Caminando sin Rumbo (Wandering)

Note: I wrote this in shifts so if I repeat myself...that is why.

Time seems to be going by incredibly fast! I have just about 3 more weeks left in this country and while I have previously been counting down the days until my return I fear that once I escape the ranch I will be able to finally enjoy all that Costa Rica has to offer, and therefore not want to leave. Only time will tell. Three more days of work and even that won’t be too bad. We’ve completed all requirements, hours, and are just here almost as a formality at this point. The past few days we’ve been making signs and just started a data entry project to create a massive mailing list. Good times!! Saturday is moving day and right now the plan is to leave super early Sunday morning to head towards Tortuguero, a national park reachable only by air or boat. We’ll be taking a boat and it is known as Costa Rica’s Amazon so naturally, I am pumped. Don’t worry, I’ll be taking pictures like crazy! After that we’ll head to Cahuita and Puerto Viejo, two reggae towns on the Caribbean with lots of Afro-Caribbean influence. Look forward to more stories on the way about all of that. After our travels we’ll be learning all about how to throw pizzas and coming up with cool marketing ideas for Pizza John’s. I think I’ve mentioned all of these plans in the past few blogs, but it’s all something I’m clearly very excited about.

This past weekend I embarked on a solo adventure to San Jose or more specifically, the suburb of Moravia to visit my friend Michele and her husband Lisandro. I met Michele 7 years ago while here in Costa Rica on a mission trip with my church. It’s been about 5 years since we’ve seen one another and it was great to catch up and hang out and share life for a few days! I left immediately after work on Friday and arrived 5 hours later after switching buses twice in a super sketchy area of San Jose at 9:30pm. Luckily Michele and Lisandro were right behind the bus waiting for me! Saturday they had a wedding to go to for most of the day so I spent a wonderful morning eating delicious, real people food like toast with JAM and CREAM CHEESE and FRUIT and ICED TEA. I was in heaven! I had an apple with peanut butter and really, was so happy. I got to talk to my family via Skype Video Chat which takes the joy of Skype to a whole new level—how great to be able to talk AND see the people you are chatting with! And with a good connection too, rather than sounding like I was stuttering or had suddenly turned into a choppy robot. Ah the simple joys of life. Around noon I decided to hop onto a bus and start a day of exploring. I had no idea where I was going or what to do so I just got off at the end of the route and wandered around until I found a few plazas and lots of people. Saturdays are busy days in the city with tons of people selling all sorts of pirated DVDs, random things, and lots of fruit stands! I bought a really cheesy/awesome t-shirt semi on impulse and semi because I spent about 15 minutes in the store looking at each and every t-shirt and asking for specific things that they just didn’t have for sale. It’s really not that bad, but I definitely laughed at myself later in the day. Can we say minor buyer’s remorse??

I found a pedestrian path that wove its way through the city that cars are not allowed on so I followed that for a while until I got distracted by cool statues and plazas and intricate churches. I’ve always appreciated massive cathedrals and all the ornate architecture and symbolism that goes on. I then decided to embark upon an impromptu church tour, finding and entering as many churches as possible that I deemed were not in too sketch of an area. Inside was so peaceful, and I spent almost an hour in the first one! Being able to walk without any direction and do absolutely whatever is one of the most freeing feelings in the world. I like plans, but more and more I am falling in love with being even more spontaneous and just entering situations on pure impulse. It’s much more adventurous and adds a whole new element of surprise to the situation! Don’t worry though; I’m always smart and cautious before jumping in too fast head first. 

So beyond the church tour I also visited the Mercado Central (Central Market) and wandered around the stalls. I saw some nasty pieces of animals, lots of herbs with all their respective cures etc, lots of fruits and veggies that I’ve never seen before, and tons of people. Saturday was definitely an enjoyable people watching day. Unfortunately there weren’t many places to just sit down and watch the world go by as many of those spots were already taken by allll the people out enjoying the day. (It was perfect! Slight breeze, slight sun, perfect temp, and only rained a little bit!) I finally entered the “Food Mall Palace”, home of Church’s Chicken, Papa John’s, and Burger King for an hour while I waited to hear back from another friend Ross, who was visiting his brother in Heredia, another suburb of San Jose. I had bought National Geographic Traveler in Spanish at a little bookstore along the way during my wanderings so it was fun to sit down and read through that. Only after I brought it back to the ranch did I realize that it was actually not the most current issue, but at least it was only $3. Traveling stories don’t change all that much from month to month. Ross showed up and thanks to Michele lending me her cell phone for the day I was actually able to find him, his brother, and his brother’s girlfriend. We enjoyed a delicious meal from Burger King: hamburguesas ticas. It’s a so-called Costa Rican hamburger, which I wouldn’t agree with as I’ve had others that seem more “tica” but hey, it’s BK, they’ll call it however they want. So this burger had a fried tortilla in the middle of it, along with refried black beans (and probably some rice too! …just kidding) and then the burger, lettuce, and tomato and mayo. Good stuff! We walked around after dinner and perused a market that was very reminiscent of the feria that I frequented back in Viña during my delightful Chile days. I was hoping to buy some earrings to replace some of the ones that I had to throw away thanks to the mold attack but no such luck this time. We enjoyed a banana split with orange, blackberry, and guanabana ice cream, whipped cream, nuts, and the banana of course. Mmmmmmmmm. If you didn’t already know this about me, one fun fact is that I definitely possess a deep appreciation for good food. And variety. ;)

