Halloween Costa Rica Style

The last dinner with Chris & Sue

So the Santa Eulalia Sunday party gang punked out on us today, can you believe it? We were all scheduled to take the 8:20 a.m. bus into Atenas and then hike down to Barrio Los Angeles to the soccer field on the off chance that we might catch a "futbol" game there. But at 8:05 this morning Marcial called to say that Bonnie and Stephen had decided not to go and that in fact, he and Seidy were still in bed as well. With Chris and Sue back in the States for a couple of months gathering the paperwork for their residency application, our Sunday hiking plans were off.

After a pretty strenuous evening for both couples last night I suppose a more generous hearted correspondent might say one could hardly blame them. Bonnie and Stephen had spent last night watching the third game of the World Series, rooting with great enthusiasm for the Giants. (Of course, we know how exhausting that can be!) Marcial and Seidy had gone with us to the Halloween party at Kay's Gringo Postre, where we danced the night away in our imaginative costumes: a Rasta couple for them and Ernest Hemingway and Mae West for Layne and me.

Ernest and Mae make a lovely couple! 

But since I am not such a generous hearted journalist, I hereby officially shame them for their slovenly ways. Layne and I are obviously the hardcore couple in this neighborhood. Since we were up and dressed, ready to catch the bus, we decided to get our exercise alone. So off we went, arriving in town to find that the Fiesta Patronales (see last week's post for more on Fiestas Patronales) was still going on in the Parque Central and along the street in front of the Catholic Church. As we wandered by the food booths we listened to the melodious sounds of some sort of xylophone, as Ticas prepared tortillas on an open burner for people waiting in line. Had it not seemed so "touristy," I would have taken a video of the scene because it was a classic look at Tico life.

Monumento de Boyero

But onward we hiked down the familiar route we used to take when we lived in Barrio Los Angeles, remembering the noisy traffic along the main road before taking the turn off at the Monumento de Boyero, which commemorates the historical route of the oxcarts and marks the entrance to the community of Los Angeles. (See this post for more on oxcart history.) After stopping for short rests at a couple of bus benches, we eventually arrived at the soccer field. A worker was mowing the grass and coach-types were just starting to put up the game paraphernalia but when we asked what time the game would start, we learned that it was still more than an hour away. So after a pleasant break, Layne and I headed back toward Atenas, stopping off for a few groceries before calling a taxi for the ride back up to Santa Eulalia.

So here we are with a Sunday afternoon to ourselves. But alas! We have no Internet! So who knows when I'll be able to post this blog? We have suffered intermittent problems with our broadband the last few days. On Thursday we thought it had been fixed after our landlord went to ICE (the electric company that handles our Internet service) to report the problem and a worker promptly came out to reprogram our modem. It seemed to be working until yesterday when once again it dropped off and we've been unable to revive it since. We're definitely experiencing withdrawal symptoms, so reliant are we on that technological connection to the world.

Of course, we feel a bit dragged out after a night of Halloween festivities ourselves. Though the crowd was much smaller than last year's event at Kay's, the zealous attendees more than made up for their low numbers with high energy as they danced to the oldies, drank wine and toasted each other's costumes. 

Seidy as da Rasta gal

Star Trek Commander Leonard and Rasta-mon Marcial

Trekkies Sally and Leonard

Hostess Kay danced every dance!

When the judges of the costume contest began their deliberations, there was little doubt of the eventual winner. Decked out in a sequined flapper dress, a lengthy strand of pearls draped round her neck and armed with a long black cigarette holder, Francis easily carried away the 10,000 colones ($20) prize. Although I missed getting a really good shot of her, this pose will give you some idea of her pizzazz. With her dedicated work rescuing animals here in Atenas, we know that prize money will be put to good use at the Lighthouse Animal Shelter. Congratulations, Francis!

Francis takes the prize!

Well, a couple of hours later and the Internet is magically alive again so I'll try to get this posted before it fades away. Pura Vida!