A trip to Caribbean – that can only mean one thing – Captain Jack Sparrow.
With this in mind – and clutching my camera, I set out from my hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico in search of pirates.
And if you’re looking for pirate – where else but in a fortress.
It’s really not that hard to spot a fortress in san Juan..
San Juan was a Spanish possession for almost 400 years. It was the gateway to the incredible wealth of the New World – and much as I want to believe in Captain Jack Sparrow – mostly Spain was defending itself against the British and later the Americans.
Although they were a few pirates around as well.
Still – whatever the reason – they built some pretty fabulous fortifications.
San Juan has two huge forts – Castillo San Cristobel and Castillo San Filipe del Morro – designed to ‘disorient, unnerve and exhaust the enemy’. Walking around them certainly exhausted me!
The walls are hugely thick – with a network of tunnels that allowed the defenders to move around in safety.
There’s not a lot of swashbuckling going on these days – but it’s not hard to imagine it.
Inside one of the dungeons – some prisoner had drawn ships on the wall – not doubt dreaming of escape. They are remarkably well preserved.
It was really hot the day I was there – so I jumped aboard a rickety tourist tram to get from one fort to the next.
The tram travelled along the old city wall – much of which still remains.
I jumped off again near this amazing cemetery which sits atop the cliff – but outside the old walls.
It is still in use today – not a bad place to spend eternity.
And on the top the headland was El Morro…
It’s easy to see why Spain held on to Puerto Rico for so long – the two forts give total control over the safe harbor that made San Juan so important.
And behind the safety provided by the great iron cannon – they’ve been brewing fine run for centuries.
Which brings me back to pirates…
There was no sign of Johnny Depp – although I did hear a tour guide boast that he had been Johnny’s bodyguard for several months while they were filming Rum Diaries in San Juan.
Which was all the excuse I needed. To write this blog I just had to spend some time wandering around the Internet looking for great shots of Mr Depp. Captain Jack Sparrow fans – this one is for you.
