Last September, my husband Tyler and I went with his parents to Puerto Rico. We stayed for a few days in Rincón, which is on the west coast of the island and known for its gorgeous beaches. Overall, we had an awesome time drinking from coconuts and sampling local delicacies, like stingray empanadas and mofongo. However, in a very scary moment on the trip, we also almost got mugged.
For some background, Tyler’s father is Puerto Rican. While the rest of us aren’t, we speak Spanish in various degrees of fluency – I could stumble my way through a conversation, whereas Tyler could chat with you all day. It was my first time in Puerto Rico, but everyone else had been previously.
We had grabbed breakfast that morning before heading out to the beach. We checked out Faro Punta Higüeras, an historic lighthouse, then worked our way to Playa Domes. We walked along the beach for a bit, scoping out a small shipwreck and avoiding getting swept away in the major waves (Playa Domes is known for its surfing.). We bumped into a few other people in the area, but ultimately found an emptier stretch for us to settle in and enjoy.
We didn’t stay settled for long. We had just put out chairs and hung our towels in a tree when two men started coming toward us. The beach was mostly empty, so the fact that they were coming so close to us seemed off. It was soon after that they engaged me in conversation, asking me where we were from and how much Spanish I knew. I was feeling very unsettled by the whole thing, trying to joke about how I know a little – “un poco” – while also flagging Tyler to join into the conversation.
I wasn’t the only one feeling uneasy about their approach, especially when a big wave came in while we were chatting and one of them reached for my bag – fortunately, I grabbed it first. As it turned out, we all got a bad feeling about these guys. My father-in-law had actually gone to alert the closest beachgoers about these guys, asking them to keep an eye on us while we packed up and got out of there.
In a surprisingly united effort considering we hadn’t discussed it, we all began to bring our things to the car, avoiding giving the two men a chance to get closer to our belongings and to engage us further as we were “planning to leave.” Once we’d gotten everything and everyone into the car and started to head out, we discussed the shadiness of the whole situation. We are confident that they targeted us as tourists, and we felt lucky to get away before anything bad had happened.
We had felt very comfortable being there in a group of four with a native Puerto Rican, so it was an excellent reminder that, even when you’re in a comfortable or familiar situation, remain alert and trust your gut. The fact that we all felt these guys on the beach were up to no good is a sign that they probably were, and if we hadn’t acted quickly, the situation could’ve ended up much worse. Remember: if you feel something is shady, it probably is. And it’s better to be safe than sorry.
After this harrowing experience, we drove a bit further and found a much more popular beach, Playa Crash Boat, where we could actually relax a bit and enjoy some piña coladas and pinchos.
