I Didn't Expect to Find an "Isle of Enchantment"

by Wesley Pearce (United States of America)

I didn't expect to find USA

I suppose I should have been warned with a nickname like “Isle of Enchantment.” Three weeks in Puerto Rico was exactly what I needed to wake me up from what felt like years of being asleep. After a much-needed break-up with a significant other, I found a website that provides co-living houses with other like-minded digital nomads. “I have to do this” I said to myself. A few weeks of getting outside my routine. Shortly after the discovery, I booked a ticket to San Juan. I had no idea what to expect, and that was the appeal and excitement of the whole thing. Three weeks to nudge me out of my comfort zone and experience something fresh. I landed in San Juan and headed straight from the airport to San Sebastian Street in Old San Juan. I was feeling the energy of being in a new place and eager to meet some new people. I hopped out of my taxi and stood squarely in front of a tall, brightly colored building with an ornate wooden door. I punched in the code for the keypad and was greeted with a thirteen-bedroom, mansion-like house. I’ll admit I was surprised by just how big this place was. I walked through the foyer and a courtyard that contained an outdoor open-air kitchen, lounge chairs, and a fire pit. It was obvious the entire place had been recently renovated but still contained the type of charm you’d expect from a place like Old San Juan. I wondered who lived here before and what this mansion looked like just ten or twenty years ago. Oh, did I forgot to mention it was an empty three-bedroom, mansion-like house? While I expected a lively co-living space bustling with freelancers on their laptops and entrepreneurial chats around a pot of coffee, what I experienced was a night wondering what the hell I was doing and if I had made a big mistake. The energy I initially felt quickly turned into anxiety as I begin thinking I was about to spend twenty-one days alone in this giant house. Should I just pack up tomorrow and head back home to what’s comfortable and familiar? I grabbed some dinner from a taco place on the corner and went to bed. When you spent a night alone in a thirteen-bedroom, mansion-like house in Old San Juan, you notice every single noise around you. I heard every conversation from drunken tourists stumbling down the street outside my window. I woke up no less than five times thinking I heard someone walk through the front door and would be able to make human contact with another houseguest tomorrow morning. I didn’t. I woke up on day number two still alone, but I figured it was time to get out and explore the city. After a call home and pep talk from my mom, I decided I would stay in Puerto Rico and power through the negative thoughts that filled my head all night. I convinced myself that I wasn’t actually a failure and making a silly mistake of thinking Puerto Rico would be a catalyst for change. Man am I glad I did. On day two things changed for me. I discovered that Old San Juan is a captivating place that blends a mixture of Boricua culture with Caribbean Sea air. It was the perfect space for me to get lost for a bit along the cobble stone streets and think about what I wanted to do next in my life. It was also the perfect setting for me to meet Tracy, Jenna, and Gui. Over the next week, people did show up to the house. I banded together with my own pack of digital nomads which ended up changing my life for the better. I engaged with new friends who shared my unconventional “grab a laptop and explore the world” mentality. We spent late nights over a Medalla chatting about our biggest travel adventures and where we planned on exploring next. I came to Puerto Rico looking for an adventure, but I didn’t expect to find validation of my career, affirmation of my travel dreams, and an island I now call my “second home.”