la cuidad que nunca duerme!

I'm home now, safe & sound... but my blog is NOWHERE near done! I've got a ton more stories & loads of pictures to get on here once I get settled.

I'm excited to even go back & add information I'd breezed over. Is that allowed in blog-land?? :)

My trip home was without effect: airport tax, customs x3 & rides to & from the airport that fell so nicely into place. It was sad leaving Costa Rica... a place so different, but yet became so second nature to me in my time there. Like throwing toilet paper in garbage cans, rather the bowl (I still attempt to do this!), not daring to step off the curb with a car even 100m in sight, getting dark at 5:45pm, sudden, intense downpours... and the way the mountains looked in the distance past San Jose & the surrounding area.

Left now are stories, memories & ridiculous pictures of monkey after monkey, sedentary sloth after sedentary sloth. They're funny to look at.

The people I met, who quickly became my Tico family, were difficult to say bye to. My only hope is that our paths cross again... for they made my experience all the more worthwhile, fun, exciting & enjoyable. I miss you guys!!

But at last, I return again, to la cuidad que nunca duerme, & oh, how nice that feels :)

Interbus, going my way

(Im back at my homestay in San Pedro & Ill do my best to catch up on the last week!!)

Brittany, Christina & I spent a good while debating our route from Cahuita to Arenal, La Fortuna. We could take 6 different local buses, totaling 9 hours, or 2 buses going through San Jose & different bus stops, totaling 10 hours. How do you choose when both options are just SO good!!!

Luckily for us, we stumbled upon an Interbus service. Theyre a semi-private van that goes inbetween most major destinations, hotel to hotel. With our pockets only $49 less & way less than a half of our anticipated time, we traveled across the country in just over 4 hours. We had AC, a couple stops along the way at sodas & room to spread out.

Lets chat a minute about these rest stops, sodas. Nowhere have I ever seen a rest area with a formal seating area, a counter with gum & candy, a full menu, ice cream bars AND bathrooms. Others without full menus have an impresive spread of food--rice, beans, plantains a couple ways, meat, chicken, salads, fish, stew... Also, adding to the fun, they dont have walls, which is not different than many places here, but different from home for sure! Usually, a 4 hour trip stops at 2 of these stops for about 15-20 minutes each. I always get super excited when we go & ice cream bars never tasted as good as they do from them!

The more I travel, the more I feel like Im really getting a hang of this stuf. My Spanish has improved tremendously & its so great to be faced with a language barrier & be able to overcome it. More to come on that!!

gallo pinto with coconut oil!

Cahuita was suuuuch an awesome trip! We originally planned on staying there for 2 nights, but quickly changed that to 3 barely into the first day. We stayed at an adorable hostel called Spencers Seaside Lodge. It was right on the beach, so we fell asleep & woke up to the sounds of the waves. For a comfortable $10 a night, we had a private room, a fan & a private bathroom. Our room even had a desk! Talk about luxury ;)

Spencers was a 5 minute walk to the National Park, a beautiful, rustic, white sand beach. We had nothing but sun, shore & coconut trees for 4 days. Not even a drop of rain.

There was so much I loved about there... the town is tiny, only about 2 blocks deep & 5 blocks long. It has dirt roads, hardly any cars, a million stray dogs, and just about enough restaurants for a 4 day stay... no repeats! Our schedule was up, breakfast bar, beach, lunch, relax, snack. It was super affordable since we ate an average of 1.5 meals a day. But even if we were to eat more, the variety & the price was unbeatable! They have casados here, typical Costa Rican meals, consisting of gallo pinto or rice & beans, plantains, ensalada, & either carne, pollo o pescado. Truly, I dont know if I could EVER get sick of them! And theyre CHEAP! You can get a heaping plate of more food than you should eat (but do!) for c2300, which is about $4 and change. In Cahuita, since its in the Caribe, they have typical casados with Caribbean flavoring... Think: coconut oil in the gallo pinto, jerk sauce on the meat & patacones, or fried plantains.

We also felt instantly welcomed in the area & because of the size, it was so simple to get acclimated. It was fun to hear Spanish mixed with Mekatelyu, an English Creole, and Reggae music blasting from a car here & there, decked out with tints & rims. Knowing we didnt cross water had me sure I was in CR, but nothing around me showed that. Oh, we were also approached about 6 times a day for snorkeling tours, which really added to that Caribbean feel haha

All in all, Cahuita was definitely the recouperation from Costa Rican city life I needed :)

Indulging in an Imperial on a hammock at Spencers

The view from our room

an unfortunate occurance...

I'm sitting on a hammock in Cahuita, a town on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica. It's so wonderful to be traveling around & out of the craziness that is San Jose & San Pedro. The ocean & beach are beautiful, the caribbean food is nice for a change & the Imperials in a can are c700 :)

I mentioned in a previous post about being excited to get out of the city, but didnt elaborate... now that some time has passed & I've spoken to my family, I can share.

