Buenos Tardes,
This week we got started touring around the country in a rental car. Considering the fact that we are in a 3rd World country, and the streets are seldom marked, and that there are no addresses as we know them, we actually did quite well in getting around. We visited many cities, and some of those we were trying to see!! One day we started out going to a national park in the rain forest not too far from here. The distance is just over 15 miles to the park, but because the roads never go in straight lines or connect conveniently, that 15 miles ends up being closer to 50 miles! Add to that the App we are using down here is at times very confusing and late in telling us to turn, we never made it to the park that day. We instead found ourselves on the way to the Pacific coast, about 180 degrees from our original destination!! I had a hard time with this having been a driver all those years and trying to be logical in getting us form point A to point B. Doesn’t work down here. Deb has helped me a lot with that. After all, we are on an adventure!! Just smile, take in the beautiful sights, and remember that each day is a journey in and of itself.
We did make it to the rain forest yesterday. What a great day. The pics are all from the rain forest. Well, all but one. The restaurant is from the day we ended up near the Pacific. Really nice place with great food. Many restaurants down here remind us of Hawaii since they have the windows wide open with no screens. No birds, bugs, amazing. The pics are a very small window showing how plants grow on each other. We were so happy to be walking in the rain forest, a real dream come true for both of us. The pic that looks like it could be a python is actually a tree root that came up on the surface and then went back under ground after about 20 feet. This was a pretty common sight. Some of the roots were so thick they looked like sewer pipes to me!
I’m turning this over to Deb now. She was so happy yesterday at the park, it made me appreciate the experience even more. Hopefully she’ll tell you about the biting red ants. They got me, not her. They must like that Italian blood!!
Hope you are enjoying reading this. We will be off and about this week, touring some places we have never been before. Hopefully some of those places will be ones we actually set out to see!!! I promise more pics too. I may just put up a post with nothing but pics as we continue this adventure.
Tim.
Buenos, Everyone,
We will try to get pics of more of the people (ticos) who live here. It will give you a better understanding of this country. That is what makes this country along with the gorgeous surroundings. This truly is paradise. Today the temperature is going to be about 76. Considering what Minnesota temperatures are like, it is so nice being here! In travelling around, it is interesting to see snow men, candy canes stuck in gardens in front of homes, Xmas trees decorated with lights, etc. on balconies. We just celebrated Halloween! Apparently, Ticos really get into Xmas. I am told that there are parades in the town square which will be interesting to see.
One of the places we got lost in the other day is a little town in the mountains called San Jose de la Montana, which, Laurel, our landlady tells us is considered Little Switzerland. Apparently, they make cheese there. It was beautiful country. We just kept climbing higher and higher. We’ve been to several places like that. My ears pop all the time. That was the case yesterday when we drove through the rain forest. There was nothing on either side of the road all the way except rain forest with the occasional dirt wayside for trucks to pull off in case they have mechanical trouble or they need to sleep. There are no bathrooms along the way. It’s a long stretch of road, too. This is the highway we take to the Caribbean Coast. Often times, trucks will have mechanical trouble on the way up a mountainside in the road. If there doesn’t happen to be a place to pull off, they will get out of their trucks, and cut down branches, etc. and put it in the road to warn other drivers that a truck is stuck. We saw this yesterday. Cars will do the same thing. There are times on this road where there will be two lanes to travel in and other times, only one lane going each way.
For our friends who are coming to visit us, bring dramamine as the roads and streets are twisting and turning all the time. They don’t have long stretches of road that are straight. This is why when you make a wrong turn, it may take miles to get back on track or you may find yourself on the Pacific Highway! The other thing I will say about driving in this country, is that it will test your patience. Motorcycles don’t drive by any rules at all. They will pass you anywhere on either side of your car. They drive really fast, too, darting in and out between cars. They use speed bumps to make traffic slow down through neighborhoods or else cars and motorcycles will drive 50 miles per hour!
There are so many more places we want to investigate while we are here. However, every ninety days on our visas, we have to leave the country for three days so we have booked a flight to Panama City, Panama on December 11. That should also be interesting. We will take lots of pics while we are there. Our flight is only a little more than an hour. We are staying in a five star hotel because we got such a great deal on it.
We are learning Spanish slowly but surely. We wanted to take Spanish classes but they are prohibitively expensive. Over $500.00 a week for the two of us! Even online classes are expensive. We carry our book with us wherever we go so that when we get stuck, we can pull it out and show it to or say it to the person we are trying to communicate with. In that way, we are learning words, little by little. Tim and I are going to try to learn more on our own, possibly by using Duo Lingo App. We tried it before and found it confusing. One of the things that has been suggested to us by Ticos who speak fluent English is to watch cartoons. One of those people learned English that way. She watched Sesame Street when she lived in Miami!
That is about it for now. Have a wonderful week, and stay happy. We will.
Pura Vida
Deb
Deb & Tim's Adventure 