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Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Giant Grasshopper Attack and Other Costa Rican Excitement

Life is sure full of surprises here, some quite dramatic. The other morning as I was sitting out front putting on my shoes before our walk, I had one such experience. Because of the rains lately, I had taken to leaving my walking shoes on the front porch to avoid tracking mud inside. As I pushed my socked foot down into the shoe, I felt a lump by my little toe. Wondering what could be the cause, I pulled off the shoe and was shocked when a huge insect jumped out and right onto my shirt! I screamed, threw down the shoe and quickly knocked the creature off. It was only a big 3-inch grasshopper but, poor fellow, he took the worst of it as I fear I injured his legs when my foot pressed against him. Still, in my rush to be rid of him, I pushed him off the porch into the grass without memorializing him with a photograph. Needless to say, I have stopped leaving shoes outside.
         A more enjoyable surprise of late was when sitting here at my desk, I glanced out the window and noticed a very large, beautiful green-toned bird sitting on the tree limb. I wanted to grab the camera and take a shot but I knew that he would fly away if I opened the back door, so I settled for studying him carefully enough to locate a photo online. Adding to the day’s amazements, we then spied the same kind of bird while on our walk down the hill. This one perched in trees nearby, always just out of sight for a photo, then landed on the ground where I could almost - but not quite - get the camera focused on his stunning feathers. As we strolled the grounds of Capre Verde apartments at the bottom of the hill, we noticed another strolling critter: a large Iguana. He stopped long enough to give us the eye and for me to shoot his picture before scurrying under the curb. Those are the kind of surprises I like!
         Another pleasant discovery in our first month here has been the growing friendship with our landlords, Odilie and Eduardo. They have proven to be a delightful couple who share many of our interests and some common values. One evening last week, we invited them to meet us “at the rancho,” the covered barbeque area near the swimming pool, for dinner. Back on the day we moved into this apartment, Odie had driven us to PriceSmart to shop and we had bought some bacon-wrapped filet mignons - six for $12, or $2 each. In our first sample, we found them to be quite tasty and we wanted to share them with Odie and Eduardo. Over dinner of the filets and grilled organic zucchini, we laughed and chatted like old friends. Odie described her childhood in a poor family here in Costa Rica where she was working cleaning houses by age nine. Her mother, however, had a vision for her children. Understanding the value of education, she insisted on good grades -- nothing less than a B would do, Odie said. With those good grades as ammunition, her mother applied for scholarships for Odie and her sister and the two young women won an educational trip to the United States. That experience, Odie said, made all the difference. She now runs a successful Spanish language school here in Atenas, which brings people from the United States, Canada and beyond to learn the language in a community-based, interactive program, becoming fully immersed in the Latin culture of Costa Rica.
         Her story led us to a broader discussion of the importance of education in improving people’s lives around the world. I introduced her and Eduardo to the micro-finance concept so well embodied by Kiva.org, my favorite charity, which makes micro-loans to people in developing countries, who cannot qualify for regular bank loans, so that they can grow their small businesses. I told her that the loans that I make are often influenced by the personal stories of each entrepreneur. If the businessperson talks of wanting to build their grocery store or sewing business or farm in order to send their children to school, that individual is very often the recipient of my modest $25 contribution. I mentioned that one of my loan recipients lives right here in Costa Rica on the Caribbean coast and I expressed my desire to go meet that woman and see her operation in person. Hopefully, I’ll be able to make that trip.
         One recent development that is not exactly a surprise is the successful completion of our residency file. That is because our attorney Monika about whom I’ve written here before is so competent and thorough. At her appointment at Migracion on September 13th, our paperwork was deemed satisfactory and we are now legal to stay here beyond the tourista limit of 90 days. Because of the backlog of applicants, it will be about two more months before we get our cedula, the card that proves our legal resident standing.
         On Saturday night we celebrated our new status and braved the continual weekend rains to join two dozen other dedicated music lovers at Kay’s Gringo Postre for her monthly dance party. Layne and I are popular with this crowd due to our energetic footwork and our reliable participation. The one dance we don’t join in, however, is the inevitable “YMCA” line dance with its goofy, but hilarious arm work, forming the letters of the title in rapid-fire timing. But Kay and several zealous women dancers put on an enthusiastic display for the rest of us. As usual, it was a fun evening!
         So now we are preparing for a journey tomorrow across the Central Valley that will undoubtedly be full of surprises. Although we have never met our hostess Desiree in person, we discovered via email and telephone calls that we have much in common. I originally contacted her after seeing her moniker “CdnMorganGal” on the Association of Residents of Costa Rica forum website. I read that as someone with Morgan horses like me so I got in touch through the forum message system. Through a series of emails, I learned that Desiree is a Canadian and that indeed she does have Morgans up north. Since moving here with her husband Tim a year or so ago, she has bought or rescued three Costa Rican ponies as well as a couple of cows. She is even making her own cheese! They have purchased some thirteen acres of land and built a home near Turrialba, where the active Turrialba Volcano belches smoke and steam on a regular basis. That alone will make the trip rich with excitement, no doubt. But we also plan a visit to her friends’ biodynamic farm (see my travel article on biodynamic gardening), a hike down to her very own 90-foot waterfall and perhaps a Saturday night dance party in nearby La Suiza. Sounds like we should expect the unexpected!
(Remember, you can click on the photos to enlarge.)



