Our New Office

It’s time that Jason and I pack up our things and move on. After a full four months in Costa Rica it is time to experience new things and to explore other parts of the world. There’s that, and then our visa timed out too.

Either way, Costa Rica was good to us. We had no major tragedies (except for the lizard incident and the ATM machine that insisted on eating Jason’s ATM card…twice) and we managed to walk away with a pretty nice tan.

I mean, look at us. We are sun kissed. Don’t mind Jason’s crazy eyes. That’s just a new thing he’s doing.

While it is time to move on, there are a few things I’ll miss and a few things I won’t miss about Costa Rica. For posterity, I thought I’d list those things here.

I won’t miss the hours between 12pm and 3pm when it is so hot in Costa Rica that even the Internet slows down. I will miss the pool just down the path from our cabina.

I won’t miss the lack of restaurants in our area. I will miss gourmet cheeseburgers from our favorite Coco Beach joint.

I won’t miss the chirping house geckos. I will miss the howling monkeys every morning and every night.

Of course, I’ll miss the people we came to know so well and I’ll miss living in a jungle–even if it was only 5 acres and a little dry this time of year.

But now it is time to look to greener pastures. We are looking forward to a place where toucans fly above city streets. To a place where the biggest ships you’ve ever seen in your entire life pass through. To a place where they speak Spanish but refuse to pronounce the letter “s.”

I am talking about Panama. Watch out people, here we come.

OK, that’s not true. I can stand seeing the monkeys. In fact, I never get tired of seeing them or hearing them. I wonder if the novelty will ever wear off or if it’s like seeing a new puppy?

Our friend Alli would tell you that puppies never get old. No matter how many times you see them. Alli was here to visit us a little while back and she was enamored with all the dogs around here. Some, of course, are friendly pets and so many others of them are street dogs without a home, but yet somehow manage to get scraps and adopt owners when they can. Even if the owners don’t adopt them back:)

But anyway, back to those monkeys. While Alli was here we took a road trip to Quepos/Manuel Antonio by way of Jaco to really just see one thing:

Monkeys!

The national park, Manuel Antonio, is not very big, but it is known for all of its wildlife. We saw dozens of these white faced capuchins and then we saw an even more amazing monkey.

Squirrel monkey!

Apparently this type of squirrel monkey only resides in Manuel Antonio, so we were very lucky to see these chirping primates. They really are as big as squirrels and were not afraid of us at all.

We also saw a few howler monkeys, sloths, vultures, toucan impersonating sloths, Canadians, blue butterflies, and awesome beaches. The shopping in Jaco and the overall good company throughout the weekend was nice too.

Alli has gone back home now, but she is sorely missed. We had such a good time hanging around the beach, the volcanos, and the monkeys that we were sad to see her go.

A few weeks ago our friends Jake and Paige came down to the COSta Rica to tour the Coco Beach area. We were lucky enough to have them with us and had such a good time.

So much fun, in fact, that we developed a list of our top 10 conversations. Of course, I’ve lost that list by now, but I’m pretty sure on it we listed delicious ceviche, Jason’s misuse of the Spanish word, mejor, The Tabacon, and my overuse of the word p-o-o-p. (While this last one might seem strange, the sewage treatment in parts of Costa Rica is sub-par, and I just can’t help but talk about it sometimes.)

Anyway …

Since you may not know Jake and Paige that well, and I learned so much about them while they were here, I thought I’d take this chance to share with you some of the facts.

Fact #1 – They laugh in the face of danger. The helmet for the canopy tour was optional, but Paige did some tricks so she kept it on.

Fact #2 – Jake knows good literature. He even shared a few tips with us on how to best wear our shorts on our hips.

Fact #3 – They have mad photography skills. On a nature walk they were brave enough to get beneath this green lizard despite the risk of getting p-o-o-p on their camera.

Fact #4 – They’re willing to risk drowning for their friends. Without being prepared for how big the waves were really going to be, they listened to me when I told them to sit down and wait for the waves that would eventually come through these two caves, knock us all over, and make us giggle.

Fact #5 – They are photogenic. They were willing to walk and run up a couple of mountains just for for photo opps — and the nice scenery, of course.

Last weekend we took three days to visit Montezuma, which is on the bottom tip of the Nicoya Peninsula. We had some really good moments and some not so great moments.

Of course, the road to Montezuma was tough – loud, dusty, slow-going. But the views were excellent.

Here’s Jason eating pie for breakfast. We stayed in a cute little hotel (El Sano Banano) that served great breakfast. Most everything in Montezuma is vegetarian and organic, so needless to say, Jason was hungry.

Jason takes most of the photos you see on the blog, but every now and again I luck out with a good photo of my own. This photo I managed after an iguana scurried down from a tree I was resting under.

Later that day we saw the infamous white-faced capuchin monkeys for the first time. Caught up in all the excitement, I started taking shots like crazy, but none turned out that well (a/k/a all the pictures are just plain bad) and the monkeys were being naughty, which didn’t help.