They walked me to my bus stop and I headed back to Moravia where Michele was baking up some delicious desserts. Why oh why have I stayed so long at this ranch???  The three of us watched a movie and I read a little before falling fast asleep.

Sunday was a wonderful day. I woke up at 8am, read more, and then had another delicious breakfast and a yummy cup of coffee. At 10:15 we hopped into the car and drove up the mountain to Coronado, another suburb where their church is located. It wasn’t my first time attending church in Spanish, but it was definitely one of the first that I attended that I actually understood about 90-95% of what was going on. Singing in Spanish is always enjoyable, and trying to follow along with the pastor was a challenging yet enjoyable experience as well. There was so much joy in that place, I enjoyed being there immensely. In the afternoon we made oatmeal cookies and enjoyed a leisurely walk through the plaza and town of Moravia before heading off to Cultura Extrema, the youth group that Lisandro began and that he and Michele now lead. It’s in a small part of a warehouse and the kids are awesome! Everyone was so welcoming and fun-loving. They taught me how to play Skip Bo, which was a challenge in Spanish and with loud music playing, this made it harder to hear. I still got the hang of it though, and ended up winning. Definitely beginner’s luck as I didn’t have a clue what was going on most of the time. Or maybe I did…who knows. We played a game of Spoons and then everyone joined in a competition of guys vs. girls trying to guess and then begin to sing songs that Lisandro chose. I knew a few, but not before someone else had run up and grabbed the microphone. Worship was again awesome as everyone’s voices rose to the ceiling as one, so moving. There was a talk and we partnered up and asked one another questions about our lives…so much great Spanish practice in one day!

The three of us went and got Subway after Cultura Extrema and enjoyed our sandwiches in front of the TV back in Moravia, watching the end of the Miss Universe 2009 competition. For those of you that know me well you know that I rarely watch TV while in the States but it was another good dose of healthy civilization and pure entertainment for the weekend. The best part was that it was a channel broadcast directly from Colorado so not only was it all in English but it also had advertisements for places and news happening around Colorado. Good night!

Monday morning I woke up at 5:15am, said goodbye, and hopped into a taxi for the bus terminal. Surprisingly there were a decent number of other people, mostly gringos, waiting for the bus when I arrived. I got onto the bus around 6:15am and promptly fell asleep while staring out the window watching the world wake up and head to work. It was a long journey and I finally arrived to Fortuna around 10:45am. The shuttle back to the ranch leaves around noon, so I wandered around, read some, and generally enjoyed the day. The shuttle hadn’t been running all that regularly lately, so I took a risk that it might not be there to take me back at noon. In that case my plan was to either a) hitchhike or b) hope that I ran into someone I knew who was headed in that general direction, not an entirely ridiculous hope as Fortuna is small and I know people. ;) Around 11:50am I was scoping out the area, trying to decide who might be the best candidate to ask for a ride, as well as if I should just start walking and see how far I could go before I got too tired. I really was in no hurry to get back to work, and doubted that I’d even be missed. I ran into Memo a little before noon and he also had plans to head back to the ranch. We waited until 12:15, and the shuttle still hadn’t showed up. He suggested we go to the river and enjoy the day out there, but I was still excited about the prospect of trying to hitchhike. A little later, we ran into Derek who told us that the shuttle was leaving at 12:30 that day. Strange, but good to know. I went to the bakery to grab a few things to eat and then hopped onto the shuttle back to the ranch. Great trip, and no one minded that I hadn’t been there.

This week has been super great, tying up loose ends and finishing up mini projects, hanging out and just enjoying life. I climbed up the Mirador again, which was great fun just as it has been the last couple of times I’ve done it. It has been raining more, which is hard to believe I know, but we’ve still had some great few hours of sunshine that are appropriately cherished.

Today is our last day at the ranch and we’ll be moving tomorrow morning to Pizza John’s. Yay! I went over there a couple of nights ago to train and even got to wait on a couple tables and make a pizza. Judging by that first night of learning how things work around there, I am confident it’s going to be a great time. More details as they arrive! The great news is that the internet at Pizza John’s is near normal high speed quality so posting pictures and talking on Skype will be even easier. Hoo-rah.

Enjoy the weekend, check back in 10 days or so for some travel stories!

Cheers,
Katie :)