Friday, September 24, 2010

Hikes in the Hills and Other Thrills


         We’re anticipating major rains here this weekend spinning off of Tropical Storm Matthew, which is now aiming at the Honduras-Nicaraguan border north of us. Well north of us, fortunately, but there is still a forecast of heavy showers locally along with some high winds. Indeed, there is quite a downpour even now, here on Friday afternoon, fat raindrops rattling through the foliage all around our apartment. I guess that means little or no swimming pool time for me. But Costa Rica is blessed to be located south of the hurricane pathways that crisscross the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, sparing it the worst of those tropical storms. We’ll batten down the hatches, as they say, and pull out a good book to read.
         We will miss our morning walks, of course. Usually, even during the rainy season, the mornings are gloriously sunny and just warm enough for tank tops and shorts. Our neighborhood lends itself to a good hike, offering either the almost level dirt lane leading to the main street of Barrio Los Angeles with its neat homes, flower-festooned sidewalks and a couple of pulperias, or small stores, or alternatively the steep downhill asphalt road into a valley below. It is this much more challenging way that Layne and I have chosen lately in order to build our aerobic conditioning and explore the jungle down the hill. The incline is severe at the beginning of our walk, requiring switchbacks for automobiles to navigate the precipitous slope. On one recent morning following a night of steady sprinkles, I picked up a broken limb to use as a walking stick to counter any unwelcome slide down the slick roadway. About halfway down is a puzzling sign offering ice cream for sale: Se Venden Helados. With no houses in sight, we are mystified as to where this treat might be found. Across from the sign, a narrow two-track trail leads off toward a small house in the distance, almost hidden from view by the canopy. Perhaps the ice cream stand is there and one must earn the indulgence in calories by hiking into the forest.
         At the bottom of the hill, or at least as far down as we have yet traveled, is a gated apartment complex named Capre Verde from which our street gets its name, sporting a large covered pavilion just inside the open gates. So far, we’ve never seen anyone around so we are unsure as to whether it’s actually inhabited. Indeed, since the swimming pools appear to be covered in blue tarps, we have our doubts.
         Along the road are banana and palm trees, yucca plants and hibiscus in abundance along with many other unknown flora. One plot of land supports a cornfield with rows of dried stalks standing guard. One day as I strolled by, our older neighbor was hacking the stalks down with his machete. I wanted to take a picture but it seemed intrusive or too touristy. Instead, I called out a friendly “Buenos!” and we exchanged pleasantries in my broken Spanish. Then I noticed this unusual succulent growing out of the top of a dying tree by the road. How it got there, I can’t imagine. Perhaps a bird deposited a seed from a distant cactus that took root in the detritus of the rotting branches. Just another miracle of growth in this fertile paradise.
         Truly things do grow apace here. On Independence Day, September 15th, just over a week ago, I planted a few seeds that we brought from the U.S. and within three or four days, the seedlings had sprouted. Already I have heirloom tomatoes a half-inch tall, three basil sprouts, several turnip greens and a couple of tomatillos showing their heads. The jalapenos are yet to bud but since our return in late August, we have found fresh jalapenos at the local feria, or farmer’s market, so we are no longer jalapeno-deprived as we were last spring.
         Besides the feria and the organic feria (See March 15 blog post), we most often shop at Coopeatenas Supermercado. As we understand, Coopeatenas is part of a large local cooperative that grows and markets its own award-winning brand of coffee, La Villa, manages the bus line between Atenas and San Jose and Atenas and Alajuela and operates the only gas station in town. But recently, we discovered a hidden jewel of a grocery right in downtown that carries a large inventory of somewhat gourmet items. At Mercado Canario I found rice vinegar, sesame oil, fish sauce and bay leaves, things I use in the more exotic dishes that we enjoy. We had only seen a narrow front opening on the main street so we were amazed to find just how well-stocked the long aisles were that led deep back into the store.
         We usually do our shopping in the mornings so we are back home before the afternoon rains. The early evening cocktail hour often finds us in the wooden rockers on the front porch on the lookout for visiting wildlife. Lately in the trees beyond the orchard, we have been entertained by huge flocks of gorgeous green parrots, which chatter like magpies as they swoop between the branches. My efforts to sneak down the driveway and catch a picture of them have been unsuccessful as they either hide very effectively in the greenery or simply fly away. You’ll just have to use your imagination on that one. 

