On Things Missed

Our time in Costa Rica is drawing to a close, and I’m starting to look forward to returning to the U.S.

Here are a few thoughts on what I have and haven’t missed about the U.S., and what I will and won’t miss about Costa Rica.

What I’ve missed about the U.S.:

All things food: I miss having a grill and fully functional kitchen, including a toaster.  Everyone here has toaster ovens that only sort of work (which is true about all appliances here).  I’m ready to be done with them.  I miss American grocery stores with their higher standards for what constitutes “fresh” produce, and while I’ve come to appreciate the value of eating seasonally/locally, sometimes I just really want asparagus or avocado, and am willing to live with the fact that it traveled a long way before winding up on my plate.

Functional technology:  2 weeks into our trip the keyboard on my laptop finally broke.  It took another 2 weeks before I was able to get any type of temporary replacement (thanks,Mom!).  I’ve missed the ease of communication in the U.S. that comes from having a cell phone (mostly for sending text messages) and a reliable internet connection.  Oh, and it’s been 2 months since I watched even an inning of a Tigers game.

Friends and Family:  I love Kate.  I love her more today than I did when we got here, and cannot say enough about how much better this experience has been as a result of her being here with me.  With that said, I miss my friends and family.  I don’t like that I have to schedule phone calls with my parents.  I don’t like that I’ve missed a number of weddings, parties, events, get togethers, and celebrations (both big and small).  I’ll be happy to feel connected to more than one person when we get home.

What I have not missed about the U.S.:

Americans:  Frankly, we are a really annoying people when you take a step back.  In large part we are greedy, demanding, needy, and oblivious.  Down here, most of the Americans are people who couldn’t cut it in the U.S., so they came down here to be a gringo.  For a prime example, please see the following Craigslist ad:

El Cap

What I will miss about Costa Rica:

Guanacaste: We’ve spent the majority of our time in the western portion of Costa Rica known as Guanacaste.  It is full of incredibly friendly people, has wonderful beaches, and is sunny 80% of the time.  This is a great part of the world, and I’m already looking forward to coming back some day.

The Kids at Abriendo Mentes:  After 5+ weeks of working with the same group of ~20 kids, I feel a strong connection to both the program and the kids.  I really want to know what happens to these kids in 5 years, 10 years, etc.  I’m excited to hear about how this program changed their lives.  Also, I’m really going to miss the consistency these kids bring to class every day, and the ability to joke (in English) about the kids with Kate, Drew, and Meradith.  I love that every day 2 of the little boys respond to the question “How do you feel today?” by saying “I feel estrong” while flexing their biceps.  It is hard to leave knowing that we’ll likely never hear that response from those kids again.

What I will not miss about Costa Rica:

The fact that nothing works here:  Meradith and Drew have a bumper sticker that says “Costa Rica – We make easy hard.”  Truer words have never been spoken.  The power goes out a lot.  The showers are mostly cold.  No one has a dryer, and the washing machines are sketchy at best.  You have to get by with what you have because no one ever has the tool you really need to do something properly (like make toast).  There are no street signs.  You’re as likely to see a “Burger King – 8 km ahead” sign as you are to see a “Liberia – 8 km ahead” sign.  Nothing happens on time.  Things are often closed for no apparent reason.  If you’re not operating on a very calm and relaxed level, this country can be maddening.

Sweating;  It is ALWAYS hot, and we have lived in a state of perpetual state of perspiration for long enough.

Travelling:  I will not miss living out of a suitcase, constantly being only semi-sure of where we are going, or Costa Rica’s awful, awful roads.

We are 10 days away from coming home, and I can’t really believe it — but thankfully, I feel ready.

A Facelift for the Salón

One of the biggest and most fun projects that we worked on at Abriendo Mentes was painting the Salón Comunal.  So many people came together to get the job done in just one day.  Drew had the great idea of taping the process and putting together a time lapse video.  So, Todd and I edited down the 2+ hours of footage and came up with this video that we’re pretty proud of.

Also, check out more about our painting day at Abriendo Mentes’ blog, here.

