When I say that I am from Puerto Rico, some people ask me these questions:

Do you mean Costa Rica?
Puerto Rico is an island in the Caribbean southeast of Florida. It belonged to Spain for over 400 years, but after the Spanish American War in 1898, Spain gave Puerto Rico (without asking its residents) to the United States. The island has been a Commonwealth of the United States since 1952:
Costa Rica, on the other hand, is an independent nation in Central America.
I am from Puerto Rico, not Costa Rica. But I have lived in Oregon for 27 years, the same amount of years I lived in Puerto Rico. I am an Orego-Rican.

Do you speak English or Spanish in Puerto Rico?
Spanish is the prominent language, but most schools teach English. Many private schools teach all their classes – except for Spanish – in English. Most public schools teach all their classes – except for English – in Spanish.

Do you have tigers in Puerto Rico?
Probably in the zoo. But we do have many other animals – coquies, for example. The coqui is a tree frog that sings all night and when it rains. When it’s happy it says, “Kokee! Kokee!” But when it’s unhappy it says, “Kokee-kee!”

Some tourists think it’s a bird, but it’s a tiny frog with big eyes! It’s born with its four legs and little sticky cushions on its toes so it can climb and hold onto trees from where it can eat delicious mosquitoes.
The first night you’re in the island, it’s hard to sleep with the sound of the coqui. But when you come back to the U.S. it gets to be hard to sleep without the sound of the coqui.

Do you have a green card?
No. I have an American passport because I am a citizen of the United States. Puerto Ricans have had American citizenship since 1917.

What kind of currency does Puerto Rico have?
Puerto Rico uses American money. But sometimes when I go to change a check from Puerto Rico at a bank in the United States, the bank clerks tell me that they can’t cash it because it isn’t American money. I explain that Puerto Rico is part of the United States. It usually takes the bank manager to tell the clerk that I am saying the truth.

Do you miss Puerto Rico?
I sure do. My parents and my brother live there. I miss them. But I also miss the warm ocean, the food, the sun!
Puerto Rico is my paradise. Oregon is my heaven! God sends the baby angels that are not toilet trained to Portland, Oregon. That’s why it rains for nine months. I love this heaven – its snowy mountains, its green trees, and the courtesy of its residents.