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Independence Day, Costa Rican style!

Yesterday’s Independence Day celebration here in Atenas was quite the festive affair, with a colorful parade, food vendors in the park and hundreds of local residents in attendance. The parade contingents were made up almost entirely of children with every local school represented by large groups of flag-carrying honor guards toting the Costa Rican red, white and blue flag, led by whistling drum majorettes, followed by enthusiastic drum corps whose percussive rhythms pretty much drowned out the xylophone players. The few adults in the procession were kept busy, walking backwards, trying to direct the drummers to stay on beat or, perhaps more importantly, to stop drumming when they were supposed to. One man in particular seemed to have some difficulty keeping the attention of his drum squad, who continued their cadence long after he had apparently given the signal to stop. But at least they kept the beat!
         As each group circled the Parque Central and approached the city administrative building, a woman announcer called out the school name and the participants performed some choreographed flag routine for the benefit of city officials seated on the porch, always to the thunderous beat of abundant snare and bass drums.
         In what must be a Costa Rican tradition that we are yet to learn about, many of the children sported hand-painted masks and even full costumes representative of some of the wildlife in this ecologically rich country. Toucans, jaguars, iguanas and caterpillars marched down the road as well as two-legged flowers and other living greenery, each group proudly displaying a sign announcing their school's name.
         Obviously the crowd was full of appreciative parents and siblings, proud grandparents and other relatives who were there to cheer the youngsters on. Even the kindergarteners got in the act, riding along in their own colorful float. The cutest members of the audience were the small fry dressed up in traditional Tico garb of blue jeans, white shirt, red bandanna and canvas hat or vibrant full skirts and beribboned blouses. Layne and I got in the spirit wearing red shirts and carrying small Costa Rican flags, mine planted in my ponytail!
       Here are a few photos to give you a bit of the flavor of the day. Feliz Dia de Independencia!
(Remember, you can always click on the photo to enlarge it.




















