Sunday July 29, 2007
Apartotel Sesteo
San Jose
Late Afternoon. Pool sounds outside. This morning at breakfast we heard English, Spanish and German, and French later today. So at least we are with the Europeans.
Thunder around us and lots of threatening clouds but no rain in our part of the Meseta Central today. The rainy season, it seems, means clouds in the afternoon – the mornings are bright and sunny. High temps in the low 80s and humid. I got up early this morning and walked around Sabana Sur, a pretty prosperous neighborhood judging from the cars locked into the car ports in the houses. In the parque Sabana at 7 am there were already joggers (including women – this is not like the rest of Latin America) and Basket players and tennis matches and dog walkers. The soccer players must sleep in.
Today was our return to Pavas and Proyecto Cristal – the Lutheran church project in the shanty town where Heidi works. We were Heidi-less however – she was held up in CA with expired passports (both Costa Rican and US) for son Johann. Her ending up with expired passports speaks to how she has become acculturated, I think.
Big Day at Iglesia Jesu Cristo Nuestro Refugio. There was a celebracion – perhaps to coincide with the Costa Rican holiday today (we think) that celebrates the annexation of Guanacaste from Nicaragua. The guest of honor was Juan Luis Rodriguez, former president of Costa Rican who was honored for his policies welcoming Nicaraguan immigrants into Costa Rica - the shantytown consists almost solely of Nicraguan émigrés. So we gathered for service in the church – which was roofless and floorless the first time we were there five years ago and now has a 2nd floor and running water. (This parallels the general progress of the shantytown – which is springing antennae and second floors and brick walls as the financial conditions of the inhabitants improves).
About 60 of us – the numbers kept increasing as the service went on – gathered for a very informal and spirited service led by Marco Gomez, Heidi’s Nicaraguan husband, whose white hair gives him dignity and booming voice and broad smile give him a presence that overshadowed el presidente. Marco and his assistant Sergio made a point of involving lots of parishioners - presumably poor working class folks - who were unfazed by their guest. El Presidente spoke at the homily about why it was important to welcome immigrants. I think his appeal was secular and his biblical allusions few, but I could not tell. He distributed communion with another woman in a serious respectful fashion, and his kiss of peace was a handshake, rather than the embrace and cheek kiss that everybody else shared (even Ben, who adopted quite easily but admitted it was a bit much). I was pretty impressed at this formal man – who drove by himself in a Hyundai SUV - mixing pretty easily con el gente in an iglesia in a favella.
After service he bolted quickly, so he missed the Nicaraguan folk dancers – who were mildly risqué for a church space and delighted the shrieking crowd – and the plates of chicharones, coffee cake, a potato like tuber and spicy cole slaw. (They made a point of serving us early).
We saw Marcy, our original cook and hostess the first time we came, and her three kids. Julio – who Ben played soccer with last time in the church space – has dropped out of school and at 17 does road work. Victor is now six and has is hair geled, and new daughter Stephanie is two. Marcy looked thinner and better dressed and she said her husband Francisco (not a church goer) has lots of work. That is a change from when we first came.
We were only there for three hours. The previous trips came back quickly – the walk down the train tracks from the corn meal plant, all the people on foot, the scrawny dogs. Rachel picked out from memory the place where we helped start out a second floor last time, and we reminisced about the heat and the work and playing with the kids. So it was good to reconnect and see how people’s lives have improved materially – but we missed Heidi and the chance to communicate more with the folks.
This afternoon Ben and I traipsed around San Jose tracking down bus options for tomorrow. San Jose remains a very utilitarian city – effective but with boring architecture. We had fun making our way about the city and I was reminded how much of travel is spent preparing for the transitions, especially if you are not renting a car. Tomorrow will be a long day.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Ben - Afternoon, July 31
Tuesday, July 31
3:40 PM
Playa el Coco resort, Nicaragua
Hello from Playa el Coco, a small but cozy Nicaraguan resort on the beach. It has been a relaxing day of eating, swimming, sleeping, lounging, etc. We arrived yesterday after having successfully crossed the border from Nicaragua into Costa Rica. Our day started on Saturday with us waking up at the lovely hour of 4:45 AM so we could get a taxi to the bus station and purchase tickets and catch the 6:00 bus to the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border. We experienced a moment of disconcertion when the man at the desk said he wasn´t sure if he had any more tickets left, but we got our tickets fine. The bus itself was similar to a bus one might take for a long trip in the US. It had big cushy seats, TVs on the ceiling, and was generally quite comfortable. The other passengers seemed to be a mix of tourists and Central Americans, although it was difficult to tell. The ride was 5 hours to the border, but it wasn´t too bad. They showed some black and white Spanish films on the TV which were quite amusing to watch, made more so by the fact that we didn´t understand most of the dialogue.