I love it here & am happy to be sharing my experiences with you all via this blog (thanks for reading!). So, I feel i should be honest about the safety of San Jose & san Pedro. While leaving the Maximo Nivel offices on Thursday, a friend & I were robbed at gun point. Luckily, I had nothing on me he wanted, but he made off with my friends' backpack containing some USD & his computer. It was 8:30 at night, right outside the offices & we barely could've done anything else to be "safer." We left the office to meet up with some friends & were approached by a man who jumped out of a car less than a block away from Maximo. I originally thought he was coming to ask us a question, & remember thinking that he must've been in a hurry to be walking towards us at such a rapid pace... until the pistol came out. Wtf.

It was over very fast, but the image hasn't left my mind. I still think about it a lot, but, thankfully, it lessens every day. It's not something I'd have imagined to happen ever, especially not on this trip I'd looked so forward to (um hellooo, I'm from Brooklyn!). I'd started hearing about crimes like this a couple days before my incident, mainly to university students. You don't actually think it'll happen to you. Isn't that how it always goes?

My reason for sharing this is, well, its life & its the truth. I almost changed my flight home to the next day, a whole week early, but I'm happy I didn't. I'd have missed the best leg of my adventure! So, come to Costa Rica. For the culture, the beauty, the beach, the people. Keep your time in San Jose to a minimum. Reports are not honest & we look at Costa Rica as one of the safest countries in both Central & South America. even Maximo downplayed the possibility of crime, telling us 'your typical crimes happen here, just be smart.' To me, being held up at gun point is anything but typical. It's funny in a way... there's all this hype & criticism about the US military coming down here to clean up CR's drug trafficking, but yet, clearly there's a disconnect in the countrys' inner workings. Police, gun laws, prostitution...Oh, but stealing turtle eggs gets you a $4,000 fine & 8 years in jail...

Irregardless, the country is truly wonderful, & I will not let Thursday evening define my experiences: living with my host family, teaching the kids in Carpio, meeting new friends from all over the world... and sitting here watching the sun set behind me, I actually get it.

As long as San Jose isn't in the picture ;)

Tortuguero

Friday 17/7

Today we got an early start & went to Tortuguero. It's on the Caribbean side of the country, about 3.5 hrs away, & boats are required to navigate the canals that connect the area.

We decided on a 1-day tour with a company called Safari Joe's. We met our guide & the rest of the group at a hotel in San Jose & were on our way by 6:30am.

Our guide, Robert, was a local Tico & bilingual. He explained so much to us on the trip & was super informative. Tortuguero gets its name from the turtles, tortugas, who nest there from July to October.

Our first stop was at a restaurant for a typical Costa Rican breakfast--eggs, toast, juice, coffee, gallo pinto & fruit. They even had hot milk for us, which was a nice change from the crema we've been having in our coffee everywhere!

While driving, Robert shared information, called on Evan, Christina, Brittany & I to ask questions & enjoyed patting our heads. I might add that there were maybe 15 others on the tour with us. Oh, Latin men.

After that, it was back in the van & off to a banana plantation. We passed miles & miles of banana trees before reaching the heart of the plantation. I was so surprised to see that the plantation was del Monte!

We got to see a banana tree up close, its' fruit wrapped in a blue bag to ensure equal riping. All trees are also tagged with a colored mark to signify their stage of growth.

Once the bananas are ripe, they are picked, put onto rollers--metal contraptions to transport the fruit through the harsh, uneven land where the trees are--and brought up to the factory. Here, they are cleaned in a bath, cut into bundles of 6, bathed again & placed in bags, like we see in the store. It was pretty cool seeing them ready to be shipped out in their del Monte bags!

I also got my hands on my first pipa, something I'd been waiting for! For c500, a man makes a hole in a baby coconut for you, you drink the coconut water & go back so he cab chop it in half for you so the inside can be eaten. Definitely more exciting that Vita coconut water at home! It was interesting... Robert told us there would be 2 men there selling pipas there & so to make sure we split ourselves up between them so they can each get money for their family...

That's something that I haven't toughest upon much. Never a day goes by that I haven't been witness to serious poverty. And yet, the people are friendly, positive & full if smiles. I noticed it every day in Carpio, I've noticed it while traveling... in our society, both in the US & abroad, the divide between those who live comfortably & those who are in need is vast. This trip has opened my eyes to all that & more...

But more on that later! After the bananas & pipas, we were in for a rougg 1:20 on a rocky road. Seriously. You couldn't talk without sounding like a 5 year old on a bumpy ride! An hour & twenty minutes has new meaning when spent this way!