        

Monday, September 13, 2010

Independence and the Coffee Bean


         Well, today’s the big day. So far we’ve had no word from Monika, our attorney, but we hope that her meeting with Migracion (Immigration) went well and that we will soon be over that first big hurdle. With a change in our status from “tourista” to “in process,” we understand that certain aspects of our life here will become easier. At least we won’t have to leave the country every 90 days.
         This is a big week for everyone here in Costa Rica. Wednesday will mark the nation’s 189th year of independence from Spain, making it one of the world’s oldest democracies. On September 15, 1821, Guatemala called a Popular Assembly and declared independence for itself and four other Central American countries, forming the short-lived Federal Republic of Central America. By 1838 the Central American Federation had essentially ceased to function and Costa Rica formally withdrew and declared itself a separate sovereign state.
         Back in 1824, the Costa Rican Congress elected Juan Mora Fernandez as the new nation’s first Chief of State. A visionary, he built schools and roads, promoted industry and commerce and was the man who foresaw the importance of coffee as an export crop for the nascent country. Under his progressive liberal guidance, land grants were offered free to anyone who would plant coffee. Through his farsighted leadership, Fernandez helped to create a nation of small coffee plantations, which led to a large middle class of property owners. Even today, many Tico families continue to own their own land with every square inch planted in beautiful dark green coffee plants. And although a group of large coffee barons developed, they cooperated with peasant coffee farmers in processing the crops for export and with their eventual wealth, invested in the nation’s infrastructure, building a new road to transport coffee from high in the Central Valley to the Pacific port of Puntarenas. In fact, it was along that old road that Layne and I took our morning walks last spring. (See my blog post for more on the road and a photo here: http://fabulistadecr.blogspot.com/2010/03/mango-ceviche-and-hiking-old-oxcart.html.)
         The oxen and the boyeros who drove them are commemorated here in Atenas, since the main road through this town was the principle route leading to Puntarenas. At the juncture of that main road and the side road leading to our current home here in Los Angeles stands a dramatic metal sculpture of a boyero with his team of oxen and his cart loaded down with coffee beans headed for the coast. Another tribute to these historical drovers is held here in Atenas in mid-April with an oxcart parade as part of the annual Climate Fair. (See a report on that festive event in this blog: http://fabulistadecr.blogspot.com/2010/04/oxcarts-on-parade.html.)
         Costa Ricans take their independence seriously with parades, festivals and other celebrations all across the country, but having abolished their army in 1948, Independence Day here lacks any signs of a military unless you count the drum and xylophone corps of schoolchildren. Layne and I happened to be here during mid-September a few years ago and were literally stopped in our car tracks by a parade of spiffy marching troops, little girls in brightly colored ruffled skirts and drummer boys proudly strutting along. In recent days here in Atenas, we’ve heard lots of drum practice in the distance so we fully expect a festive week in town. We’ll be doing our shopping early, as most shops will be closed for the celebrations.
         On a recent walk we noticed another piece of Costa Rican history in a neighbor’s yard: three stone spheres, reminiscent of the famously mysterious stone spheres found here in the 1930’s during agricultural work by the United Fruit Company as they cleared the jungle for banana plantations. Some three hundred almost perfectly round petrospheres, ranging in size from a few centimeters to over six and a half feet in diameter, have been found, primarily in the Diquis Delta in southern Costa Rica. Most were sculpted from granodiorite, a hard, igneous stone, or gabbro, the coarse-grained equivalent of basalt and weigh up to 16 tons. How they were made or what they were used for is still a subject of great debate in archeological circles. It is believed that they were carved between 200 B.C. and 1500 A.D., but they had been all but lost by the time of the Spanish conquest of Central America.
         Hoping for a photo, we walked into our neighbor’s yard and found her sitting on the porch. With my budding Spanish, I let her know I was a writer and wished to take a photo of her spheres. She was quick to inform me that they were not originals but said they looked much the same as the authentic ones. After a few photos, we thanked her and went on our way. But today, as we walked along the same street, she intercepted us, introduced herself as Anna and asked for the website where my blog appears. I told her it was in English but that seemed to be fine with her. Maybe she knows about Google Translate. I think perhaps I have a new reader. Hola, Anna!
         And just now on the phone, we have learned the good news from Monika that everything went perfectly today and we now officially have an “active” file. In a couple of months, we should have legal residency and even more of a reason to love our adopted country. I think we shall have good reason to celebrate Costa Rican Independence Day with great enthusiasm this week!