Adventure Weekend in Rincón de la Vieja

After a pretty laidback week in and around Potrero, Todd, Kevin, Pam and I left for Rincón de la Vieja National Park on Saturday morning.  After lunch in Liberia we followed our directions to the hotel, which seemed extremely simple.  From Liberia, go to San Jorge.  We quickly located the sign that pointed the way to San Jorge and off we went…until we decided that the road we were on simply could not be the road to San Jorge because it was unbearably bumpy.  We went for the alternate route through Bagaces instead.  In Bagaces we asked a few men on the street for directions and followed the road, “derecho, no desvien de esta calle”, “straight, don’t leave this road” then cross the bridge that is 100 meters after Guayabo and turn left, you’ll be to San Jorge in no time.  An hour and a half, another pair of helpful townspeople and one even bumpier road later, we made it to the Rinconito Lodge.

Kevin and Pam Relaxing at Rinconcito Lodge

By the time we arrived the only thing we had time to do was a hike on the property, which was quite lovely.  We headed back to the lodge when it started to rain and spent the rest of the afternoon reading, napping and relaxing.  They provided us with a lovely dinner of fresh vegetables, steak, mashed potatoes and flan which really hit the spot after a long day in the car.  After a few rounds of cards and Guesstures (Kevin and Pam are the undeniable champs) we turned in early to get ready for our day of adventure on Sunday.

Todd Hiking Around Rinconcito

Hacienda Guachipelin was the starting point for our jam-packed day of adventure.  At 8:00 we got fitted for harnesses to go on their canopy tour.  By 8:30 or so we were hooking in to zip lines, Tarzan swings and climbing walls.  Their course was in such a beautiful setting and we were able to see so much rain forest including waterfalls and natural rock canyons.  It was so exhilarating and after a few zip lines the nerves started to fade and the adrenaline started to flow.  We even took some of the zip lines upside down.  It was such a fun way to start the day!

Reading to Zipline!

Next up was the river tubing.  Calling what we did “tubing” does not do what we did justice.  I’d call it “whitewater tubing” or maybe an “extreme tubing adventure” or even, “daredevil rapids on a tube”, something a bit more intense that merely “tubing”.  Our river adventure included quite powerful rapids.  They were so powerful in places that, at various points on the river, I was caught under a waterfall and also launched from my tube three times.

Todd and Kevin Scaling the Canyon

One time, I had been waiting at one of the barriers that the guides had put up as waiting points before intense portions of the river.  Putting up these yellow ropes was supposed to ensure that the guides who had been helping on the previous section of river had enough time to get to the next section to help us through it.  As I was waiting, the tree holding the yellow rope started to slip and the guide told us to just let go.  When I did, my lifejacket got caught on the rope and my only choice to free myself was to reach back and loosen myself.  As I did that my tube slipped form under me and I was floating free down the river.  Not too far down the river, a kind river mate got hold of my tube and I was soon back up on the tube, ready for the next set of rapids.

At the beginning of the "tubing" adventure...

Todd Hearts Tubing

At some point I fell off again, not a big deal.  The third time I fell off though, I got kind of rocked.  I was flipped out and managed to grab the strap of my tube, which I was holding onto for dear life.  A woman who had just gone through was kind enough to let me grab onto her tube and make my way through the rest of that (quite long) stretch of rapids as a stowaway.  As I was gripping my tube and her tube going through the rapids, I realized that my legs were being scraped against the bottom of the river.  Ouch.  Fortunately, I came out with nothing more than a few scrapes on my legs and hands and one under my chin.  Despite being a bit banged up at the end, it was really quite enjoyable.

Kevin Lost Pam!

After a wonderful buffet lunch we headed out on a horseback ride to a waterfall.  In all the excitement of our engagement last weekend, both Todd and I forgot to mention that we went on a horseback ride at La Carolina Lodge.  About three minutes into it I declared that I hate horseback riding and would never attempt it again.  Fast-forward eight days… What can I say?  I got back on the horse.

While I can’t say that I love horseback riding, it was better and I found it easier to control the horse.  Swimming at the waterfall at the end of the trail was definitely worth the twenty-minute ride.

It was a really fun, packed day and I’m so glad we decided to do the one-day pass.  What I still can’t believe is that it was only $80.00 per person, lunch included!  We figure that we basically got one of our activities and lunch for free, such a great deal!  It was a wonderful weekend and I’m so glad that Kevin and Pam were here to go with us.  It’s been so great to have friends here to share our little corner of Costa Rica with.

