Puerto Rico on Film
The last time I visited Puerto Rico I had to be like 14-16 (I’m 29 at the time of writing this) and we stayed with my great grandma in her high rise condo with no AC and nothing but a fan to keep my sweaty body cool. I remember waking up covered in mosquito bites and she lovingly said “mira nene”(Look baby) while motioning to a balm of anti itch cream in her hands that she also had a fingertip full of to slop on my skin. She made me some of the first sweet plantains I ever liked in her kitchen from the darkest plantain I had ever seen…they were delicious.
My great grandma passed away this year at the age of 99. I got a call from my mom that everyone included in her will had to be present in Puerto Rico.
Although it was a family affair trip I intended to make the most of it since this was my first time back since I was a kid and I’d hopefully be seeing some family I haven’t seen in years. I was excited to experience the culture that is a part of my heritage as an adult and smell the salty air and see the Island the best I could over the course of two and a half days.
In that short time I saw two beaches, San Juan, Arecibo, Aguadilla, Cabo Rojo and even had Lechon (Pork) somewhere in the mountains with my Grandpa, Uncle & Mom.
I wanted to make sure I came back with something to remember the whole trip so I brought 5 rolls of 35mm film in a Darkroom film pouch that clearly said “DO NOT X-RAY”. Kodak Gold 200, Portra 400, two rolls Ultramax 400, and a roll of HP5 I never shot. TSA - Thank you for hand checking my film.
Minolta Hi-Matic AF2
Dev & Scan Boutique Film Lab