Thursday, September 9, 2010

To Work or Not to Work -- That Is the Question

Ten laps in the pool yesterday, seventeen today. Now that’s progress. So far I am making good use of that luxurious feature of our new home. We’ve been told that, just as a view becomes “wallpaper,” after awhile so do swimming pools become another unused element of a property. We plan to avoid that outcome and concentrate instead on swimming as a valuable exercise as well as the delicious sensation of warm sunshine on bare skin. Yes, we are using plenty of sunblock.
      Now once again the thunder is rumbling in the distance and the clouds are moving in so we have brought in the wash from outdoors before the afternoon rains. Only a few days have failed to bring at least light showers and on many days, the downpour is torrential. We are adjusting well to life in the rainy season.
      On Tuesday we caught an early bus into Alajuela, transferring there to the Heredia bus for a meeting with the publisher of The Costa Rica News, an online English-language newspaper. During the summer while we were still in the States, I had noticed an ad on the site saying they were looking for regional correspondents. I emailed a letter to the editor outlining my experience as a former publisher, my education and links to a few of my online travel pieces, as well as this blog URL. The editor quickly responded, saying they would love to have me as a freelancer. But the pay structure, based on advertising sales, made me hesitate a day or two as I considered whether I would want to work that way. Before I could respond, however, publisher Daniel Y. called me from Costa Rica to discuss the possibility of my working with them not as a freelancer but as a staff member in some capacity. Needless to say, having been unemployed for over a year in the U.S., I was flabbergasted to so quickly have a job opportunity here in Costa Rica. We agreed that when Layne and I returned, we would pay a visit to his office to talk further about a possible role for me with the paper.
      As I perused The Costa Rica News over the rest of the summer, I was in all honesty unsure that I wanted to join the company. While the website is well designed and the writing is generally good, the content is slow to change. Although the paper bills itself as a weekly, not a daily, there still is a need for fresh articles in order to retain the sophisticated Internet visitor. Week after week, The Costa Rica News front page offered much of the same material, often with only one new item. Obviously, the effort to recruit regional reporters, if successful, would help bring in more news but meanwhile, the paper seemed a bit stale.
      On the other hand, Layne and I liked the editorial philosophy of the paper and the selection of news. The content focuses on progressive topics such as the environment, eco-travel, information for expats and retirees, “green” businesses and thoughtful metaphysics. So we could see the potential for a simpatico relationship with this small newspaper and an opportunity to help it develop.
      But there’s a hitch -- actually, a couple of them. One involves Social Security. For Social Security recipients who live overseas and like me, have not yet reached full retirement age, there are stringent reporting requirements if you work or own a business. The rules state that you must report to Social Security any work you do outside of the United States, whether it is part-time or even if you are self-employed. Some examples of the kind of work you must report are: “work as an apprentice, farmer, sales representative, tutor, writer, etc.” Notice “writer” is one of the examples. That would be me. The rules go on to say that if you own a business, you must notify Social Security “even if you do not work in the business or receive any income from it.” Interesting, huh?
      Furthermore, failure to report your work can result in a penalty that “could cause the loss of benefits.” And indeed, benefits are withheld for “each month a beneficiary younger than full retirement age works more than 45 hours outside the United States in employment or self-employment not subject to U.S. Social Security taxes. It does not matter how much was earned or how many hours were worked each day.” In other words, if I worked more than 45 hours a month, I would lose some of my Social Security benefits. How much is unclear.
       And this is just part of the problem of taking a job in Costa Rica. Immigration rules here are quite strict in limiting the kind of employment that non-residents can pursue. Expats are welcome to set up a new business in the country and hire Ticos, but taking a job that a Tico could do is forbidden. And since we do not yet have our status as legal residents, we certainly don’t want to do anything to jeopardize that process or risk our position once we get residency. It may be true, as I had thought, that the potential job with The Costa Rica News would be one that a Tico could not do, given my unique skills in English and journalism. But at this point that is by no means certain.
      So it was with mixed feelings that Layne and I traveled to Heredia to meet with Daniel, hoping for a positive result but not sure how I could take a job if it were offered. But whatever may come of our job interview, we were both quite wowed by the young publisher. A handsome Venezuelan, Daniel is dynamic and visionary, articulate and passionate about his many projects. Possessed of a vibrant entrepreneurial spirit, Daniel seems to have many irons in the fire, from his publishing venture to a blossoming business in biofuels. He explained in great detail the promise of a particular plant native to Costa Rica and Central America, Jatropha, a fast-growing tree that yields a vegetable oil that can be added to diesel fuel, which he is developing through his company United Biofuels of America. More on Jatropha and United Biofuels in future blogs as we learn more ourselves.
      In the meantime, we look forward with anticipation to our attorney Monika’s appointment with Immigration on Monday, the 13th, to take the next step toward residency. If all goes well, maybe then I can take that job. Wish us luck!