Once at the border, we had to go through the process of getting out of Costa Rica and then into Nicaragua. Getting out of Costa Rica was fairly smooth apart from a bit of a wait in line. It was interesting to see all the vendors at the border trying to sell people their stuff, whether it was juice, snacks, cold drinks, ice cream or whatever. There was one young man who looked to be about 17 or so with an orange juice stand going. He would peel the oranges, put them in a squeezer and squeeze the juice into the cup. It usually took about 2-3 oranges for a cup. He then offered sugar if the customer wanted it. Some customers simply bought the oranges and had them for a snack. Once we got out of Nicaragua, we got back on the bus and drove a bit to the Nicaraguan entrance. We just sat on the bus for around an hour until we finally got off and went through the entrance process. Getting in went fairly smoothly and quickly once we were off the bus. There were many people on that side of the border who were trying to sell us items including one man who had bootlegged DVDs including the Simpsons movie and Harry Potter 5, both of which came out in theaters only in the last two weeks.
We met our taxi driver, who was a friend of Heidi Michelsen and he drove us to Playa el Coco. We had to take a roundabout way because apparently the direct road was so bad you couldn´t even drive on it. We drove to the town of San Juan del Sur, then back around to the resort. The drive to San Juan was easy, but the road to the resort was unpaved, so we had to go very slowly. We got to the resort and went up to our house, which had two bedrooms, a kitchen and a patio. It was small, but nice. We went down to the beach wich was right down the road and got some late afternoon swimming in. I wanted to go out to the big waves, but was warned by a group of surfers that I would get sucked out in a riptide, which made me a bit disappointed.
We went out to dinner at the only restaraunt around. The food was nice, but it took a while to arrive. It should be noted that there was a notice in the menu saying that food might take a while because the staff was moving ¨with the natural rhythm of nature¨and to enjoy the surrounding nature while we waited. (Our food there this morning for breakfast took even longer, so I guess nature was moving pretttyyyy slow.)
This morning, we had breakfast and took a short walk to a wildlife refuge that was supposed to have a beautiful beach. As we were walking in, a woman told us that there were a number of sea turtles on the beach, laying their eggs. We hurried down, and there they were, all along the beach. They were quite large, very slow and apparently unfazed by humans. They would dig their holes in the sand, lay their eggs and go back out to the water. It was an amazing sight. Rachel and I went out swimming in the surf, and saw more in the water, swimming around us. The surf at this beach was really good, and the waves weren´t so far out, so we could swim in them easily. We walked back to our house, the parents picked up some food at the small market here and we had some sandwiches for lunch. The rest of today has been simply relaxing. We will go out for dinner, but that´s it. Tomorrow, we leave for our next destination, which I think is an old town called Granada. So, adios for now!
3:40 PM
Playa el Coco resort, Nicaragua
Hello from Playa el Coco, a small but cozy Nicaraguan resort on the beach. It has been a relaxing day of eating, swimming, sleeping, lounging, etc. We arrived yesterday after having successfully crossed the border from Nicaragua into Costa Rica. Our day started on Saturday with us waking up at the lovely hour of 4:45 AM so we could get a taxi to the bus station and purchase tickets and catch the 6:00 bus to the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border. We experienced a moment of disconcertion when the man at the desk said he wasn´t sure if he had any more tickets left, but we got our tickets fine. The bus itself was similar to a bus one might take for a long trip in the US. It had big cushy seats, TVs on the ceiling, and was generally quite comfortable. The other passengers seemed to be a mix of tourists and Central Americans, although it was difficult to tell. The ride was 5 hours to the border, but it wasn´t too bad. They showed some black and white Spanish films on the TV which were quite amusing to watch, made more so by the fact that we didn´t understand most of the dialogue.
Once at the border, we had to go through the process of getting out of Costa Rica and then into Nicaragua. Getting out of Costa Rica was fairly smooth apart from a bit of a wait in line. It was interesting to see all the vendors at the border trying to sell people their stuff, whether it was juice, snacks, cold drinks, ice cream or whatever. There was one young man who looked to be about 17 or so with an orange juice stand going. He would peel the oranges, put them in a squeezer and squeeze the juice into the cup. It usually took about 2-3 oranges for a cup. He then offered sugar if the customer wanted it. Some customers simply bought the oranges and had them for a snack. Once we got out of Nicaragua, we got back on the bus and drove a bit to the Nicaraguan entrance. We just sat on the bus for around an hour until we finally got off and went through the entrance process. Getting in went fairly smoothly and quickly once we were off the bus. There were many people on that side of the border who were trying to sell us items including one man who had bootlegged DVDs including the Simpsons movie and Harry Potter 5, both of which came out in theaters only in the last two weeks.