Once in Tortuguero, we boarded a small boat & went to eat lunch. Comida tipica... rice, beans, jerk chicken (were on the Caribe!), veggies, cukes & tomatoes fit for a king! We had awesome fresh squeezed limonada & cafe at the end. On the boat again! By the way, its been raining heavily this entire time & were all sporting ponchos. Hot! I wore wet shoes (yes, I have a pair) & am so happy I did! Some places walking to & from the boat were ankle deep!

Next up was a boatride, looking for wildlife & enjoying the... rain ;) we saw sloths, monkeys, numerous birds & even a CROCODILE! The boat took us to the end of the canal, where it meets the ocean & here we hiked a bit. We saw turtle nests & even a couple eggs who didn't make it.

After what seemed like a year with Robert, we had reached the end of our day & it was time to head back to the city. After our day with him & my 2 hours a day with my Spanish teacher, Teddy (he totally should've made it into the blog, but didnt), & their outward affections, I'm really going to miss the gentle, unnecessary touch of a Tico when I go home! Robert even told me my hair smelled nice, what shampoo did I use, he wants to go buy it. Sure you do. Haha!

Regardless, the day was great & it was $90 well spent! Bring on more adventures!

Where did these 2 weeks go!!

I cant believe today was my last day at Carpio! These 2 weeks literally flew. Lately, theyve been hardcore getting their English learn on and it feels great! One day, I made them copies of a face and we added English words in and then they created their own on the back. They had a great time with that. And today, we took it a step further with phrases on flash cards... Hi, how are you, what is your name, my name is..., how old are you, i am.... years old. It was so great to hear them talking to each other using these phrases. They definitely had a great time. I managed to snap a few last shots of the little guys there over the past couple days, so here they are!

Those eyes!

Noemi, the Pastors daughter, and I

We took about 35 of these, give or take

These girls looooved the camera

Las chicas, so pretty!

Jump rope is always HUGE hit!

Love how this came out!

So cute!

The boys and fairie checkers heh

Part of me feels like this is over, but I need to stop and think about the ENTIRE week I have ahead of me! Get ready...

Tomorrow, Im taking a day tour to Tortuguero, which is on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. We travel over both land and water to get there, as the only way to get TO Tortuguero is via canal! It gets its name from the tortugas, turtles, who nest there every year. This is prime nesting time, and while well be there during the day, I hope to catch a glimpse of SOMETHING turtle!

After that, were headed to a different spot on the Caribbean coast, Cahuita. Im excited to eat some Caribbean food and relax on the beach. Were also staying at a place called Spencers Seaside Lodge, which I think is cool enough in itself.

From there, weve got a LOOONG day of traveling as we return the 3 hours from Cahuita, through San Jose and continue on the 4 hours to Volcon Arenal. Yep, a volcano! We plan on doing a night tour of the volcano... to see the sparks and visit the hotsprings. The local town, La Fortuna, even has waterfalls, so weve got our fun cut out for us!

Now that Ive spent a lot of time in San Pedro, San Jose and Carpio, Im excited to get out in nature... take in the sights and let loose a little bit. Beautiful pictures to come, Im sure... but I think youll be waiting until Im back home in Nueva York en los Estados Unidos.

HUGS TO ALL!!

The Central Market

Part of yesterdays fun in San Jose was the Central Market. You can get lost in there--literally! It takes up about 1 square blocks & inside is divided into different sections. Whats cool about it is that Ticos shop there, so its not all touristy stuff. There was everything from typical piggy banks (a HUGE thing here) and coffee, chicken feet and fish heads, garbage pails and plates. There were tons of sodas (food stands) and even pet stores. Granted, there were chicks and chickens in them, but they also had birds and dogs. It was definitely an experience! Ill be going back for sure before my trip home to stock up on some goods :)

Note: these pictures do the actual size, wonder & excitement of the market NO JUSTICE!

These piggy banks are ALL over.

All sizes & colors. Some you can even paint on your own.

Ticos save money in them all year & wait until December to crack them open.

A holistic medicine stand

A beautiful handpainted wagon

Spices

Hammocks

Coffee!

Chicks & chickens

Aloe

Missing everyone a lot! Happy to share this with you all. Much love :) :)

Exploring San Jose

As I mentioned, we didnt go to Carpio today. I definitely missed it & cant wait to see the kids tomorrow!

Instead, we headed to San Jose to do some exploring. Im through there every day, but never get to venture off our path to & from Carpio... until today :)

We checked out a couple cathedrals, the National Theatre & a couple markets. There are a couple links, so make sure to check those out!

La Iglesia de la Merced

Roaming through San Jose

A sweeper dude statue & I

Teatro Nacional

The Metropolitan Cathedral

Funny sign!

Bet you dont see this stateside!
Slow... people, dogs, sloths & monkeys.

Love it!