Sunday, September 5, 2010

Oh, Give Me a Home Where the Wild Monkeys Roam!

September 4, 2010
It’s Saturday and we’ve been invited to our new landlord’s birthday party up by the swimming pool in the shelter of the rancho. We’re all settled in with bags unpacked, groceries bought and our complex address memorized for use in calling taxis. Try this on for size: Barrio Los Angeles, Calle Capre Verde, tres cientos metros norte, mano izquierda. It translates something like: Los Angeles neighborhood, Capre Verde Street, 300 meters north, on the left. For us it translates into a resort-like home with a friendly neighbor upstairs and helpful and generous owners up the hill.
         Moving day on Wednesday was an adventure from beginning to end. Our friends from Pure Life Development, Gerardo and Nelson, picked us up and somehow stuffed all our bags into the back of their SUV. Upon our arrival, landlady Odie met us and provided the important information: our new phone number, garbage days, the cleaning lady’s name, schedule and cost ($10) and her own phone numbers. Odie is a highly educated woman who speaks fluent English and runs a Spanish language school in Atenas called Spanish Immersion. Her husband Eduardo is a charming Tico who is working on his English as we are working on our Spanish. We’re told he loves to sing and dance so we look forward to his birthday fiesta later today.
         Wednesday afternoon Odie kindly offered to drive us in to San Jose to PriceSmart, a Costco-type membership store, where we could purchase a few things we needed to set up house-keeping. At the last minute, our Texan neighbor Linda decided to join us and in a light rain, we all set off, chattering as we got acquainted. Shopping went well until Odie ran up to us, with alarm on her face, saying she had just discovered that somehow in all the bustle of our arrival there, she had not only locked her keys in the car but had left the car motor running! After a few phone calls and an hour or so wait, we were on our way back home, laughing at the small calamity. That evening, Linda fueled a celebration in our new home with a bottle of Spanish champagne and lively conversation.
         On Thursday, Layne and I set out to test the theory that we were within walking distance of town. It turned out to be a half-hour hike each way but we made it to the large grocery, Coopeatenas, and picked up a few things before heading back down the gentle slope to Los Angeles. Not too bad. The biggest challenge is our own street, Calle Capre Verde, a muddy, rocky lane with trenches cut across it by rain runoff. On our trip to PriceSmart, we learned from Odie that neighbors had chipped in to do the necessary gutter work along the sides of the road in preparation for the city to come in and lay down caliche topping to improve the street. But in a scenario all too typical of Central America, after the pipe work was done, they were informed by the authorities that the city had no money, so the road remains unimproved.
