Day 2

Man, did our day ever get started on the right foot when we woke up to free continental breakfast. Not only was it free, but it was one of the best breakfasts I have had in quite a while. Haley and I both had our custom made omelets, some beans and rice (yeah, I know, for breakfast, right?), and we even went on a whim and got this greenish, potato looking thing that had corn mixed in with it. The green stuff turned out to be incredible…only we have no idea what in the world it was.

Then at 8:00am, it was on our first bus ride. We had to first take a taxi, however, to get to the bus station. Apparently, stop signs are not mandatory and our driver did not consider a single one. I'm talking not even slowing down, even when there was a bus speeding down to the intersection (I think the bus came to within inches of our rear bumper). Then we got to go on an awesome bus ride that lasted all of 5 hours. Apparently this was one of the slower travel days, which has me a bit worried. It was crowded, uncomfortable, and smelly. We had fairly decent seats for the first couple hours of the journey. Then we learned that when you stop to use the restroom, or simply stretch your legs, have someone save your seat. We had to stand for the remaining couple hours, which really sucked at we were winding through mountain roads. Not to mention that it got really hot once you crammed an extra 20-30 people on that bus.

Then we arrived in La Fortuna. Talk about tourist town. There are more Americans here than Ticos (Costa Ricans). We spent the afternoon planning tomorrow, to include rappelling down waterfalls (yeah, like 60 meter waterfalls, which I think is like 150 feet?). Cost us a small fortune, but hopefully it should be worth it. Believe it or not, that was Haley's idea.

Then tonight, we headed up to see the volcano and go to the Baldi hot springs. As you can see in the photo gallery, we couldn't see much of the volcano because we are in the middle of a cloud forest. If we wake up really early, we may get a chance tomorrow, but that would involve waking up really early…so we'll see. The hot springs were really nice, as you can see in the pictures. I couldn't believe that one of them was 152 degrees, and there was no disclaimer. I think you would get some serious burns if you were to jump in there. Luckily we dipped our feet in first (they are still red and tender).

Anyway, we are having a great time and think that the group will be awesome. It was nice to be joined by some other guys. You can see their pictures and nationalities if you look though the photo album link on the right side (under la fortuna day 1). 

Meet the Group

So a couple months ago, when I called GAP Adventures to inquire on the demographics of the group, they told me that the majority of travelers with their company were mid-30's to 40's married couples. So when we met the group, I was surprised to find 9 women and ZERO other men. Pretty good odds, eh? Well, actually, I would like a little more testosterone on my side in case the women get out of line. Luckily, the last three people to join our group are supposed to be men. The group is very diverse, with 4 Australians, 2 British, 1 South African, 4 American and 3 Finnish. The all seem really cool, with one particular group very excited about the cheap alcohol (I'm a little worried about them). But the group looks like it will work well together and we are excited to see what the next month brings.

A small disclaimer: We will not have this much time to Blog, seeing as we will hopefully be busy doing exciting things (and I am sure we will not have this kind of internet access available). So au revois for now.

Here We Are!

Honest to goodness, I have no intention of blogging that much, but here we are at the hotel, and this bird out here in our super-lush courtyard won't shut up...when we looked up and finally saw the sucker, I realized it is a parrot? or maybe a parakeet? Anyway, here is a picture of heem (note the spanish accent on "him"). We flew in a couple hours ago and are already loving it. We had a chance to wander around the neighborhood and see a couple things (see pictures on our photo album). We have already seen a couple dozen different types of birds and a million different plants.

The courtyard I am in right now smells exactly like my old house in panama (Namely, the smell of rotten mangoes). As you can see from the pictures, our hotel is very well guarded (don't worry, Tami). And just to let you know, Linzee, we didn't even have to pass through customs, so we still have our antibiotic to prepare us for when the BU hits (that's a little acronym that stands for traveler's diarrhea--actually stands for Butt Urine--hey, I don't come up with this stuff).

I think we are going to like it here. I am a little worried, though, as I sit here typing this that either a mango, banana, or lime will fall on my head, as all three fruits are literally directly above me.

Oh, one other random thing before I wrap this one up and we go to meet our travel group for the first time. As soon as I got on the internet, everything instantly became Spanish. Yep, google, firefox, and picasa websites all talking to me in Spanish. Cool, huh?

We're Off!

Doesn't that sound like a fitting title to us leaving for Central America? That is probably the title of every first entry of every trip ever taken. I figure I had better start this thing on the right foot by writing as soon as we leave. Haley and I are in the airport, waiting to board our plane for the 4-hour flight to San Juan, Costa Rica. Luckily, we got to the airport three and a half hours early. Plenty of time to grab a bite to eat, start watching the airport news for a second time, and get a little travellogging in. I think I invented that last word.

So, looking back on the preparation for this trip, I have a little advice to share with the world: DON'T EVER plan a move, buy a house, quit work, go on a month long vacation and start medical school all at the same time. Haley was watching Oprah the other day, where they were talking about the biggest stressors for marriages and what can lead to marital problems. The biggest problem makers? Finances, moving, and planning a vacation. Luckily, Haley and I have had a great time and haven't had any marital problems. We seem to work well together, which is probably a good thing, seeing as we have been together for every minute of every day for the past year (working together and all).

Now that the planning is done with (including packing up all our belongings, and setting up everything to close on our house) it is kind of nice sitting in the airport waiting to board our flight. The past week was rough, but then again, who goes on vacation for a month??? Yep, 32 days.

One thing we have been a little worried about was the crime down in central America. However, after reading up on things, we learned to not put up a fight and just give them what they are asking for. Nearly every tourist that has gotten in trouble, resisted would-be robbers. It is kind of nice looking around the terminal here, seeing as the majority of our flight is younger, college age kids, and older travelers. Hopefully they will look more attractive to would be thieves.

Well, I know these are all a bunch of random thoughts, but I do have one last one. I am very glad that we packed so light. We stuck to our packing list we were given, and consequentially, did not have to check a single item. Yep, we are carrying on all of our supplies that are to last us a month. The lady at the ticket counter could not believe that we weren't checking in a single thing! I was pretty impressed myself. Of course, early this morning, I had to shed items like my wetsuit and the box to the junior mints (the latter was a mistake, as all the junior mints melded into one giant senior mint).

Here is a picture of us leaving our apartment with our luggage (note the impressive lack of baggage--can you tell that I am proud of that one?). Haley is complaining that we aren't even on the airplane yet and I have already written a short novel. Time to wrap this one up.