We met our taxi driver, who was a friend of Heidi Michelsen and he drove us to Playa el Coco. We had to take a roundabout way because apparently the direct road was so bad you couldn´t even drive on it. We drove to the town of San Juan del Sur, then back around to the resort. The drive to San Juan was easy, but the road to the resort was unpaved, so we had to go very slowly. We got to the resort and went up to our house, which had two bedrooms, a kitchen and a patio. It was small, but nice. We went down to the beach wich was right down the road and got some late afternoon swimming in. I wanted to go out to the big waves, but was warned by a group of surfers that I would get sucked out in a riptide, which made me a bit disappointed.
We went out to dinner at the only restaraunt around. The food was nice, but it took a while to arrive. It should be noted that there was a notice in the menu saying that food might take a while because the staff was moving ¨with the natural rhythm of nature¨and to enjoy the surrounding nature while we waited. (Our food there this morning for breakfast took even longer, so I guess nature was moving pretttyyyy slow.)
This morning, we had breakfast and took a short walk to a wildlife refuge that was supposed to have a beautiful beach. As we were walking in, a woman told us that there were a number of sea turtles on the beach, laying their eggs. We hurried down, and there they were, all along the beach. They were quite large, very slow and apparently unfazed by humans. They would dig their holes in the sand, lay their eggs and go back out to the water. It was an amazing sight. Rachel and I went out swimming in the surf, and saw more in the water, swimming around us. The surf at this beach was really good, and the waves weren´t so far out, so we could swim in them easily. We walked back to our house, the parents picked up some food at the small market here and we had some sandwiches for lunch. The rest of today has been simply relaxing. We will go out for dinner, but that´s it. Tomorrow, we leave for our next destination, which I think is an old town called Granada. So, adios for now!
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Ben - Late Afternoon July 28
July 28, 4:30 PM
El Sesteo Apartotel
San Jose Costa Rica
Hola! Como estas? Well, we’re back in the hotel, and it’s a pretty quiet atmosphere because we’re all pretty tired from earlier today. This is because today we went whitewater rafting with the Rio Tropicales rafting company earlier today. Our day started with us waking up at about 6:00, hastily getting ready, and then meeting the Rio Tropicales bus outside our hotel. The person who met us was a small, bright, happy Costa Rican guy in his early twenties with a mohawk and earring. I didn’t quite catch his name. It might have been Diego….In any case, we picked up four more people – a grandmother and her young grandson, who was about seven who we learned were from Arizona, a young woman in her early twenties who turned out to be from North Carolina and an older Costa Rican man who was to be our raft guide. It was a 2 hour trip from San Jose to the operation center of Rio Tropicales, during which most of us got in some extra sleep. The ride however, was quite nice. We started out in the Central Valley of Costa Rica and went through a mountainous national park that had great views and lush scenery. Once over the mountains, we were on the Caribbean side of the country and near the operations center. Once there, we had about 30 minutes for breakfast, the options for which included fruit, an egg dish, beans and corn flakes. We then set out for the 15-minute ride to the point on the river in which we were going to enter.
It was a beautiful day – warm weather and blue skies, in contrast to the heavy thunderstorm that is raging as I write this. The river itself was a damn-controlled river that was fairly wide, fast running and completely brown. We were informed this was because it was carrying a great deal of silt and sediment. We got our safety orientation, our gear, and after another group, we set off. I was surprised to learn that we would not be sitting IN the raft, but rather on the edge, so we could paddle better. The rapids were class II and III, meaning they were significant and big enough to cause some serious waves and swells, but not so fierce and heavy that it was dangerous. The rafting was extremely fun and I had a great time. There were 4 people on each edge, with mohawk man (Diego?) and another young guy who had joined us at the site at the front and our older guide named Tory was in the back with a pair of oars steering, with the small boy sitting inside the raft in the front. The conditions were perfect. We got absolutely soaked, but weren’t in any real danger of being thrown off the raft. After a while, they gave Rachel and I a chance to row in the front, which was fun because we were in the very forefront of the action. During some of the calmer sections, we got to float down the river for a bit in our lifejackets, which was a lot of fun
Finally, after about 2 hours on the river, we rode back to the operations center to get changed and get some lunch (spaghetti, rice, beans, fruit and salad). We got to see a slideshow of pictures that one of the staffers took along the river. They offered a CD of the pictures along with some other Costa Rican pictures, but my parents decided to forgo the $30 price tag. So after a good day of rafting, we got back on the bus and took the 2 hour ride back to the city, during which I, probably not alone, was dozing most of the ride. So after a good day of rafting we’re back at the hotel, listening to the thunderstorm rage outside, or else taking a nap. Tomorrow, it’s off to the church of Mom’s friend Heidi Michelson for a celebration of a Costa Rican holiday. Adios!