         There are other challenges to life here. One rather delicate issue is that of the septic systems and the disposal of toilet tissue. In hotels we’ve stayed at including the recent Vista Atenas B&B, many restaurants and even our current modern abode, visitors are asked to refrain from flushing toilet tissue. We have been told that the septic systems can’t handle the paper. Instead, we must dispose of tissue in a trashcan, a habit that takes some getting used to. We find it hard to understand such a limitation in septics, but nonetheless, when in Costa Rica, we do as the Costa Ricans do.
         Still the pleasures far outweigh the difficulties, in our opinion. On Thursday evening sitting on our front porch, Layne noticed a large odd-looking bird moving in the tall grasses below. With its long pointed beak, blue-grey feathers and stubby tail, to us the creature resembled a wild chicken. A Google search suggested we were not far off. The fellow is a Great Tinamou or Tinamus Major, also called a Mountain Hen. According to Wikipedia, it lives in tropical and subtropical jungles, rain forests and cloud forests, making its nest at the base of a tree where it lays beautiful blue-green eggs. According to Linda, these are the creatures that make a noisy ruckus in the jungle just downhill from our apartment.
         But Friday night’s nature presentation exceeded our imagination as to what this new home might offer. Not only were there fireflies flitting about (how long since you’ve seen a firefly?), but out in the big trees just yards from our porch we watched a half a dozen or more capuchin monkeys frolicking in the branches, stopping here and there to nibble on some tidbit and leaping across huge swaths of air from tree to tree. Often hidden by large leaves and limbs and moving fast, they were difficult to capture photographically. Still, even at twelve-time zoom with my hands shaking from eager excitement, my new Panasonic did a good job of snapping a usable shot. What a thrill to watch those creatures in their own environment and to know we can look forward to many more evenings of such wildlife entertainment.
         It’s now Sunday and I’m only just returning to this post after a wonderful afternoon yesterday at Eduardo’s festive birthday party. We had a fine time meeting new Tico amigos, learning new Spanish words and dancing to Eduardo’s hot DJ music. Too bad he was unable to dance because of minor knee surgery on Friday, but it didn’t stop him from entertaining us with his vibrant karaoke songs. What a great voice he has! The group included Jennifer, Odie’s business partner in Spanish Immersion, and her husband Rob, and several of Odie and Eduardo’s long-time amigos, Anna, Roseanna, Memo and his wife Annie. Proving himself to be a karaoke pro, Layne even chimed in on the Elvis Presley song, “It’s Now or Never” in English, joined by Memo on the mike.
         To finish off the evening, we “crashed” Linda’s family get-together upstairs, meeting her simpatico son Dillon and daughter-in-law Anna who live here in Atenas with their two young children, as well as her visiting sister and cousin. What an excellent end to a fine day of Costa Rican Pura Vida.
         Now the thunder is booming around us and heavy afternoon rains have begun, but not before I had time for a lovely swim in our pool under sunny and warm noontime skies. As the steady downpour rustles the trees and lightening flashes across the valley, we understand why the “green season” here is so very green. 
(Just a reminder: You can click on photos to enlarge them.) 

