Ready, set, go...and pack!

I have been back almost a month now and have settled into "my old personality".  I am going, going and sometimes feel gone.  How quickly old habits come back.  It is really easy for me to chill out and relax when I am away from home.  Actually, I think during parts of my trip, I was probably the least stressed I have been in many, many years.  But, being home brings out the "crazy busy me".  How much can I fit-in in one day?  If I multi-task, I can get 3 times as much done and then I'll be able to fit-in watching a movie, while I fold clothes and go through the mail -- coo coo!  I'll put this on the "things to work on" list (as if I need another list right now...)!

My 1st week back, I went through a bit of culture shock.  I hadn't driven in 2 1/2 months and was a little shaky at 1st - weird, I found myself continuing to say "buenos dias", "desculpe", "gracias" and other spanish phrases to people and I slept a lot.  But, the culture shock was short lived and soon I was back at it.  I have been meeting up with friends, doing some project work for my friend Ingrid, visiting my mom almost daily, going to my nephew's soccer games, getting my car fixed, trying to work out AND, last but definitely not least, planning and getting ready for my next trip!

D-Day (Departure Day) is set for Thurdsay October 9th.  Yaaahhoooo!  This time, it's ALL the way down...down to South America that is.  My 1st stop is Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands!  Yup yup!  I will be visiting Peru, Chile and Argentina too!

A few lessons learned from my 1st trip:

• White is not a good clothing option (after 1 wash, your white shirt is dingy white and after 2 washes, there is no real evidence that it was a white shirt to begin with, a little scary - is that the water?).
  
• Umbrella is a necessity - this time I will try not to loose 3 of them.
  
• More shirts!  
  
• Must bring running shoes.
  
• Must bring 1 pair of heels - salsa dancing in flip flops is possible but not ideal.
  
• Dresses are a good option - 1 article, easy to pack - must bring the magic dress.
  
• Messenger style purse/bag will come in handy.
  
• Don't need 3 pairs of flip flops.
  
• If you smile and ask for help, you are bound to get it!
• Don't freak out about anything right away - it's probably all in your head (let's hope).
  
• WE ARE SO LUCKY TO LIVE WHERE WE DO.  I LOVE traveling, seeing other countries and experiencing other cultures, but one thing is for sure, no matter what, I will always appreciate living here.

I envision the next 2 months to be less "beachy" and more big cities, big mountains, big hikes, big wines and big steaks!  It will be springtime in South America so I am anticipating cooler weather with rain thrown in.  I am also anticipating an incredible adventure...!!...although, I do have conflicting emotions about this next leg of my travels.  On one hand, I have done it alone and know I can do it so I feel very confident.  But, on the other hand, I am going to be alone for almost the entire 2 months.  I'll be with my friend Patty in Argentina for 2 weeks...Yay!  It's really easy to meet people and I am pretty social so that's not a problem, but sometimes it's nice to have someone with you.  Am I crazy?  I wonder sometimes...(no comments please). Here goes nutin...!  

If we didn't get to see each other this go round, I'll be back in 2 months - let's have a holiday reunion!  :)  

Also, I would like to say...thank you-thank you-thank you to all of you, my wonderful friends, for your concern and kind words regarding my mom.  She is still struggling with good and bad days.  It does seem like there are a few more good than bad lately, which is positive!  A few months ago, she was tested for wheat and gluten allergy by her doctor by way of a blood test and the results were negative, no allergy.  She has recently gone to see a different doctor, one that uses natural methods, and this Doctor thinks that that is exactly what my mom has.  I have to say, if this is what it is, I will be a bit t'd-off.  This type of allergy is something that was suggested by many, many people in the very beginning of these crazy symptoms and Kaiser said no, that is not it.  I have had Kaiser my whole life and have always had nothing but great things to say, but I am not so sure anymore.  She has changed her diet and we are hoping that this does the trick!

ps...I love all the comments on the blog site.  I can't always respond due to internet cafe time constraints but I love reading them!

Miami...for a quick minute anyway...

I flew from CR to Miami on Tuesday. My original plan was to stay in Miami for a week, then off to the Big Apple for a week and then back to the bay for 3-4 weeks to plan my next trip and attend my friend Emmy's wedding. But...the last few days before I left Costa Rica, I had been in touch with my sister and my mom many times. Some of you know that my mom has been struggling with some health issues since April of this year. My mom had been admitted to the hospital the last weekend I was in Costa Rica. She is doing better and is at home now. She continues to struggle with some puzzling symptoms which the doctors can't seem to figure out the cause. Because of this, I decided to forgo my weeks in Miami and New York and come home 2 weeks sooner than originally planned. I took the red eye from Miami to SF on Tuesday night so, to date, my one and only visit to Miami has included the airport. I will try and fit one or both cities in on the next leg of adventure. I plan to help my sister and mom out over the next few weeks and maybe crack the whip a little with the Doctors. I am hopeful that she will be on the mend very soon and that I will be back on the road come October.

I have been home for a couple of days now and have been basking in the glory of long hot showers, a super comfy bed, kisses and hugs from my nephews, clothing options, a fantastic bathroom, sleeping 8+ hours a night and all the other comforts of home! I will be hosting a party, a clothes burning party, and you are all invited! I am going to burn the clothes I have been wearing over (and over and over) the last 2 1/2 months! I am so sick of them! (Not really burn them, but if I could, I might...!)

