Costa Rica

3800 km by air can take you a number of places.  For Shelly and me it was to San Jose, Costa Rica from Toronto.  

The day started bright and early in Guelph.  We bunked at the Tremain’s.  They were hospitable hosts, and it would have been nice to visit with them longer, but that was not the case this time.  There would be another visit with them another time.  We had arrived at 8:00pm and were out the door by 5:30am.  Most people work shifts longer then that.

There was no issues at all with the first 7 hours of the journey which included driving to the airport, checking through security, boarding, leaving, and arriving in SJO.  

From then, it was a bit of a wait for the next leg of the journey.  A two hour layover was our fate.  Enough time to have a beer and a plate of food.  We walked around the airport a bit, and chit chatted with a few other travellers.  Then as advertised, our Easy Ride shuttle picked us up at 3:00, and the open highway awaited.  200km was up next.

The first 30km of the drive was crazy.  We were up and down and turning consistently.  There wasn’t one straightforward piece of pavement along the way.  Sure enough we got to a divided four lane highway.  It was still quite hilly and the traffic was moderately busy.  We did not exchange any pleasantries with our coachman.  He wasn’t hired for his ability to speak English, rather to keep the 5 speed Toyota Hiace on the road and out of the ditch.  

Along the road, the route was smash packed with fruit stands and corner stores.  More corner stores then one would see in Montreal!  The other thing that I noticed was that pretty much all of the houses, from the opulent to the run down, were gated or fenced.  Whether it was a security measure, or it is just what people do, I never found out.  But lots of high walls and fencing that does not convey a friendly neighbourly welcome feel.  Lots of skinny cows and skinny horses too, but no evidence of large scale agriculture.  The rocky terrain and semi mountainous vistas ensure that.

By 6:30, 3 and a half hours after the hack picked us up, we had arrived in Domincal.  It was pitched dark, but the village was still bustling from the touristy activities it is known for.  With a bit of investigation,  we found our lodging.  It was right were it was supposed to be.  We had played our selfs out with a long day of travel, so the only thing left to do was refreshed with a shower, and retire to rest.

The roosters would awaken us soon enough the next morning.