Year 2 begins! After an early start from Houston and a smooth flight into Liberia, we hopped in the same shuttle that picked us up a year ago. I realized this about halfway through while considering our driver's aggressive passing tendencies.
Our big packing win was bringing back 3 bikes! Now the whole family is mobile on two wheels. My bike commute and access to awesome bike infrastructure has been one of the top USA/Austin resources I've missed the most. While we don't have any bike lanes near us (or much of shoulder to even ride on), we do have access to gravel roads that lead to the beaches surrounding us.
Our first adventure had us riding to Playa Puerto Viejo for a beach day. It was a beautifully sunny day in the rainy season and everything was going as smoothly as it can on a very bumpy road, until we came to the crest of the biggest colina (hill) between our condo and the beach. It is a deceivingly steep decent on the backside because the climb from our condo is so gradual. I was only able to get out a quick reminder to S&P to use their brakes to control their speed before we started down. Immediately it was apparent that P was doing the opposite and letting it rip! Once she hit critical velocity, her brakes were useless, a bit of panic set in and the front wheel started to wobble back and forth out of control. One big rock hit and she was up and over the front of her handlebars. Thankfully no cars were coming in the other direction so she only had to contend with rocky ground. By the time I caught up with her and untangled her limbs from her wrecked bike, she was pretty shaken up and crying. While in my arms and between sobs her first words were "No me gusta mi bici." She is one tough chick, after about a minute of hugs and a sip of water she walked her bike down the rest of the hill and hopped back on to finish the ride to the beach. I was so proud to see her bravely continue after a scary moment and that her first reaction was to speak in Spanish. :-)
Starting first grade and celebrating her 7th birthday, P is really coming in to her own. She is loving riding her bike, playing with her friends at the complex and at school, and being independent. Here is a quick photo montage of P since we have returned.
We celebrated P turning 7 with a KPop Demon Hunters Karaoke Pool Party! We had a great time celebrating her and hanging out with the parents of her friends.
Seen in the background. The star of the show was a gigantic Unicorn kiddie pool that was repurposed as a giant floaty.
She has been working hard to earn money by losing teeth. Good news, the Tooth Fairy is able to fly all the way down to Central America.
I've really enjoyed my gravel rides with P. More mules, horses, and cows than cars.
S and P with their latest best friend from our complex, A. This was taken at Marina Flamingo after watching a coral reef documentary.
Our second big adventure after the school year started was to drive north to Papagayo. A beautiful peninsula in northern Guanacaste that should be a national park, but was bought by developers with deep pockets who have turned it into mansions, a fancy golf-course, and all-inclusive resorts. Thankfully you are not allowed to restrict access to any beach in Costa Rica, so the residents on Papagayo are required to provide a shuttle service to beach access drop off points. The whole Peninsula has dramatic cliffs and drops down to the beach, so each access has hundreds of steps to reach the sand and water.
It is incredibly beautiful and provides great opportunities for swimming, snorkeling, and beach lounging for a day. No surfing or boogie boarding here. Next time with friends we'll bring a grill and make a longer day of it.
Just off camera was a troop of white faced capuchins that aggressively were searching through tourist bags for food. They only climbed off with an avocado and a green apple from our cooler.
We caught up with Gera, Deybel, and Kathy at Puerto Viejo. They took Cara to the top of the Cerro next to the beach while the girls and I went for a swim.
It was also good to get back to Playa Grande and enjoy the low tide pools, massive driftwood tree, and the Piedra.
S has expanded her cat-care business and picked up two new clients, Blackie and Chacha. Sybil took care of them for a whole month while their owners were back in the states. She did a great job balancing the start of a new school year, homework, swimming, and her cat responsibilities.
The highlight was when Chacha caught and left an eviscerated rat on our front porch as a gift of thanks.
Can you guess which one is Blackie and which one is Chacha?
After 7 long weeks of adjusting to new teaching assignments and schedules, lo fue tiempo para un descanso!
After plans to meet in Mexico City fell through, Scotty and Kiran found flights to San Jose at a decent price. So they came to me!
We had 4 nights and 3 full days of freedom, catching up and Pura Vida!
I was a bit worried before they arrived that the rainy season could bring days of unending rain, so we splurged a bit and found a solid AirBnB up on a mountain in Savegre in the neighborhood of Dominical in Punta Arenas. If it rained, we'd at least have a nice porch to enjoy our reposado tequila.
Turns out there was no need to fear. The central Pacific coast of Costa Rica delivered during our trip giving us plenty of sunshine and only the occasional shower after the lights went out.
Day 1: We headed to Playa Dominicalito and rented two surfboards for the noon high tide.
Highlights: inadvertently convincing two awesome tiko kids to climb a coconut tree with machete in mouth to bring down a fresh pipa for everyone, catching some waves, Wobbly Juice, watching Scotty drift out to Japan while trying to catch the next cloud break, frisbee tosssing, playing beach bacci ball, and dinner with white faced capuchins during a downpour.
Day 2: Nauyaca Falls! This is the second time I've been her. (first time) I was a bit worried it would be closed due to the rainy season and dangerous conditions, but it was even more epic than the first time. The pool closest to the falls was pretty gnarly, so we crossed the river and enjoyed the pool just past the first set of rock breakers.
Highlights: Rumbling with vulnerability to Scotty's questions during the hike out, The two tiered waterfall flowing at full blast!, crossing the raging river without completely soaking our lunch, Waterfall Haikus, beautiful weather, sunset throw at Playa Dominical, and utilizing AI for its intended purpose of altering photos later that night.
Highlights: Breakfast and later happy hour dinner with Chifrijole and Chiliguaros at the same Bar/Restaurant, lobstering, Wobbly Juice round 2, learning about Margarita Burns, Frisbee Throwing, Swimming in the ocean that's as calm as a pool, Windows down, Music up drive home, and one trash can Shwagball.
It's rare that a trip lives up to all expectations, but this one did for me and more. I was so proud to act as tour guide and show off that little pocket of Costa Rica with amazing friends. Huge thanks to Kiran and Scotty for taking time to come down.
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