I used to live (and work there). Speak Spanish. Puerto Rican wife. General love of PR history, linguistics, culture, etc. But couldn't put up with the crime, dishonesty and evasion of responsibility so prevalent in PR society. Not as a professional with kids. When my wife's aunt and cousin were murdered, that was it. We had to go.
When I was single and stationed in Panama, I liked how anything was possible on any given day. It was exciting. But in PR, my wife and I just couldn't put up with the corruption any longer. The utter lack of consideration that people in the island often show each other is extraordinary. The backwards economy was intolerable.
Now we live in Zurich and although the Swiss are the opposite of Latins in their social graces, the place is very safe, clean, honest, has very low taxes, and is one of the world's top financial centers, which is the industry in which I practice and let's me work on the most interesting international tax matters that just don't exist in PR (I don't do individual tax so this is not a passive advertisement). It's also right in the center of Europe and great for visiting Italy, Austria, Czech Republic, France, Spain, etc. The Alps and alpine lakes are truly majestic too and I'm always glad to see them again after being away. But I grew up on the coast in the US and I miss the ocean more than I'll miss the Alps when/if we ever move.
Swiss culture is the opposite of Puerto Rican culture, which is good when it comes to governance, crime, work and contracts but bad when it comes to socialization, hospitality and culinary options. I have to go to Italy, Spain and Ireland every couple of months for those things and for my wife and I to recharge our batteries.
One thing you may want to keep in mind about this forum is that many (most?) of the contributors are retirees or plan on moving to PR after they've retired in the States. Of course, there's nothing wrong with that and it's good to learn from their experiences. But their points of view are very retiree-specific and thus, their observations and expectations may not line up well with people who need to rely on active income to survive or have underage kids to raise.
But, it sounds like you know PR well, having already lived years there, and it sounds like a prime place to work in the shipping industry. There probably won't be many surprises for you.
Curious: What would be different about you working as a civilian in the maritime industry versus your work in the CG?
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