The water was an amazing blue color and it was clear! But the waves were strong and the rocks made it almost impossible to swim and snorkel.

The next day I drug Jason out of bed at 6am to go on a hike to see a waterfall. He got stung by a bee (twice) and slipped on a rock. Our little adventure wasn’t the highlight of his trip. I think he would rather have been eating pie.

It’s not often that we talk about the work we actually do while on our international telecommuting adventure, but now we have a project that fits right into the mold of this here blog.

When we first arrived in Costa Rica we landed at a resort called El Verde Misterioso. Through a college friend I learned of the place and then later invited my parents to join too.

Actually, let me back up. My parents planned on spending a month in Costa Rica so I referred the place, and then Jason and I decided to move in next door and crash the party.

Either way, we had such a nice time those first few weeks that we decided to stay a bit longer (like 3 months longer, actually). And in the process, we picked up a little business too.

So, without any further adieu, here is the Web site we developed (when I say “we” I really mean Jason and his brilliant Web designer), wrote Web site content for, and are now marketing.

Click on the image to visit the new Web site.

We still have two months left in Costa Rica so I’m sure there are many more great experiences to be had, but here are my top seven experiences so far.

1 – The time my mom and I went to the post office and asked for five stamps. We gave the post office worker 1,000 colones, but then he couldn’t give us change…because he didn’t have any, I guess. After checking his pockets he just shrugged his shoulders and asked us to be on our way.  Okay, so those words didn’t really come out of his mouth, but he said it with his eyes.

I guess I can live without the 22 cents. It was certainly worth the laugh.

2 – The water slide and swim up bar at the Tabacon Hot Springs Resort.

3 – The canopy tour and zip lining experience is a must-do when in Costa Rica. Just be prepared for the biggest wedgie of your life.

4 – The day Jason fixed the Internet and we didn’t have to work outside by the pool anymore.

5 – Swimming underneath a waterfall(s). Who knew a waterfall could really take your breath away?

6 – Seeing a tarantula and a scorpion for the first time and the second time. Well, it was the first time seeing these bugs when they weren’t behind glass at a zoo or something.

7 – Jason’s expression when a butterfly landed on his face and the other time when a hummingbird flew circles around him.  I think the bird wanted to eat him because it hovered over Jason’s shoulder for a bit.

Last week Jason and I took a few days off to explore the Arenal Volcano and the Monteverde Cloud Forest. We had an excellent time enjoying the cooler temperatures, the lush forest, and of course looking for wildlife. We didn’t see much wildlife, but we did hear some. Like the dink frog, for example. The above picture is one Jason snuck of me listening for the frog that actually makes a “dink” noise.

We also saw groups of roadside katamundi. They are the equivalent of a North American raccoon, I think, but they are much cuter and friendlier. People feed them, of course, so they come right up to your car.

The only downside of our trip was that 1) we didn’t see any toucans (I’m not leaving Costa Rica until I see a darn toucan), and 2) we didn’t see any lava.

Arenal is an active volcano set in the most beautiful of forests. However, the area is also known for its clouds, which means that when there are clouds you can’t see the volcano. And if an area is cloudy enough to bear the name “cloud forest” then it’s likely you’ll have clouds, right?

So yeah, no lava for us. However, we did spend hours at the world’s most amazing hot springs resort – Tabacon. Seriously, I think this might be one of the nicest places we’ve stayed in all of our travels. I also think this was the most fun we’ve had in Costa Rica so far. Needless to say, I highly recommend the Tabacon.

Anyone who has traveled to Costa Rica most likely has a few navigation stories or opinions on the roads. We’ve talked a bit about the roads too, which you may remember from my post about the Costa Rica earthquake a couple months ago.

We were told by a tour guide that the government decided to invest in schools and health care, not the roads. We’ve also heard that the local governments don’t pay for roads because they’re waiting for the property owners to fork over the cash to build or maintain the roads themselves.

Whatever the reason for the single lane, washed out, pot-hole laden roads in Costa Rica, bumpy roads are part of the deal. In other words, you haven’t really experienced Costa Rica if you haven’t had a flat tire.

However, there are a few navigation strategies you can employ that might make driving around here a bit easier. Take this section of road we came across on our way to the Arenal observatory.

On this day Jason slowed to a stop just to take a photo, but the day before he decided to take the road at full speed. At some point you get tired of going five miles an hour and just want to get there. It’s bumpy no matter how you navigate so I guess he felt like full speed ahead was the best navigation strategy.

This picture is also from our recent road trip to Arenal. Looks like a little rain may have caused a mudslide. No problem, just drive around.

Costa Rica drivers aren’t much better than the roads.  The speed limit is 40 kph on the country’s two-lane highways, but the average speed is somewhere between 80 and 120 kph. Actually, it doesn’t really matter what the speed limit is. Locals will tail you and pass you despite your speed or the oncoming mack truck.

Costa Rica navigation strategy? Let them pass; even put on the breaks to make it easier for them. It’s not worth the accident.