Enjoying Dinner and Good Company at Rinconcito

Gettin’ Jiggy Wit’ It

“Na na na na na na na. Na na na na na na getting jiggy wit’ it.” – Will Smith

Kate and I be-bopped around southern Guanacaste this weekend to the sweet sounds of Costa Rican radio (there are only 2 English-language stations), listening to 1990s favorites Will Smith, The Cranberries, and that odd spoken-word song about the long-term benefits of sunscreen (which, strangely, we heard twice in 2 days.  Apparently they are serious about getting Americans to wear sunscreen down here).

Our trip began with a “30 minute” walk to Playa Flamingo.  After 40 minutes, we mercifully ran into Meradith and Drew, who drove us the last 2+ miles.  Playa Flamingo is a bustling metropolis compared to Potrero, with dozens of shops, hotels, and bars.  In an amazing example of modernity, we rented an automatic transition Hyundai Tucson SUV with cruise control, air conditioning, and power everything.  Kate liked the car so much that she’s considering changing her dream car from a Ford Escape Hybrid, to the Tucson, as she is already a Hyundai owner.

Fresh Coconut Milk in Tamarindo

Our first stop was in Tamarindo, a typical beach town, where we found a Subway and TCBY.  From there we headed to Santa Cruz, where we ate a traditional Costa Rican Casado (rice, black beans, meat, lettuce salad, noodles, fried plantain), minus the plantain, at Coope Tortilla.  Coope essentially means “Co-op” and at Coope Tortilla, a group of 7 women cook all day while the one male employee cooks the tortillas in a large stone oven.  There are no menus at Coope Tortilla, you just show up and 5 minutes later are served a hot plate of whatever delicious food the ladies have cooked up.

Todd's First Casado

From there we headed to Nicoya, a town known for its fresh fruit and vegetables.  We stopped at a roadside fruit stand and picked up a variety of fruits and vegetables (yucca, plantain, a whole pineapple, carrot, corn, potatoes, chayote), which we’re planning to turn into a traditional Costa Rican stew later this week (results of which, obviously, can be found at www.toddandkate.wordpress.com, later this week).

La Vista Especial

From Nicoya we headed towards Samara.  The view from the road was stunning.  Rolling greens meadows spotted with cows and horses, mountains topped with rows of what look like Joshua Trees, and low-hanging clouds covering the tops of thick, green, rainforest-esque landscapes.  We stopped at a bar advertising a “vista especial” for a beer and a breathtaking view.  It’s important to note here, that if you attempted a pub crawl between any 2 towns in Costa Rica, you would never make it.  There are bars every quarter mile, at least.  It’s as if every time anyone driving the roads ever got thirsty, a bar immediately popped up.  How they all stay in business, I have no idea.  We stopped at exactly one, and passed probably 150.

Enjoying the View

Upon arriving in Samara (which, despite what Kate says, I’m pretty such is Spanish for “hippie beach”), I felt like I was back at the Rothbury Festival – the streers were lined with young Americans and Europeans selling hemp necklaces, tie-dyed beach towels, and those maddening sets of 3 rubber sticks with which, supposedly, you hold one in each hand, and keep the 3^rd, and largest, stick aloft by alternatively hitting it with each of your 2 sticks.  I was always terrible at those things, though I do remember my brother Scott becoming a rather accomplished 3-stick handler back in the day.

The beach at Samara

Beach soccer

We watched a game of beach soccer in Samara which began promptly at 5:00 p.m. and consisted of every Costa Rican male in the town under the age of 30.  As you can see, it’s quite a place to watch a soccer match, even if the play is a bit disjointed.

We began our trip home by attempting to take the non-highway route home, only to quickly discover that dirt and gravel roads with potholes the size of our car were not particularly fun to drive.  Thankfully, there is always a paved road to get you where you need to go in Costa Rica, and by “a” paved road, I mean “one” – therere is always one, and only one, paved way to get between Costa Rican towns.

Overall it was a great little road trip, capped off by a pretty wild (for Potrero) evening back at home involving a live Guanacasten band and a baile/reinado (dance/pageant).  I’ll say this: Kate and I did not hit the dance floor because these locals have some serious moves.