The rest of the weekend in Manuel Antonio was great! On Sunday, I went ziplining. Finally! Steph, Greg & I had planned on doing that on our cruise last year in PR, but due to a hurricane, we were re-routed & our plans cancelled. A year later, I got to try my hand at a true canopy adventure.


We were picked up at 7 at Costa Linda, double styrofoam containers in tow--breakfast fromthe hostel manager. If you remember the size of desayuno from yesterday, you get what we looked like! The tour company, Titi Canopy, was located about 30 minutes outside of Manuel Antonio (these bus and van trips are really giving me a run for my motion sickness! I should really invest in some Dramamine! haha). I was definitely a little nervous, but totally excited! It was a great morning & we were happy we picked the early tour as the rainforest tends to get very, very hot! Also, we knew we would have the best chance of seeing animals the earlier we went.


Right away, the staff was super cool. They all had crazy nicknames, like Enrique the Horse, Jose the Lizard, & were really fun. They suited us all up in our gear & quickly explained our morning. We had 12 platforms, 13 ziplines & a rappel ahead of us. We were ready!!

l-r Jake, me, Liza, Gillian & Wendy

After a bit of hiking, they gave us a demo & next thing, we were on our way. When I got up to the first one, the guy asked me if I was nervous. Un poquito, I told him. His response to me was: Good. Me, too. HAHA! Not funny :(

No need... it was SO much fun! The two longest lines were 1100ft & 1500ft--REALLY long! You can hear the person on the line until they are detached (even when you cant see them anymore) & on the long ones, it felt like it never ended! The guys helped by telling you how and when to brake & catching you at the end. Good thing! I almost took one guy out on a line. I was so nervous of getting stuck mid-way that I had a hard time braking at the end. Whoops! I quickly became known as speed deamon :)

We stopped at a super overlook for a breather & some water before the 1500ft line.

What a view!

At the end, we had the chance to rappel, which looks a LOT harder than it is. They took a bunch of pictures of us, so keep an eye out on their website! ;)

We got back to Costa Linda in enough time to grab a seat for La Copa Mundial!! It was so great to be watching the final game in a country that eats, sleeps & breathes futbol. We relaxed at the hostel out on their patio, had some smoothies, quesohamburgesas & a couple Imperial. Some game!

Once the two 15 minute quarters were over & the refs granted the 3 extra minutes... the power went out! We couldnt believe it! It had been so quiet outside of the hostel with neighbors in other hotels watching the game in their room, & suddenly the street errupted with noise as fans scrambled to find a working TV. Crazy! Luckily, when it came back on 4 minutes later, there were no surprises from the 3 missed minutes. Phew! Seeing people from all over the world here in CR celebrating the España win was so wonderful! What an awesome experience!

Today, kids at Carpio receive religion classes, so we werent needed. Alisa & I headed into San Jose for some exploring, & once those pictures upload, Ill get them on here also :)

Monkeys, Iguanas & Sloths, oh my!

We skipped town yesterday & headed for the beautiful National Park of Manuel Antonio, on the south west side of Costa Rica. We took a bus a nice 4 hours from San Jose through twisting, winding back country. It was surely a rough trip! I managed to keep my lunch down by sticking my head out the window for the second half of the trip, puppy style, & watching out for passing branches :)

We're staying at a great little hostel no more than 100m outside of el Parque de Manuel Antonio. Free coffee, free wi-fi, $10 rooms, no bugs, great deal! A TON of us from Maximo Nivel came here for the weekend & so everywhere you turn, there's someone else you know. Very cool!


We got up early, awakened by the unfamilar noises of surrounding animals, & enjoyed a nice breakfast on the hostels patio. Two plates, a ton of fresh fruit, pancakes, eggs, bread & gallo pinto for c1800, which is roughly $3!

Alisa & I enjoying our breakfast at Costa Linda

Plate #2!

Manuel Antonio is one of the most visited spots in Costa Rica, but also one of the smallest. We got there early to avoid being shut out of its beauty.

We first hiked around the park, going up to Punta Cathedral, where we'd heard we would get the best view. It was breathtaking!

Along our route, we caught glimpses of some reall awesome animals. Spider monkeys, howler monkeys, iguanas & a three-toed sloth.

A mom & baby

Three-toed sloth hiding in the tree

We thought monkey sightings were hard to come by... until we got to the beach. They were ALL over. And serious rascals, to say the least!

Good point! Don't feed them. They'll just help themselves to your food.

These monkeys are thieves! Watch out for your sunglasses B(

Looking precious from afar.

The beach was amazing!!

Beautiful birds of paradise. Really in paradise :)

Tomorrow, I'm going on a canopy tour (ziplining!) & then heading back to San Jose in the evening. A fun filled two days. On Monday we're off from Carpio as the kids have religion classes instead of ingles, so I'm looking forward to taking in the sights of San Jose, maybe even a coffee plantation tour. Pura vida!