El Sesteo Apartotel
San Jose Costa Rica
Hola! Como estas? Well, we’re back in the hotel, and it’s a pretty quiet atmosphere because we’re all pretty tired from earlier today. This is because today we went whitewater rafting with the Rio Tropicales rafting company earlier today. Our day started with us waking up at about 6:00, hastily getting ready, and then meeting the Rio Tropicales bus outside our hotel. The person who met us was a small, bright, happy Costa Rican guy in his early twenties with a mohawk and earring. I didn’t quite catch his name. It might have been Diego….In any case, we picked up four more people – a grandmother and her young grandson, who was about seven who we learned were from Arizona, a young woman in her early twenties who turned out to be from North Carolina and an older Costa Rican man who was to be our raft guide. It was a 2 hour trip from San Jose to the operation center of Rio Tropicales, during which most of us got in some extra sleep. The ride however, was quite nice. We started out in the Central Valley of Costa Rica and went through a mountainous national park that had great views and lush scenery. Once over the mountains, we were on the Caribbean side of the country and near the operations center. Once there, we had about 30 minutes for breakfast, the options for which included fruit, an egg dish, beans and corn flakes. We then set out for the 15-minute ride to the point on the river in which we were going to enter.
It was a beautiful day – warm weather and blue skies, in contrast to the heavy thunderstorm that is raging as I write this. The river itself was a damn-controlled river that was fairly wide, fast running and completely brown. We were informed this was because it was carrying a great deal of silt and sediment. We got our safety orientation, our gear, and after another group, we set off. I was surprised to learn that we would not be sitting IN the raft, but rather on the edge, so we could paddle better. The rapids were class II and III, meaning they were significant and big enough to cause some serious waves and swells, but not so fierce and heavy that it was dangerous. The rafting was extremely fun and I had a great time. There were 4 people on each edge, with mohawk man (Diego?) and another young guy who had joined us at the site at the front and our older guide named Tory was in the back with a pair of oars steering, with the small boy sitting inside the raft in the front. The conditions were perfect. We got absolutely soaked, but weren’t in any real danger of being thrown off the raft. After a while, they gave Rachel and I a chance to row in the front, which was fun because we were in the very forefront of the action. During some of the calmer sections, we got to float down the river for a bit in our lifejackets, which was a lot of fun
Finally, after about 2 hours on the river, we rode back to the operations center to get changed and get some lunch (spaghetti, rice, beans, fruit and salad). We got to see a slideshow of pictures that one of the staffers took along the river. They offered a CD of the pictures along with some other Costa Rican pictures, but my parents decided to forgo the $30 price tag. So after a good day of rafting, we got back on the bus and took the 2 hour ride back to the city, during which I, probably not alone, was dozing most of the ride. So after a good day of rafting we’re back at the hotel, listening to the thunderstorm rage outside, or else taking a nap. Tomorrow, it’s off to the church of Mom’s friend Heidi Michelson for a celebration of a Costa Rican holiday. Adios!
Dad - Early Morning July 28
July 28, 2007, 5:15 AM
El Sesteo Apartotel,
San Jose Costa Rica
Hola. Estamos aqui. Por el tercero tiempo.
We arrived yesterday at 3:30 pm, under dark clouds, after an uneventful but early trip from Boston. The kids’ passports – newly acquired the previous day after only an 8 hour sojourn in Boston, at the end of our passport fiasco/fandango for 2007 - performed flawlessly. May they acquire many stamps.
San Jose in July. This is the rainy season. We saw only a few sprinkles but the ground was wet. Low dark clouds which filtered a bright orange sunset. Our taxi driver took a back route south from the airport through working class neighborhoods to avoid an accident. We passed over ravines with brown rain swollen streams, carrying all sorts of urban junk. Lots of people walking, riding bikes, waiting for buses. On all sides of the horizon there are the big green mountains, some with villages or newer housing spread out along them.
There is plenty of commercial prosperity – billboards for Volvo and BMW SUVs, big Office Depot and Payless stores, dining choices including Outback Steak House. These are along the main drags. The small painted stucco houses with the scrawny dogs and the men sitting on the stoop and the women lugging plastic bags of groceries and little kids on foot are never far from the highways.
