Lisa announced her intention of going to a club in San Juan on this Friday night, and invited all who wanted to go. There were 10 of us in all, so we took two cars. Lisa, Paulo, Paulo's girlfriend Linette, Julia, and I departed in Lisa's car at about 7:30. The remaining people (Andrew, Martin, Dan, and whomever else decided to go) had to wait until later because Andrew had to observe (with the telescope). There was some sort of festival going on in Old San Juan, so we parked in a big parking lot directed by twelve-year-old boys in army uniforms waving light sticks.
We walked a ways to the lively part of Old San Juan, past the festival, which consisted of music and a mob of people. Lisa, who wore a stunning short black dress, was glad that she had opted for comfortable sandals instead of the high heels she initially wore. She had taken me shopping a few days earlier, since I hadn't brought any nice clothes with me. I found a cute denim skirt and a white peasant blouse, an outfit which had the advantage of matching my Birkenstocks, so my feet were happy.
We went to a cafe with a pool at the back, complete with some gauzy purple curtains and a plastic duck. I ordered a mudslide after the example of Paulo and Julia, and was charged $6, so I vowed not to buy any more mixed drinks that evening. There we were met by Lisa's office-mate Miguel and his wife. We couldn't get through to Andrew's cell phone, so we waited for the rest of our party in the appointed place by the tourist center for half an hour, but they didn't show. Giving up, we went to another cafe and sat at a table outside on the patio.
While there we got a call from the other party, who reported that Dan and Martin had decided to get fabulously drunk before leaving the observatory (3/4 bottle of rum each), and Martin had spent the 2nd half of the car ride throwing up out the window, and he had passed out upon reaching San Juan. So Andrew watched over Martin in the car while Samantha, Laura, and a very inebriated Dan met us at the cafe. After sitting for a bit and watching Dan make a fool of himself, we (with the exception of Miguel and spouse) walked to Andrew's car, which was parked in a little lot staffed by a friendly family.
There ensued a long debate about who would stay and who would go home with the incapacitated Martin. This process took at least an hour and involved seven people walking to Lisa's car, realizing that we wouldn't all fit, and then some of us walking back to where Martin was sleeping while Lisa drove the rest back, both preceded and followed by long periods of discussion in the parking lot. In the end, it was decided that Lisa, Paulo, Linette, and Laura would go home (along with Martin of course, who actually managed to stand up long enough to switch cars).
The rest of us (Andrew, Dan, Samantha, Julia, and myself) walked to the club (called Laser) that we had originally thought of going to, but there was a big line outside and only Dan wanted to stand in line and pay the $10 to get in. So we left him there and went to a little cafe with a band playing funky mellow music from a loft. We had a drink and played a game of pool, and then returned to the club to fetch Dan. He wasn't outside, so I asked multiple people on the bouncer hierarchy and was eventually allowed in without paying to retrieve him.
We walked back to the car, which was sitting alone in the parking lot. It was 4 am, so the family had long since gone home. Upon reaching the car, we found that one wheel had been stolen. This was somehow appropriate to the evening. So the boys put on the spare tire, taking one lug nut from each of the three remaining wheels (the lug nuts had been stolen too). Andrew had to drive us home at 40 mph on a road with traffic lights, which took 2 hours (almost twice as long as the highway). So we got back at 6 am and went to bed.