I have now been back in Costa Rica for a full month. When I returned the first of February, I also returned to the same villa I had rented the previous 3 months I was here. The Raihn family was happy to see me and I them - however - today I left that villa and this morning moved into a room that is on the 2nd story of a very cute beach house. I had only seen it once and at the time did not consider actually living there. When I saw it this morning I couldn't believe this is where I will be for all of March. The room is painted a bright coral color with a very high ceiling. I have a small balcony that looks out on the pool and the ocean is seriously - right there!!!!! I just dropped all my things before heading out to catch the bus to Jaco so tonight I will be unpacking and getting organized. The man who owns this amazing house is from California and his wife is Tico. Cecilia is beautiful and speaks a little English. Her parents and many of her 9 brothers and sisters live very close to this house. In fact, one of her brothers is a fisherman I hope to go fishing with. She has promised to help me with my Spanish and in this environment hopefully I will learn something.
Here's a brief summary of my comings and goings. After my last e-mail a girl friend and I went to a horse and dinner show about 40 minutes north of where I live. The horses were Andalusians and the show was spectacular. Before and after each performance the horses and riders actually rode thru the middle of the dinning area. They were so close one could have actually touched them. The sides of the dining area were stalls with other horses in them. The food was great - a perfect evening.
The following week I house sat my friend Tracy's house. It is the most unique house I have ever seen. It is 2 stories but is all open - by that I mean no walls. The ground floor can be closed but Tracy never closes it up. The upstairs is like a huge balcony with a bedroom that can be closed off - which I did close at night. Her house is at the very top of the hill with a great view of the ocean and the jungle in the back. Snakes can be a problem so each night with my flashlight I did a snake search hoping and praying I would not see one and thank God I did not. I did have a few large toads in the kitchen tho. I thought the birds were loud were I live but here next to the jungle it is truly loud - what a great sound to wake up to. Just remembered - tonight and tomorrow it will be the sound of the ocean :)
Twice now in the past 2 weeks I have been way up in the mountains with my friend Eleanor and her boyfriend from Canada. On the first trip we went swimming in a wonderful clean river with a macaw teasing us from a nearby tree. On the 2nd trip - last weekend - we went to a festival in a small Tico village. The festival included a horse parade. The most fun was had at the "tail gate" party before the parade. It was pretty crazy with Tico riders showing off on fired up horses. Some of the riders were way to rough and I could tell the horses were under a lot of pressure to perform. I had a hard time keeping my mouth shut. On the other hand - I did see other riders who road beautifully and I believe appreciated and respected their horses. It was all very colorful and amazing just to be there.
Surfing up-date: Because of the tattoo I had to wait several weeks before getting back in the water. The first time I ventured out was with Kurt and his 15 year old daughter Jennica. I foolishly went out with them on the beach we all leave closest too. The waves were way to high for me and I discovered the board I have is too wide - I can barely carry it. Finally after struggling against the huge waves I enjoyed just sitting out past the break with all the other surfers. Just that made it all worth it. I practiced sitting on the board and getting used to turning and maintaining my balance. After about 30 minutes I decided to attempt a wave. Big mistake - it of course was way to large for me and I got tossed like a dishrag in the washer. I actually did a somersault under water and was not sure which way was up. The next 2 days I was so sore I could hardly do anything.
Three days later I paid for another lesson with a different guy than the one I took my first lesson from. He took me out on the same beach but on a much smaller swell. We went further than I have ever been before. It was so wonderful just to be sitting in the water. I attempted 3 waves and caught 2 - very exciting. Then, last Sunday morning I went out again with my friend Brett who is the one who gave me my first lesson. This was almost a repeat of my first lesson - smaller waves - nothing but fun. He also agrees my board is way to big and plans to help me get it traded for something smaller. I am now a surfer chick!!!
Last week I went with the Raihn family and the 2 couples who were in the villa next to mine to a farm way up in the mountains. After paying the farmer to leave our cars, we all walked about 10 minutes up into the hills and came to a place where there are 3 very deep pools created by the waterfalls that flow into them. The 2 young guys with us tried to see how deep the middle pool was. One guy is a diver and went in first. His friend then got in and with the other one below him holding on to his foot, went about 4 feet under. The one who was the deepest still was not touching the bottom. About 30 feet above this pool is a tree branch that could - carefully - be walked out on to. Yep - I did it along with the Raihn girls and both young couples. My legs were actually shaking the first time but after that it was a blast.
Last week I had a truly amazing thing happen. I was walking on the beach early as usual - had just seen the monkeys for the 4th day in a row when I saw a red jeep coming up the beach. The driver was Don Fernando who moved here with his family 42 years ago and owned most of the land around Esterillos. We have seen each other a number of times going up and down my hill but have never spoken to each other primarily because he only speaks Spanish. As he got close I of course said Buenos Diaz. He smiled and stopped the jeep and then motioned for me to get in. Knowing it was safe, it jumped in. We went a short way up the beach and then he headed up a hill to a large barn that I knew of at the top of the hill. He stopped by a corral, grabbed a jug and waved for me to follow. I had left my flip flops on the beach as I usually do at the start of a walk so I was barefooted. We then proceeded to tromp thru the corrals with cattle and calves. Thank goodness it was not squishy - just moist. A ranch hand took the jug and started milking a cow. Meanwhile, Don Fernando took me over to another corral that was full of new calves and was talking a mile a minute. I just kept nodding, smiling and saying Si, Si. When the jug was full we headed back for the jeep. Half way down the hill he stopped by a beautiful yellow flower and pulled off seed pods for me. When we got back to the beach instead of heading back we continued up the beach. On this reef there are a few trees that actually grow even when the roots are covered at high tide. Here he stopped and told me to follow. He took me over to the trees and started showing me the moss, the leaves, etc. All the while just a smiling and talking, talking, talking - I didn't understand a word but just smiled back. When we got back in the jeep we continued north. Again we stopped by the reef and this time he took a screw driver out of the glove box and once again waved for me to join. I am still barefooted but stayed right with him as we now went way out on the reef. Here he started prying off barnacles, star fish, etc. Each one he would have me look at it. He was like a proud dad showing the wonders of the sea to his 3 year old daughter. We were both just a laughing and spent close to 20 minutes exploring the tide pools. Finally it was time to go home and he dropped me off in front of the villa. When I told Kurt and Kristi they were amazed and delighted. This is the same man they bought there land from and the same man who is responsible for the Mermaid. He is at least 65, kind and gentle. I will always remember this choice time spent with Don Fernando!
After 7 weeks of doing nothing but eating, sitting, eating, eating and eating it has been hard to get back into the shape I was in when I left here in December - but I am getting there. Bart has fully recovered from his tumor surgery and the results came back negative. I had him on the beach yesterday and he was acting like a puppy with his ears and jowls just a flapping as he ran in the tide pools. He is such a kick!!
Must get going so I don't miss the bus which will be an hour late unless I am 5 minutes late and then it will be early - I know this from experience!!
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