We touched down after a blink of a plane ride – it’s only a 19 minute flight from St. Thomas to San Juan, Puerto Rico – and we were at our lovingly rebuilt circa 16th century apartment in the old town area a few minutes later. Old San Juan, or Viejo San Juan as the locals call it, is only seven square blocks but has great art, fantastic restaurants, fine shops, diverse museums and distinct cultural offerings to spare. I’m also a huge fan of the Spanish Colonial style architecture found in more than 400 carefully restored 16th and 17th century buildings lining the streets. And not just restored; those stunning buildings are painted up in vibrant hues from hot pink to tangerine. Puerto Ricans definitely embrace bright color and the effect is a contagious cheerfulness. You can’t help but smile when walking down a road that has a bright purple, lime green and electric blue house all in a row. Not only are the homes decked out in all shades of the rainbow, even the streets are colorful in Old San Juan. The city is paved with cobbles of adoquine, a blue stone cast from furnace slag which were brought over as ballast on Spanish ships. Four-hundred and sixty-five years of sea air and ware have lent them their charmingly blue hue. Our spacious apartment sported exposed timber beam ceilings and fabulous pieces of local art but the best part was the balcony which overlooked a small square. Just beneath said balcony was a significant statue, the old city walls and a few garitas, the curved sentry posts dotting the thick city wall synonymous with Puerto Rico and Old San Juan especially. The statue below depicted a bishop and three women carrying torches and marked a real life occasion…