A LONG day....but we're finally here
Trip Start
Aug 12, 2009
1
7
Trip End
Aug 19, 2009
Flamingo Beach,
Guanacaste,
Costa Rica
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
We also considered Hawaii for a brief second in time, but airfare was too expensive (will someone please tell the Hawaiian Tourism Board that there is a global recession!). Where is their bailout money to spur economic activity by subsidizing airfare from mainlanders? Oh wait, that's right they didn't get one because Wall Street banks had to pay out multi-million dollar bonuses
I'm scared to fly!
! To hell with that, let's go international, Hawaii is after all just another state... ; ) We looked at several Caribbeandestination but since it's hurricane season, we thought it would be best to avoid the region altogether. We had heard great things about Costa Rica from everyone who had been and even some people I know who live there. And when I began my search, low and behold the airfare from LA was great! We decided to limit our visit to two areas since we only had one week (remember, I've learned my lesson the hard way about trying to cram too much into a week's worth). And technically, Susie doesn't go back to work until the 28th, but I have just recently (very recently, as in last week) managed to save up 5 days worth of time off. So we're spending some days at the beach on the nortwestern Pacific coast of Costa Rica in Guancaste and several days in the rainforest/volcano Arenal and Monteverde areas northwest of San Jose (capital of Costa Rica for those of you who already forgot or never learned 4th grade geography).
So some of you might be wondering Costa Rica is not that far away by plane, why would it make for a long day of travel (the title of this entry is "A LONG day....but we're finally here" afterall? Well, by the time I got to booking the flight there was no more direct flights (at a decent price anyways). We had a 1 hour layover in El Salvador. That wasn't bad, but once we got to San Jose we STILL had a 4 hour shuttle ride to the coast!! So our trek that began at 5
Considering how bad it could've been traveling with a 4 year old, we were really lucky
Origami Art
. Isabella was a trouper and behaved like a seasoned traveler (the many games and toys Susie packed for her also helped). Not to mention Susie's iPhone which now serves as Isabella's personal educational toy OH and the Mamma Mia! songs she loves to sing along to on the iPhone (much to the chagrin of those trying to get some sleep around her!!) People pay good money for this kind of entertainment! Besides, where else can you get this kind of in-flight entertainment for free?? A much better value than the on-demand choices you have on most flights. She managed to get several fans who liked her renditions of Dancing Queen and Money, Money, Money! Also, while Susie slept I kept Isabella entertained with origami, coloring and other silly daddy-daughter games (ie. mainly taking silly pictures!). As you can see in the pictures accompanying this entry.
After we got into San Jose, we found our driver and rode off into the sunset, Guanacaste was waiting. Our driver and his companion were awesome! Tico hospitality at its best. They shared many opinions of where we should go, eat and do. The driver used to play for the Costa Rican national Soccer team back in the 80's before it was big sport (ie, big $$). He said back them players played for the love of the sport since they had to play for free and maintain full-time jobs outside of playing soccer
Say NO to CRACK!
. His companion was a young guy who worked as a tour guide. Needless to say we learned a lot about Costa Rica on the 4 hour trip, and more importantly things no tour guide could ever include like opinions and perspectives from Ticos themselves. Sorry Rick Steeves, even if you ever ventured outside of Europe (there are other continents after all) you would never had the first hand perspective on Costa Rica these guys had. : ) They're even bringing us homemade corm tortillas to eat with something he said we HAD to try but wouldn't find anywhere touristy called "Quajado". Take that Rick Steeves! When we finally arrived at the Flaming Beach Resort & Spa, we were happy to be near a bed (I got two hours of sleep the night before the flight and slept a grand total of half an hour on the combined plae/shuttle rides). We were also famished and headed straight to the hotel restaurant as soon as we dropped everything off in our room. Upon sight of the pool, Isabella's first remark was "when are we getting in the pool?" Thank goodness the pool closed at 10! After eating a hearty dinner we all seemed to fall asleep the moment our head touched the pillow. Except for Susie who had to shower and freshen up before bed. Isabella and I were "to hell with hygiene, sleep is much more appealing!" I had a very good ceviche which hit the spot. I think I'll like the seafood here....
Not sure what the plan is for tomorrow, but I know it will involve lots of lounging by the pool, swimming and relaxing on this little peace of paradise.
Comments
Fun In The Sun
Hey Guys,
I had fun reading all about your adventures in Costa Rica. I wish I had parents like you growing up. I never went anywhere until I was an adult.
Keep us all posted.
Miss youuuuuuuuuu,
April