Christmas Day on Isla Bastimentos, Panama

Again, we have been slacking on updating the blog, but I guess that is just our adoption of the “tranquilo” attitude here.  We have been very busy with visitors and have enjoyed sharing our life down here with everyone that has come through.  December was an especially fun month; Ticos like to have as many parties as possible leading up to the New Year.  Todd experienced this first hand with us going to many barbeques and family festivities.  I think my favorite party was the Chicharrone party held here on our property by the head gardener.  He bought a whole pig, butchered it himself, and then proceeded to cook up just about every part you could imagine.  The majority was prepared into chicharrone, which is a typical dish of Latin American countries, basically large chunks of pork deep fried to perfection.  Though I think our favorite dish was the soup prepared with the pigskin, Todd and I enjoyed plenty, while our Tico hosts continued to feed us food and beer.

 

As soon as Dana was finished with school, we headed off to the beach for vacation with Todd.  We decided to bus it, so that we did not have to cross the border with our car and explain to the authorities why we owned a car and only had tourist visas.  So our first stop was Puerto Viejo, where we rented bikes, enjoyed great Caribbean food, and Todd and I surfed as much as possible.  Dana was a real trooper about letting us be in the water for long periods of time while she relaxed on the beach.  We enjoyed the Caribbean vibes for only two days, and we were off to cross the border into Panama.  

We arrived in Bocas del Toro, and were a bit surprised to find it much more developed than we had anticipated, plus it was pouring rain, so it was a rough introduction.  After scoping out the main drag in Isla Colon we found a little hostel as the rain burned off and we were able to start enjoying it more.  The first night it was a full moon with a full lunar eclipse, so we watched a Reggae band perform on a dock over the ocean and waited for the eclipse to start.  While we were watching the band a couple kids sat down next to us, and it turned out they were from Reno, NV which was a reminder of how small this world really is.  Todd and I made it for the eclipse, as we watched it close out the moon we bet on the exact time it would be fully covered up, but neither of us were right, so we watched and simply enjoyed it, as it will be something I will always remember doing in Panama.

Jacob walking his bike after a flat tire in Puerto Viejo

The following morning we packed up our bags and caught a water taxi to a nearby island, called Isla Bastimentos.  At this point we had made two friends who had traveled with us across the border and enjoyed the main island the night before so we all left to the more secluded island together.  Duncan was a great guy from England, and Shell was a sweet girl from New Zealand originally but who also lived in London at this point.  Bastimentos for us was an absolute paradise; we stayed at a brand new hostel set atop a hill overlooking the ocean.  There was a path through the jungle to a fairly secluded beach, with decent waves and perfect Caribbean water.  We stayed here for many days, through Christmas and enjoyed the ability to totally relax on this special little island.  The hostel had a nice Christmas dinner, with a bonfire to follow but there was just something weird about being in the tropics for the holidays.  It was a unique experience that I am not sure I would choose to have again, but I guess we have the rest of our lives to be in the snow and Truckee.

Waiting for a water taxi to Bocas del Toro

We returned home to relax and recuperate for a few days before Dan and Sabra arrived.  During our recuperation we went out to the Pacific for a day to Playa Bejuco.  This is a beach just south of Jaco, and I will never forget this day, because it was the first time I really caught a perfect wave, and was able to carve on the clean face.  Todd ducked under as I approached him, but after catching hundreds of other waves that quickly turned into whitewater, I felt like I had finally made the accomplishment of surfing a true wave.  Luckily Dana witnessed it from the beach and she was as proud of me as I was of myself.  It was truly the point in surfing that I was unsure that I would ever get to, and once it happened I was really hooked. 

Holiday meal with friends

Following our beach day it was New Year’s Eve which turned out to be a great time.  My cousin Toupi threw a party on the roof of our house, overlooking the entirety of San Jose.  It was a simple Costa Rican style BBQ, where they cook many different meats and you just grab a piece with a fresh tortilla.  (This was something Todd swore he would take back to the States with him)  The best part of the party came at midnight, when fireworks just lit up the city.  Every little neighborhood had their own display, so being up so high we had the best view you could ask for, watching probably 150 different displays go off all at once.  The fireworks and festivities lasted long into the night, and we had the following day to recover before picking up Dan and Sabra at the airport on the night of the 1^st.

We played tour guides once again for Dan and Sabra as we showed them around the Central Valley, showing them the school, the central market, Café Britt and many other great things about where we live.  We then had another visitor our friend Nancy, and the morning after she arrived we all headed up to Arenal Volcano.  Here we enjoyed relaxing with everyone as this area is famous for the Hot Springs that flow from the volcano.  We opted to enjoy the lower key, off the beaten path springs which was as good as private for us.  Nancy said she had never been to springs that were done so simply and so well.  Unfortunately the volcano was socked in with clouds so we were unable to see that, but it was a great way to enjoy CR with some visitors.

 

The following morning we brought Nancy to the bus station so she could get back to the airport and continue her trip to Honduras, and we could head out to the beach!  We went to Playa Gouines which is often referred to as Nosara.  This is a well known surfing destination, and we witnessed why first hand.  For the first few days we were there, the waves were breaking at 10-15 feet and creating just perfect barrels.   It was fun to watch the great surfers out there and see their excitement after they caught perfect waves.  These were a little much for Todd and I but after just surfing whitewater for a few days, they calmed down and we really started making big progress!  We enjoyed surfing while Dan boogie boarded and just relaxing in this great little beach town.  One of the days we were there we headed to nearby Samara for some snorkeling and a little souvenir shopping.  On the way to Samara we finally got to use our four wheel drive and crossed a river on some back roads.  It made me happy to know that it was worth buying the four wheel drive vehicle, until on the way home we saw a Toyota Camry doing the same crossing without any problem.  

Playa Nosara with the Fam

On the way back from Gaunacaste we dropped Todd off in Puntarenas to catch the ferry to Mal Pais, while we headed home with Dan and Sabra for a few last days in the Central Valley.  Nancy joined us again on the tail end of her trip, and we had an awesome experience at a place called The Herb Ark.  I would highly suggest visiting this place to anyone who is visiting the Central Valley of Costa Rica.  Here they have one of the largest collections of edible herbs and medicinal plants in the world, and Harvey the guy who owns gives great tours with enthusiasm and his Arkansas accent.  The following morning we brought everyone to the airport and looked forward to having a few days of relaxation before our next round of visitors.

Marrria

Dana’s friend Liz came through with two of her friends, and stayed with us for just a night before heading out to the Nicoya Penninsula.  After they had their fill of the beach and the jungle they came back to stay with us for a few more days, so we could show them around where we live, and what we’re up to.  After they left, Dana had to start school and Todd only had a few days left.  So for one last hoorah, Todd and I headed out to Playa Hermosa for a few days, where we surfed as much as our bodies could handle and enjoyed hanging out.  We both agreed that it felt amazing to be catching waves and riding them consistently, for we really pushed each other to improve our surfing.  I can’t say that either of us our great or anything, but we really enjoyed being in the water together and having the comradery of learning such a difficult sport together.  It was nice to travel with Todd, both Dana and I felt like we really got to know him more closely than all the time we spend with him usually.  It is far different spending so much time together as a group, especially while travelling, faced with decisions and sometimes adverse situations.  I think the three of us as a group did really well together, and we certainly had many experiences that we will never forget.  We are looking forward to more visitors in the months to come, and hope we can find time to spend with everyone that comes through.  We hope everyone who is reading this finds themselves in as wonderful of a place.