Heaven of the Water

Location:
Ecuador, The Southern Coast, Puerto Rico

dazzling eco-tour

By Erich Hintze

HEAVEN OF THE WATER

There was no moon, no other light, but here, in this water, light came to life.

This was my gift from my wife. She surprised me with a flight from Washington DC to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Then, she surprised me again with a taxi to the ferry in Fajardo, the ferry to Vieques Island, and the two bicycles we peddled to our guestroom at Bananas. It was my birthday. We checked in, changed, and left.

We soaked in the sun with paperback books, occasionally taking a break to take a dip in the water at Sun Bay. I thought this was my gift, to lounge and enjoy like this, watching the sun set, but the oncoming night would change everything. We went back to our room, waited for the right time, changed again, and headed out for an eco-adventure. But what we would do later would be the single most beautiful scene we never wanted to leave:

When we arrived, in the blinding blackness of pure night, stumbling over reeds, trudging through muck, and making our way to the front, someone said, “The Bioluminescent Bay contains some of the highest concentrations of bioluminescent organisms on the Earth.” He reminded us this was earth, but it didn’t look like it. Fish darted in pure glow. A sting ray waved like an angel in light.

When we guided our kayaks into the bay, the hulls sent out dynamic ripples of bright blue light. I entered my kayak and started to row when the paddles became lanterns of liquid light guiding me.

We paddled in brilliance and could hear some tour guide’s explanations of why and how, this and that, but that human voice seemed so far away. We were celestial, in a more perfect place, and finding ourselves eager, we were ready.

My wife and I slid out of our kayaks and entered the Bioluminescent Bay. We lowered ourselves into the water through a halo of light. We floated in fluorescence, made our own bright angels in shine, and kicked our feet into a massive churning of light. Blue globes surrounded our swimming, and we sent greetings in wide glowing rings. I called out to my wife, to come join me, and she made her way enveloped in an aura of light. There is no other way to write this. As she swam to me, she looked like an angel, not of this earth, but one of life and light.

She wrapped her arms around me; we held our breath, went underwater, and opened our eyes and looked at each other. The small bubbles of air from our mouths created small floating points of blinking bright light. Her long blonde hair was waving in illumination. Her eyelashes flickered like tiny lightning.

Her face was traced in radiance, and I could see blue gleam between my fingers as I reached and touched her on her left shoulder that spread glitter like confetti in the flaring glimmer of the luster, so I pulled her close and kissed her in all the glowing transcendental underwater light in the heaven of the water and each other.

Further Information

Travel tips: Hotel accomodations vary widely on Vieques. We like Bananas, but there are more upscale and expensive places as well as more budget and basic ones. The beaches, Sun Bay, Media Luna, and, especially, Novio are outstanding. The food ranges from good to stellar. We found no bad food. Rent bikes for most of your stay, and if you want to tour the entire island, renting a car is easy. Make specific plans for the Bioluminescent Bay, and plan your entire vacation on the lunar cycle. Book your trip to the Bio Bay through an eco-tour that protects the bay, not a company that exploits it.

Must see/do at this place: If you visit Vieques, musts include visiting the Bio Bay at night and swimming at Novio Beach by day.

You should avoid here: Avoid visiting Vieques on the full moon or other cycle. The Bio Bay is best experienced on a new moon (no moon). Avoid leaving bicycles unattended.