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Singing in the Rainy Season


August 31, 2010
         It’s packing day here, getting ready for our move tomorrow. But I’ll take a break to draft this post and bring my devoted Followers up to date. We found our “almost perfect” apartment on Saturday. It turned out to be the very one that Dennis had mentioned before we arrived but then thought was already rented. Apparently, it was just miscommunication with the owner, so that a week later it was available after all. Just as we did last spring when we saw Hazel’s chalet, we fell immediately in love with the place. It has everything we wanted except for that second bedroom, but the “great room” is large enough to accommodate a futon for guests, there is a small office, and the rest of the place is simply delightful. All new and modern construction with lovely furnishings, it has a wonderful kitchen with a gas stove, which will make dinner parties a pleasure to prepare. There’s a big covered rancho a few steps away with a gas grill for cooking outdoors. And… ta da! … a gorgeous swimming pool. All this for $640 per month, including utilities -- not quite a Tico price but affordable. The landlords live in a beautiful home uphill on the sizeable property, which has a citrus orchard adjacent as well as acres of jungle and views of the mountains beyond. We can’t wait to move in tomorrow and finally unpack from our long summer of vagabond life.
         The day we were scheduled to go out with Gerardo and Nelson to look at housing options, there was a torrential downpour, a blustery drenching that we feared might delay the trip. In the midst of the storm, we heard a huge boom of thunder nearby and promptly the electricity went off, increasing our concern of a canceled tour. But shortly before our 2 p.m. appointment, the rain slacked off and soon our intrepid guides showed up. Still, the rain had taken its toll; as we neared town, we encountered a large dead tree fallen across the main road, requiring vehicles of all sizes to detour carefully around it. But by the time we returned to Vista Atenas two hours later, the authorities had already cut it back to allow passage and the electricity was back on, proving that sometimes things can move quickly and efficiently here.
         On our shopping trip into Atenas on Friday, we wandered through the farmers’ market and were delighted to find jalapenos, something we longed for all spring but never found. Contrary to what many people assume, Costa Rican food is quite bland in general and picante peppers are hard to find. With plenty of room for container gardening at our new apartment, I plan to grow my own jalapenos, tomatillos, basil, mint, tomatoes and turnip greens from organic seeds I brought from the States. Our new landlords seem to share our appreciation for organic foods, as well as other values such as recycling. The charming landlady we met, Odie, even mentioned her plan to get some chickens. How lovely to have fresh eggs!
         Friday night we called a taxi and headed up to El Mirador, the discothèque we frequented last spring, for an evening of karaoke and dancing. Our friend the owner seemed delighted to see us and Lenny, a Tico gentleman we remembered from earlier visits, came rushing over to greet us, a huge smile on his face as he pumped our hands in welcome. Unfortunately, the new D.J. had no English language songs or I’m sure Layne would have been on the floor, mike in hand, crooning old Eagles or Sinatra melodies. As it was we sipped our Imperial beers and enjoyed watching Lenny and others perform.
         On Saturday night, celebrating our success in finding a new home, we went downtown to Kay’s Gringo Postre for the monthly dance party. This time it was in celebration of Kay and Tom’s seventh wedding anniversary and the place was pretty packed with Gringos and Ticos alike. Not shy when it comes to dancing, Layne and I were on the floor more than most and when ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” came on, we had center stage to ourselves, flamboyantly improvising and giving expression to the lyrics. When the music ended, the crowd applauded our duet, with one man saying “I’d pay to watch that!” As the evening wore on, one of the Ticas approached Layne, inviting him to dance with her, a high compliment to his terpsichorean skills. He was flattered and delighted, reveling in the honor even after we returned home.
         The monthly dances are just one of the reasons that Layne and I feel we will settle in the Atenas area where we’ve learned the stores, made friends and know our way around. So yesterday we stopped in at the post office, or Correos, to rent a mailbox for a permanent address, only to learn they have none available until next March, when renewals come due and many will abandon their boxes. In the meantime, we’ll settle for General Delivery. No problema.         
         While we were there a Gringo entered carrying a big package to mail and struck up a conversation with us, asking how long we’d been in the country. As we chatted, he offered all kinds of cautionary notes to us newbies, from warning me not to wear fancy jewelry (what fancy jewelry?), saying thieves will “cut your hand off” to get a diamond ring, to urging us never to carry a computer in view. Although he allowed that Atenas is relatively safe, Alajuela and San Jose, like large cities the world over, are less so. There the criminals are willing to hurt you to get to your valuables. Indeed, already in our brief visits to San Jose, which have totaled only a few days, we experienced a near miss on a purse snatching while sitting at a sidewalk cafe, foiled only by the loud warning shouts of a nearby elderly Tica, so we are distinctly cautious anytime we visit the city. But I would feel the same way in Oakland, California, where drive-by shootings and random violence are so prevalent. Here in Atenas, we feel no such fear, comfortably exploring this charming pueblo and gradually becoming an accepted part of the community.
         (Drafted yesterday but unable to post due to Internet problems and photo transfer issues. Enjoy -- and look for another post soon now that we are moved into our new place.)