My birthday weekend officially began on Thursday morning. This was my first trip to the airport solo to pick up someone! Hooray! Beth came to Costa Rica to visit and explore with me! Unfortunately, I got a wee bit lost on the way, so she was already waiting outside on the curb. I pulled up to park and apparently I parked over a crosswalk, which is a big no-no. Oops! As I am helping her get the bags in the car, I hear a loud speaker announce something. Up until this point, I've been assuming that anyone speaking Spanish is not speaking to me. That was not the correct assumption to have. The loud speaker was the airport police yelling at me. But no worries, he made his way over to yell at me in person. I just kept saying "lo siento, lo siento" ("I'm sorry, I'm sorry), but he wasn't really having it. But, after realizing I didn't understand him, he got angry and then gave up. That was my first run in with Costa Rican police this weekend...
After getting Beth back to my neighborhood we met Catalina and Krisya for the drive to Quepos, a town on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. We had a great lunch and then began the 3 hour drive towards the beach. Along the way, we made some stops. The first one, was to walk out on a bridge to view the crocodiles that hang out on the river banks below. There are 7 in this photo! I've never seen so many and that up close!
As we got closer to Quepos, we would get some sneak peaks at the coast line. Of course, we had to stop for a photo opportunity!
Pulling back onto the road here was tricky. It was clear from the height difference between the asphalt and the side of the road that my car was going to scrape. Catalina told me to take it at an angle, but it made the most horrible scraping sound I've ever heard. Later Catalina would tell me that I took it at a US angle and not a Costa Rican angle...I'll have to get more clarification on that one. A little ways down the road, it sounded like something under the car was dragging on the ground...oops again! Later a mechanic diagnosed the problem and put the pipe of the muffler back together for me (double oops.) Catalina is my angel who took my car to the mechanic while the rest of us explored the park - thank you Caty!!
We woke up Friday morning in Quepos and the girls had put together a little pre-birthday breakfast for me! It was a typical Costa Rican breakfast with gallo pinto (rice and black beans), eggs, bread, and condiments. There were also some yummy doughnuts (maybe not so typical) with a candle in them for the celebration!
Maria arrived at the end of breakfast and she, Krisya, Beth, and I headed over to Manual Antonio National Park. The park has a lot of hiking and beautiful beaches that you can spend all day on. We hiked towards the beach and saw many animals on the way. The first ones we came across were these cute little guys, later we would see them at the beach sneaking up behind people to try to steal their bags and food. Krisya had to chase them from our stuff multiple times. Cute little buggers.
There were lizards...
and monkeys...
and iguanas...
...and then...peaking through the jungle...
...was paradise!
The beach at Manuel Antonio was breathtakingly beautiful. The water was clear and the perfect temperature. The sand was soft. It was definitely worth the walk to spend an hour or so basking on this beach.
We finally drug ourselves off the beach and back out of the park to meet Catalina for lunch at a beach side restaurant. We sat around a table with the sand under our feet and enjoyed a delicious Costa Rican lunch while looking at another beautiful view of the ocean.
Later that evening we went to El Avion restaurant which sides on a hillside between Manuel Antonio and Quepos. El Avion is built around a Fairchild C-123 that was involved in the famous Iran-Contra Affair of the 80's. You can read the full story here: http://www.elavion.net/ It's pretty interesting!
We made our way back to San Jose on Saturday morning. The drive was easy and only took about 2.5 hours. Once we got into the City, Krisya came with Beth and I and took us downtown to the Central Market. The downtown area of San Jose has a long pedestrian street with lots of shops, vendors, and folks milling about. It was a great experience to see something a little less touristy.
Krisya left us there with clear instructions on how to get home. But San Jose, like any other large city, has many one way streets. I knew that I needed to find the largest street - Paseo Colon - and then I would know how to get home. It took some weaving around and sitting in traffic, but we finally found it! I was so excited to know where I was that I guess I may have missed some key signs. However, Beth will back me up on the fact that I don't think there were any signs! Needless to say, I take a right on one of the largest streets in San Jose at a point where it is one-way...and NOT the way I was going. Don't worry, it only took about 5 seconds for a police officer standing there to pull me over. This was my second run in with the San Jose police this weekend. This officer was a little nicer, but asked me for my license and passport. Luckily, I was able to understand his Spanish a little better than the first. He asked how long I had been in Costa Rica and was shocked when I told him 2 weeks. He then proceeded to tell me that if I was going to drive in Costa Rica, I needed to learn to read the signs. I agreed, profusely, and he finally let us go on our way. Whew!! I dodged another bullet with that one! I apologize for not getting a photo of this...but I am sure you can understand.
After some rest, Krisya picked Beth and I up and we went to Tiquicia - a mirador restaurant in Escazu. The miradors (which loosely means widow, balcony, or gazer) are restaurants high up in the hills around San Jose with beautiful views of the valley below. I'd love to take more of my guests there, but I am not sure if I could - the drive is basically straight up, and up, and up, and up a giant hill. Krisya was brave and we made it up the hill - although at one point we didn't know if we would! But wow, the view...
And the dinner was great!
The company was fantastic too. (From left to right: Beth, Krisya, Maria, Catalina, Daniella, and yours truly.)
It was really a wonderful birthday thanks to all of my friends who helped me celebrate! A birthday could be hard so far away from home, but not with these gals! Oh, and did I mention one of the best birthday presents ever???
Thanks for the Sun Drop Beth!! I'm NOT sharing with anyone!!!
For the last adventure of the weekend with Beth, we hitched a ride with my neighbor Casey (and fellow Gaston County gal) to the Feria (farmer's market) in Hatillo. It was HUGE and CHEAP! I bought so many vegetables for only about $10 US. There were lots of sights and sounds to take in, so it was a great experience.
Ok, having just lived this weekend, and then reliving it by telling you about it, I am absolutely exhausted! Thanks for reading and following along. More updates and adventures (hopefully ones that do not involve the police) to come soon.
<3,
Amber
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