Myths and Legends of Old San Juan
Old San Juan is a magical place, and as such, legends have always formed an integral part of the old city folklore. For example, it is claimed that in the time of Spain, scores of solitary guards disappeared without a trace from a particular sentry box--or "garita"--allegedly snatched away by the devil himself, never to be found again. "La Garita del Diablo" or "the Devil's Sentry Box" it is called, and as a young boy I would wander over the city's walls, trying to determine
An Impregnable, Walled City
No story about Old San Juan can be made without taking into account the massive walls that surround it. "Founded by Juan Ponce De Leon, the eternal optimist who for a substantial portion of his life had unsuccessfully searched for the Fountain of Youth, San Juan had quickly become a key strategic outpost in the incredibly lucrative trade route that existed between the New World and Spain. Puerto Rico was the first of the large islands--the Antilles--to greet the battered shi
Remembering my Dad on Father's Day
Since today is Father's Day, I would like to take a week's hiatus from the Justifiable Evil postings to remember my father. My dad was one of the first television stars in Puerto Rico. The type that got followed by hundreds of screaming females. (Once he had to climb a lamp post, and wait for the police to rescue him.) He never planned it that way. Because of his good looks, he was drafted into the soap operas ("telenovelas") and mini dramas early on in his career. However
LA FORTALEZA
Photo of La Fortaleza's main gate. La Fortaleza, or the Governor's Mansion, plays as prominent a role in Justifiable Evil as any of its main characters. In fact, a book could be written about La Fortaleza itself. It sits atop a forty-foot bluf, facing San Juan Bay, resting over the massive walls that still surround a large part of Old San Juan. Aerial photo of La Fortaleza, resting above the walls of San Juan. "La Fortaleza sat atop a forty foot bluff facing the bay, about m
