Something unusual is happening in La Perla, a poor barrio clinging to a steep hillside between Old San Juan and the sea where the video for the pop hit Despacito was filmed.
"The gringos are coming!"
Outsiders were afraid to venture in before, but since Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee's mega hit, tourists from all over the world are descending on the narrow streets that wind among La Perla's brightly coloured houses.
"Despacito?" they inquire.
And the barrio's residents obligingly point out the locations where the video was filmed: the rocks facing the sea where Fonsi sings the refrain, the sea wall where ex-Miss Universe Zuleyka Rivera strolls, the little plaza where men play dominoes — the tables and chairs just as they were in the video.
With the video on the verge of becoming the most watched on YouTube (2.9 billion visits since January, fast approaching the 2.98 billion record held by Wiz Khalifa's (See You Again), a barrio once burdened with a bad reputation is now a tourist hot spot.
"I totally came for the tourist video," said Jennifer Adams, a 28-year-old middle schoolteacher from North Carolina. "I've seen the music video many times and I knew where I needed to go, I got pictures, I tried to dance."
As for Rivera's sexy walk by the sea, she laughed and said, "I tried."
Her goal now is to learn the song's lyrics so she can sing it in karaoke.
Meanwhile, a Swedish woman took pictures of herself in front of Luis's rocks and a Moroccan tourist ambled along "Despacito coast" — as the area around the sea wall has come to be known in tourist brochures.
In a recent interview, Fonsi marvelled at the song's impact on the non-Spanish speaking public.
"The language doesn't matter," he said. "What's important is the flavour, the rhythm, the music."
'No monster here'
The video's director, Carlos Perez, said Fonsi and Daddy Yankee "had a very clear vision of what they wanted."
"The key words were culture, sensuality, colour and dance. What we did in essence was to go film in a barrio that had the qualities that supported what we wanted to do," Perez said.
"But the evolution of La Perla begins and ends in La Perla."
In fact, residents' efforts to improve their barrio are independent of Despacito.
The song's success is a welcome coincidence that "fell from the sky," said community board president Yashira Gomez.
Old San Juan, with its cobbled streets and colonial buildings, sits on a hill on a walled peninsula.
The little houses that make up La Perla are clustered on the other side of the wall, where the sea crashes against the rocks.
Its residents have fought tooth and nail to preserve it, and artists like Calle 13, Ismael Rivera and Ruben Blades have dedicated songs to it.
With 1,600 inhabitants, it is one of the poorest communities in San Juan. Drug trafficking largely drives its economy, with the government trying in vain to clear it.
On Yelp, reviewers comment on the dangers outsiders risk going there.
"Please don't go there! It is NOT SAFE!" wrote user Gaby G in a three-year-old posting.
But that is changing thanks to the efforts of the community, which set up a communal baker, cultivated two vegetable gardens and raised $80,000 from private donors to paint 402 houses in vivid colours this year.
"They always said it was a dangerous barrio because we've been saddled with a history that wasn't the best," said Gomez.
"But now you can go in and see that nothing will happen. There is no monster here, no bogeyman, nobody is going to kill you, nobody is going to mug you."
As she spoke, the community board's vice president, Lourdes Lopez, showed a group of tourists around. Later, she explained that the community's next project is to set up a small business offering guided tours.
"We take them through the whole community, showing them the most historic things, because we have more history to offer," Lopez said.
Brand recognition
Hotel occupancy in May rose nine per cent compared to the same month last year, but there are still no overall figures to confirm the impression that tourist visits are up, said Jose Izquierdo, executive director of the government's Puerto Rico Tourism Company.
Puerto Rico hosted 1.7 million tourists in 2015, six per cent of its total GDP, according to the US Senate Finance Committee.
But even when official figures are available, statistics won't say how many specifically came for the Despacito experience. A bump could also be attributable to the end of last year's Zika crisis.
____________________
READ MORE:
Omani cover of Despacito tackles burden of dowries
From South America to a dance floor near you: looking at the rise of reggaeton
Despacito singers slam Venezuela's president for 'illegal' use of song
____________________
But Izquierdo is sure that Despacito enhanced the island's brand recognition.
"All the elements are in place for Puerto Rico to top the list for travellers seeking a Caribbean destination," he told AFP.
And that is good news for the US territory, which has been hard hit by a financial crisis that resulted in bankruptcy in May.
Marwan Badran, Hotels.com's manager for Latin America, said online searches for hotel rooms in Puerto Rico shot up 45 per cent this year.
"We often see spikes upward for locations of hit movies or TV series and celebrity weddings," he said.
"Puerto Rico is no different now that Despacito has become the world's most streamed song in history."
* AFP
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Read more about the coronavirus
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Results:
Women:
1. Rhiannan Iffland (AUS) 322.95 points
2. Lysanne Richard (CAN) 285.75
3. Ellie Smart (USA) 277.70
Men:
1. Gary Hunt (GBR) 431.55
2. Constantin Popovici (ROU) 424.65
3. Oleksiy Prygorov (UKR) 392.30
Anti-semitic attacks
The annual report by the Community Security Trust, which advises the Jewish community on security , warned on Thursday that anti-Semitic incidents in Britain had reached a record high.
It found there had been 2,255 anti-Semitic incidents reported in 2021, a rise of 34 per cent from the previous year.
The report detailed the convictions of a number of people for anti-Semitic crimes, including one man who was jailed for setting up a neo-Nazi group which had encouraged “the eradication of Jewish people” and another who had posted anti-Semitic homemade videos on social media.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
MATCH INFO
Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium, Malayisa
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia on October 10
Going grey? A stylist's advice
If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”
Listen to Extra Time
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
- Argyll and Bute, Scotland
- Fife, Scotland
- Tower Hamlets, London
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group H
Juventus v Valencia, Tuesday, midnight (UAE)
Results
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Dirt) 1,600m, Winner: Panadol, Mickael Barzalona (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
6.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m, Winner: Mayehaab, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh85,000 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Monoski, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh102,500 (T) 1,800m, Winner: Eastern World, Royston Ffrench, Charlie Appleby
7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Madkal, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
8.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 1,200m, Winner: Taneen, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi
Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut
Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”
One in nine do not have enough to eat
Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.
One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.
The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.
Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.
It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.
On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.
Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The figures behind the event
1) More than 300 in-house cleaning crew
2) 165 staff assigned to sanitise public areas throughout the show
3) 1,000 social distancing stickers
4) 809 hand sanitiser dispensers placed throughout the venue
Fund-raising tips for start-ups
Develop an innovative business concept
Have the ability to differentiate yourself from competitors
Put in place a business continuity plan after Covid-19
Prepare for the worst-case scenario (further lockdowns, long wait for a vaccine, etc.)
Have enough cash to stay afloat for the next 12 to 18 months
Be creative and innovative to reduce expenses
Be prepared to use Covid-19 as an opportunity for your business
* Tips from Jassim Al Marzooqi and Walid Hanna
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sav%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Purvi%20Munot%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24750%2C000%20as%20of%20March%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
