As we wake up we want to check out the parador from the outside during the day. It is similar to a small hotel and excepting the noise from the highway a good place to spend the night.
We start the day by eating breakfast at the nearby cafe, El Buen Cafe, which is right across the street from the parador and seems to be very popular with the locals. After sitting down it takes a bit to get understood as the waitress is speaking only Spanish but with the help of a couple at a nearby table we make ourselves understood and the food is quite good.
After breakfast we check out and head inland towards Arecibo Observatory. As soon as we leave the main road the roads become narrower and twisty and there is more nature around us compared to the coast where it is almost town after town. The only animals that we see though are a few cows on a nearby field.
The dish at Arecibo Observatory, our first goal for the day, is well known from multiple movies like GoldenEye and Contact and Sci Fi books but we are interested in it also from a scientific viewpoint. After arriving at the parking lot there is a short but steep climb to the visitor center and the viewpoint for the dish.
The museum at the visitor center is quite interesting and after looking at the different exhibits we step outside for the view of the dish. It is huge and impressive even though it has a greyer color than we expected due to the regular rain showers. Another interesting tidbit that we learn is that special shoes are needed when entering the dish to clean and repair in order not to damage dish.