I wonder if traffic is seasonal – like the rains. We sat for 25 minutes inching our way along the South side of the Parque Sabana, inhaling the diesel fumes, listening to fruitless horns and watching motorcycles slither in between us. In the end, our driver escaped by cutting across a median and two train tracks at the next intersection.
Then at dinner, under an awning at bright red and white tables, we raised our voices to be heard above the non stop din at the intersection next to us. Regional buses, full of commuters, rushing to make it through before the light turned, commercial trucks and lots of cars – most Hyundais and small Toyotas. There was grudging respect for the light, and traffic cops seemed content to stand on the side of the road with their hands on their hips, but it appears the chief virtue of the SUV in San Jose is that it allows you to climb over curbs and medians to get through traffic. We walked back in that familiar mix of dark streets lit by the lights of oncoming cars and the blue fluorescent lights of storefronts and garages; you jump off the curb to ford the stream of cars.
Our hotel is plain on the outside with an inner courtyard of a pool and a few tropical plantings. It looks similar to but in fact is not where we stayed last time. It took us a while to figure that out. The clientele appears to be mostly Costa Rican – some here for a duration, judging from the furnishing in their rooms – and Europeans. The kids have their own room with a TV that gets "ESPN deportes" and Disney channel. Once again, cultural immersion consists of watching english programming with Spanish voiceovers, and knowing that you want papas with the hamburgesa.
I am up early because of the time change. The birds are starting up. I had forgotten how loud they are – even in the city.
El Sesteo Apartotel,
San Jose Costa Rica
Hola. Estamos aqui. Por el tercero tiempo.
We arrived yesterday at 3:30 pm, under dark clouds, after an uneventful but early trip from Boston. The kids’ passports – newly acquired the previous day after only an 8 hour sojourn in Boston, at the end of our passport fiasco/fandango for 2007 - performed flawlessly. May they acquire many stamps.
San Jose in July. This is the rainy season. We saw only a few sprinkles but the ground was wet. Low dark clouds which filtered a bright orange sunset. Our taxi driver took a back route south from the airport through working class neighborhoods to avoid an accident. We passed over ravines with brown rain swollen streams, carrying all sorts of urban junk. Lots of people walking, riding bikes, waiting for buses. On all sides of the horizon there are the big green mountains, some with villages or newer housing spread out along them.
There is plenty of commercial prosperity – billboards for Volvo and BMW SUVs, big Office Depot and Payless stores, dining choices including Outback Steak House. These are along the main drags. The small painted stucco houses with the scrawny dogs and the men sitting on the stoop and the women lugging plastic bags of groceries and little kids on foot are never far from the highways.
I wonder if traffic is seasonal – like the rains. We sat for 25 minutes inching our way along the South side of the Parque Sabana, inhaling the diesel fumes, listening to fruitless horns and watching motorcycles slither in between us. In the end, our driver escaped by cutting across a median and two train tracks at the next intersection.
Then at dinner, under an awning at bright red and white tables, we raised our voices to be heard above the non stop din at the intersection next to us. Regional buses, full of commuters, rushing to make it through before the light turned, commercial trucks and lots of cars – most Hyundais and small Toyotas. There was grudging respect for the light, and traffic cops seemed content to stand on the side of the road with their hands on their hips, but it appears the chief virtue of the SUV in San Jose is that it allows you to climb over curbs and medians to get through traffic. We walked back in that familiar mix of dark streets lit by the lights of oncoming cars and the blue fluorescent lights of storefronts and garages; you jump off the curb to ford the stream of cars.
Our hotel is plain on the outside with an inner courtyard of a pool and a few tropical plantings. It looks similar to but in fact is not where we stayed last time. It took us a while to figure that out. The clientele appears to be mostly Costa Rican – some here for a duration, judging from the furnishing in their rooms – and Europeans. The kids have their own room with a TV that gets "ESPN deportes" and Disney channel. Once again, cultural immersion consists of watching english programming with Spanish voiceovers, and knowing that you want papas with the hamburgesa.
I am up early because of the time change. The birds are starting up. I had forgotten how loud they are – even in the city.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Nicaragua Blog Set-up
Hello! It is Monday July 16 at about 10 pm, and I have created this blog at the request of my dad in order to document our family's trip to Nicaragua. We will depart for San Jose, Costa Rica on Friday the 27. We will then embark on a 12 day trip from San Jose up into Nicaragua and have many undoubtedly spectacular adventures. Hope you enjoy hearing about our trip! Adios!
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