If anyone is interested in Argentina, Chile, Peru or Brazil, let me know, let's make it happen! I am thinking October to the beginning of December time frame. Also, I want to and would love to see you now that I am back in town! We can go over, one by one, all of the 1000+ pictures I took - haha...not really! But, if you want to "Do" lunch, coffee, drinks, dinner, golf, tennis, wine tasting, dance or whatever floats your boat, let me know your schedule. I am pretty much free....hee hee hee...luv it and happy to be home!

Back where it all started...Liberia!

I made my way back to Liberia. I fly out of Costa Rica to Miami in 2 days and my flight is out of the Liberia airport so I wanted to be close.

I arrived on Sunday and didn´t really do much other than grab dinner and write a blog post. I found a cheap hotel, and that´s what I got...cheap. It´s only for 2 nights, I can do anything for 2 nights...well maybe, but this place is pushing it.

Monday, I decided to take the $1 bus from Liberia to Playa de Coco to take advantage of one last beach day. On the bus, I met Roberto. He is from Nicaragua originally but now works in Coco at a condo/hotel. He was very liberal with his life information. He makes $1,600 a month as a maintenance supervisor of the hotel - I think that´s pretty good money for a Tico. He pays $150 in rent and is willing to pay the $2 round trip bus ride from Coco to Liberia because everything is cheaper in Libera. He can get Chicharrones for $2 in Liberia vs $4 in Coco. He helped me with my Spanish and taught me some new words...nice guy. When I arrived at Coco, I thought "this is it?". The "book" said it wasn´t the nicest beach but c´mon. I think they should call Playa de Coco, Playa de Not So Pretty. It´s muddy and rocky with some garbage thrown in. I am not a fan. It wasn´t that nice out so I´d say my last beach day was pretty much a bust. I think Tamarindo is definitely one of the nicer beaches on the Pacific of Costa Rica.

Liberia is know for the "Sabanero" or local cowboy. This is cattle country for sure and the Sabanero is the highlight of Tropes (horse parade/rodeo/county fair). I didn´t get to go to a Trope but I did see a few Sabaneros. Very proud looking men riding horses, making the horses dance along. I am sure there´s a proper Sabanero term for it, I just know it looks like the horses are tip toe dancing.

One other thing I noticed, I was in line for the ATM and there was a huge line to enter the bank. I guess the previous Friday was payday. I watched as the people, both men and women, walk into the bank. I didn´t notice it at first, but then it caught my attention. Every man that had a hat on took it off upon entering the bank, not just one or two, but all of them. One of those "old school" customs still in force here in Liberia!

I am back in the good ole US of A on Tuesday. I am looking forward to consistent hot water showers and being able to flush TP (too much info huh?).

In the Citaaay, City of San Jose!

The tour office in PV, booked my hotel in San Jose. I was at a loss as to where to stay because the city is pretty big and I definitely wanted to stay away from certain areas, I just wasn´t sure which ones. I ended up about two blocks from the main square where the Teatro Nacional is located. A cute little hotel for a low rate, Casa Alfi...me likey! I was exhausted, dirty and spent when I arrived. It was nighty nite for me!

On Saturday, I was so indecisive. Should I stay one more day in SJ or just hop on bus and head toward Liberia? I decided to stay one more night because I wanted to do some "city" things, like go to the movies or see a show. I found 2 theaters but they both had one moving playing - nothing too appealing and the times were not posted. I found out later that I should have gone to the San Pedro mall where they have a multi plex. I walked to the Teatro Nacional and found a concert playing that night at 8, so I bought a ticket. When I was in line to buy my ticket, I met Brendan, a money man from NY. He asked me if I spoke English (funny huh?) and I helped him buy a ticket. But wait, small mix up, he wanted a ticket to the museum, not the show. Oops! He sold back the ticket and we ended up hanging out the rest of the afternoon. Later, he went back to the Teatro and bought his ticket back. We went to the concert together and grabbed food afterward.

The concert was a performance by the Orquesta Fílarmónica de Costa Rica. They performed "La musica en el cine" (The music in films). I seem to remember this discussed during a few meetings at an old employer of mine...hmmm. They had a large screen showing clips from different movies while the Orquesta played theme songs and various medleys from the movie. There was a lot of John Willimas music. A few of the movies included were: El regreso de Superman, El Señor de los anillos (Lord of the Rings), Indiana Jones, Tema de James Bond (my favorite), Happy Feet, Piratas del Caribe (close to my favorite), Harry Potter and, of course, the grand finale was STAR WARS (ahhh...make it stop - kidding of course!). Those of you at Lucas will be happy to know that the finale was well received. The people loved it. The Orquesta sounded really good and for the price, $14, it was a fantastic deal. The concert made me want to rent all those movies and watch them again.

I spent the next day in San Jose just walking around and taking in the sites. There was a huge gathering outside of the Catedral Metropolitana. They had music, food, clowns, people wearing religious t shirts and a priest was speaking to the crowd about the importance of family and some other Catholic topics. The lady at my hotel said that they have gatherings that big every Sunday...WOW! It was almost too crowded so I decided to head to the bus station. The ride to the bus station was pretty revealing. There are parts of this city that are really really awful. I am glad I stayed where I did and didn´t wander too far. I took the 2:00 p.m. bus to Liberia. It was a 4 hour ride that I was not in the mood for.