In addition to the roads and crazy drivers, there are also periodic police checkpoints. We were stopped once and were only asked to show our drivers licenses, but we’ve heard stories of police saying they’ll write a ridiculously expensive ticket or you can just pay the fine now and be done with it. Of course the fine is for $60, but they’ll take whatever you offer.

How’s that for law enforcement?

Because the police can spot the rental cars from far away, I have a feeling its the tourists who get pulled over more often.

This is the car we get to drive from time to time. No radio, no air conditioning controls, no cruise control, and the windows barely roll up, but it passes mountains and clears potholes. Can you really ask for anything more?

I’ve noticed over the course of the last six months that many of our friends and family ask about the food on our travels, and I don’t blame them. I’m asking about food a lot myself.

Is it expensive?

Are you sure it’s chicken?

How spicy is it really?

What sort of beer will go best with this dish?

Food is important to all of us, and for that very reason I’ve decided to devote this post to food in Costa Rica.

For starters, we have our own kitchen in our cabina so we’re able to cook a lot of our own food — both American style and Tico style. We discovered pretty quick that American food is a total rip off here (my mom and I purchased a case of Diet Coke for $12 and my dad is still a little upset about it) so we’ve done our best to eat local cuisine both at home and when we go out.

What is the local cuisine, you ask? Rice and beans. There might be eggs or some kind of meat with that, but the “typical” Costa Rican meal is all about the rice and beans.

Thank goodness we like rice and beans.

Yes, there is a lot of good seafood to be had, but I think that goes into the category of “food only the tourists eat” and therefore is tough to come by at a reasonable price.

Next on the list of delicious Costa Rica items available for consumption is the coffee. Yum. We love coffee from Costa Rica. Negro for Jason and con leche for me.

Other foods/drinks we like eating/drinking here:

• American Breakfast from Pato Loco
• Watermelon
• Plantains
• The tough, but inexpensive beef
• Sauteed chicken sandwiches from Coco Palms
• Dos Pinos yogurt
• Strawberry cheesecake shake from the Catfish Farm
• An Imperial, or six

December 18th, 2008. Our first week here in Costa Rica has been exciting – here are the highlights.

1. Our place is pretty nice…but where the $%@# is the TV?! I didn’t realize how mentally dependent I was on TV until I had to go without it. It’s not that I need to watch television (the only “shows” I really miss are re-runs of the Simpsons and watching NBA games), but I never realized how much I enjoy watching a little TV to “unwind” before I go to bed. I had a little meltdown the first night we were here about no TV, but I’m better now.

2. We’re staying in CoCo beach (technically Playas del Coco), and it’s a lot like a small beach town would be in Southern California. There are a lot of wealthy Americans and Canadians here who have left their homes in North America and moved to Costa Rica. Most of them operate tourist friendly businesses (B&B’s, restaurants, etc.).

3. The weather is awesome. After freezing cold nights in Denver, it’s fantastic to be in 85 degree (F) heat.

4. Our rental car is a heap, but it’s one of the nicest heaps we could have hoped to rent. It’s dingy and dirty, and it’s dinged up, but it’s perfect and we love it. The A/C works, and because it’s so beat up it doesn’t scream “tourist” like a shiny new rental car would.

5. The internet service is not as advertised. Our hosts here in Costa Rica (who are quite nice) have absolutely no idea just how dependent we are upon the internet. We were told that our unit would have WiFi access, but it does not. You can imagine my frustration. We are working it out, however.

6. People here are nice. Everyone we’ve met – from the guy at customs to the people that run our resort to the grocery-bagger at the grocery store – is nice. It’s a sort of laid-back feel that you would get in a small town.

This is our little house during our stay. It’s one of 20 or so houses at a small resort in a secluded jungle valley just outside of CoCo beach. It’s about 10 minutes away from Playa Ocotal, 15 minutes from Playa Hermosa.

7. We’re staying in the jungle. Our house is in a secluded jungle valley. Every night we can hear howler monkeys barking at each other and the sounds of insects – every day we can see and hear birds everywhere. There are huge toads that roam the paths at our resort too, and they know no fear.

8. Bugs and geckos like our house. we’re staying in a smallish 2 bedroom one bath home, and bugs and geckos love it. We’ve seen spiders, “scorpion killers,” grasshopper like locusts, praying mantis, beetles, and a bunch of “other” bugs inside the house. We’ve also seen quite a few small green geckos that have the ability to walk on walls. We’re a little freaked out, but thankfully we haven’t seen a cockroach, so we’re doing great.

Finally, a bit of sad news:

It’s not fair. After my public admission that I inadverdently caused the death of an innocent little Aruban lizard, I ran over a large Iguana today (nicknamed ‘Launa’ by my oh-so-supportive wife) that just didn’t know when to cross the road.

This is not cool – not cool at all. Why would these lizards “sacrifice themselves like Samurai?” Am I at war with them?

If so, why wasn’t I informed?