Boricua with a K?

** At the bottom of this entry you will find some definitions to help some of you understand what I am talking about

Yes, Boricua with a K in honor of Borikén! Because I'm not just a boricua with a C, properly spelled. I'm an easily misunderstood, uncommon Puerto Rican with a love for travel. Most Puerto Ricans don't notice my "mancha de plátano" and whenever I go to Puerto Rico I am asked "¿y de dónde tú eres (where are you from)?"

After leaving Puerto Rico in 2001, I have lived in the freezing Midwest in Iowa and Minnesota, near the majestic Alps in Switzerland, and in sunny SoCal loving Los Angeles. I am excitedly preparing for my next adventure, researching contries and work options as well as saying goodbye to a city I love, Los Angeles.

Mark Twain said "Travel is fatal to bigotry, prejudice, and narrow-mindedness." I have traveled as a "tourist" to other countries but I prefer to be a traveler, one who is immersed for at least 6 months in a new way of life learning how to see the world differently. My way of seeing the world has changed since I left the island changing the island mentality to a more global one. But call the island Borikén, Borinquen, or Puerto Rico, it is where I come from! Because like the poem by Juan Antonio Corretjer says "Yo sería borincano aunque naciera en la Luna (I would be Puerto Rican even if I were born on the moon)."

*

Mancha de plátano: literally a plantain stain. Puerto Ricans use it to refer to the obvious appearance of being Puerto Rican, whether physically or the way you act.

About Boricua and Borikén:

Borikén is the name given to the island by the Taíno, the native peoples of the Island of Puerto Rico, who are descendants of the Arawakan speech communities from Amazonia. So Borikén is Puerto Rico, and according to the most trusted source out on the internet, Wikipedia, it means "Land of the Valiant Lord."

So Borikén is Puerto Rico and according to the most trusted source out there, Wikipedia, it means, "Land of the Valiant Lord." When the Spanish settlers arrived on the island, they renamed the island Isla de San Juan Bautista and at some point Borikén became Borinquen. My assumption is that Borinquen sounded prettier to the Castelian Spanish ears – maybe some day I’ll research that, not today. Puerto Ricans embrace the name Borinquen, to the point that the national anthem is called La Borinqueña, but instead of calling ourselves Borinqueños, we like to call ourselves Boricuas and at times Borincanos – something else I must research some day. Regardless, Borikua comes from Borikén!

#boricuaenlaluna #travel #traveler #borikua #borikén