I was pleasantly surprised to see The Tonight Show with host Jimmy Fallon come to our island of Puerto Rico. There’s only so much you can fit about Puerto Rico into an hour time slot, but Jimmy hit a couple of the touristy stops on the island and seemed to be genuinely enjoying himself.
Watching the show it just underlined how lucky we are to be living in a tropical paradise. Sure, we have our issues, as does everyone else living elsewhere around the globe. But we have a lot to be thankful for, including the natural beauty, weather, and the culture and quality of people you’ll find in this Caribbean island. Many times those of us who live amidst such wonders are the ones who take advantage of them the least. That certainly applies to me, as there are still places in Puerto Rico I’ve yet to visit.
I enjoyed the show, and felt it brought some much needed spotlight to the island. In many ways we’re still recovering from the devastation left behind by Hurricane Maria back in 2017, but as was mentioned in the program, the resiliency of Puerto Ricans is amazing. I personally lived through the horror of that hurricane with my family. I never thought we would get hit as hard by a hurricane as we got hit by Hugo back in 1989. But Maria erased all thoughts of that. You basically just had to see it to believe it. But recovered from that we have, and happily we have seen a lot of progress in many areas.
Tourism is and has always been a very important part of the Puerto Rican economy. In other articles in my blog site, I have written articles, and will continue to write them on suggestions on how to bolster and improve the tourism aspect of Puerto Rico. Again, we have a lot of natural beauty. A small island, but with hundreds of beautiful beaches, as well as lush rainforests and countless spectacular views. It is my opinion that tourism, already a key sector for us, is also an area of great opportunity.
Hopefully Jimmy will be back, whether to host another show or just on vacation. He’ll find that to truly experience the island in its entirety, you need to spend quite a bit of time here. The island may only measure 100 x 35 miles, but it seems much bigger, and exploring all of it is a time-consuming venture.
I Agree completely! I recently visited for the first time in my life combate beach in Cabo Rojo and it was AMAZING!!! Seeing the Beautiful sunset from the cliffs at el faro felt like our much more expensive trip to California big sur but for FREE!
Jimmy Fallon did an amazing job and we are all very grateful for that!
Thank you for your comment, Lissie. The variety in natural beauty that can be found in such a small island is indeed astounding. I’m glad Fallon actually ventured out to the countryside, because many visitors make the mistake of staying in San Juan and thinking they’ve already seen Puerto Rico. Again, there is so much to see and experience that many of us who live here haven’t even seen everything there is to see yet. Future articles on tourism will be aimed at how we can promote this natural beauty successfully, drawing more visitors to our island.
Watching the JF show from the perspective of someone who no longer lives on the island I too was captivated by the beautiful colorful umbrellas and houses, the music, the “joie de vivre” of the people…. As a Puerto Rican, though, it did bring to mind that as important as it is to continue to revitalize the tourism industry of the island there’s even a more pressing need for better quality cultural, educational, and ecological experiences for the people that actually live there. I may be wrong, but I don’t recall there being a natural history and/or science museum. A museum dedicated to illustrating the history of Puerto Rico from the time of the Tainos and the Spanish colonization to now. A museum that highlights influential Puerto Ricans in sports, arts, and science. A museum that teaches about local flora and fauna. We need our children to grow up knowing their heritage and feeling proud of it. There are so many wonderful things that can be done with the natural resources that Puerto Rico has to offer. In the states we have apple picking, strawberry picking, pumpkin patches, etc… It would be lovely if there was a guayaba, mango, acerola farm where families can go and pick their own fruit. Similarly, botanical gardens, aviaries, aquariums, zoos that focus on species that thrive in tropical climates. It is my hope that this spotlight that now shines on Puerto Rico will bring forth new ideas about rebuilding and restructuring our society in a way that benefits future generations to come.
Excellent comments, Angela! You make some very good points regarding the need for better quality museums on the island. I know many locals have the mindset of “why do we need museums when we have beaches, mountains, and rainforests.” But you’re absolutely correct, and I believe that mindset is slightly shortsighted. Regardless of our living on a beautiful tropical island, the need for good quality, educational museums cannot be overstated. In fact, I believe one reinforces and complements the other (quality museums and our natural resources). You look through the list of existing museums in Puerto Rico, and you’ll see mostly art museums, a dozen or so historical houses, and other assorted museums. For science museums, the list includes the “Parque de las Ciencias” in Bayamon and the Arecibo Observatory. Still, the need for more and better quality museums is real. I too have lived in the U.S. and can attest to the fact that most big cities you can visit have a fairly good variety of quality museums. Their importance, as you well put it, is not limited to their tourism value, but to our children as well. More and better museums provide more opportunities for field trips so that future generations can learn and take pride in our history and culture.
I loved watching the JF show from Puerto Rico! Such a proud moment for all of us. My favorite part of the show was watching Jose Feliciano perform. Made me miss home, as I have been away for almost three years now. I love our beautiful island and everything it has to offer.
Thank you for your comments, Amanda. José Feliciano has been a Puerto Rican icon for many years and will be sorely missed when he’s gone. Got the chance to see him perform in person years ago, and it was fascinating.