

1- Eccua Imports- Located on La Tanca street: This is the best place to start the search for souvenirs, their variety is what makes the store a must visit. In here you will be able to find: towels, Puerto Rican flags, clothes with the PR flags on em, bathing suits, coffee cups (yes, even the big breasted cups), thimbles, cold drinks, and much much more.  But what about the most important part: the price? Eccua Imports has some of the lowest prices of all the souvenir shops. Check em out.

2- Any of the fine smoking stores – Don Collins, the independent craftsmen in Plaza de Colon, etc: Not just for cigar lovers, these stores are great one stop places to stock up on some great Caribbean rum and leather articles. For those who love cigars though, you will find everything from your Double Coronas to your Robustos and Churchills. And more lighters than you can probably see in one visit.

3- The independent sellers all over the city – From homemade treats to indulge your sweet tooth, intricate wood sculptures you wont find anywhere else, hand made clothes, and gallerias stocked with art raging from antique to “made last night”. What can you not love about being able to meet the people behind the work? You will not only get something for a loved one, you will learn about the reasons, symbols and details that have culminated in the artist’s work in front of you. These will often include details of our history, local and national, that have been forgotten by the mainstream. This is the true and most important souvenir you could ever take from us, and give to your friends and family.

So now in honor of Reba Stewart’s life and mythos, I present you with some of her art work.

Mobile / made from driftwood she collected from behind the cemetery/ 1961-1962

Mobile/ made from driftwood/ 1961-1962

“Tree Forms in Black” / Japanese woodblock print

Booklet/ Japanese woodblock print

Tanguo Bay #1/ Felt pen/ May 28 1969/ drawn in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico Sea and Sky/ pen and ink with wash

These haunting works serve as proof of the amazing talent that was Stewart. They leave a trace of the passion and vision for Old San Juan and Puerto Rico that kept her here until her death from malaria in 1971.

]]> http://www.livesanjuan.com/history/the-art-of-reba-stewart/feed/ 0 http://www.livesanjuan.com/uncategorized/gallery-nights-old-san-juan/ http://www.livesanjuan.com/uncategorized/gallery-nights-old-san-juan/#comments Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:15:02 +0000 aponton http://www.livesanjuan.com/?p=174 Tuesdays: an ordinary day of the week with a blocked schedule. Fortunately, Old San Juan feels different. Every first Tuesday of each month, Gallery Night happens. Most art galleries stay open late to show new and permanent collections, while bars and pubs open late to serve the wild crowd.

During the summer, the Company for the Bussiness and Cultural Development for the Isle of San Juan, known as CODEVISA, does not sponsor this event since it works partnered with the Art School of Old San Juan. Still, some art galleries do open late on summers and keep the tradition alive.

Those of you who are not art fans or connoisseurs can still enjoy one of the favorite party nights in Old San Juan. Similar to the San Sebastián Street Festival, celebrated on January, Gallery Nights is characterized by the special appearance of many local musical guests, big party drinks, and gigantic crowds. It is mostly located in the San Sebastián Street, but other bars around the city offer a festive crowd. For instance, bars and restaurants in Cristo Street such as Don Pablo and Bodega Chic keep their music up and their drinks on with a different type of crowd (a little bit more chic). My favorite bars on this night, “El Batey” and “Karamelos” also put on a fiesta with more of a artistic and indie motif for those of you who want to enjoy the party, but not be part of the large multitude in San Sebastián Street.

As your day to day blogger, I’ll be sure to go tonight to my favorite bars mentioned above in order to do some “research” (by that I mean, drinking and partying) in order to comment on it tomorrow. Be sure to make a trip today to Old San Juan and have a few drinks. And if you spot a short guy drinking heavily, be sure to buy me, I mean him, a drink!

Sources: CODEVISA <http://www.codevisa.org/nochesgaleria.html>

*Picture(s) taken from Google Image.