Dominical Dreamin' - Part I

"Downtown" Dominical

From our first stop at Playa Hermosa to our last day out at Marino Ballena, our trip this week to Dominical to celebrate Layne's birthday could hardly have been better. If a funky little surfer paradise is what you're looking for, Dominical is the place to go. What a step backwards to a hippie-style laid-back beach lifestyle. I fell in love with it!

After a predictable drama with the rental car (why is insurance so complicated here?!), we drove off Monday morning with our friends Marc and Eroca for a four-day holiday of sun and sand. Marc had made his semi-famous tuna sandwiches so when lunchtime came we pulled off at Playa Hermosa. This quiet beach serves as the backdrop for one of the scenes in Layne's novel, Moral Turpitude, so we thought we should check it out in person. The black sand beach framing a turquoise ocean was the ideal beginning to our adventure.

Marc and Layne at Playa Hermosa

Eroca waves from the shore

Three hours later we approached Dominical. Immediately upon turning off the nice paved highway, we were hurled back in time to a quaint Tico village with a rocky dirt road for a main street and barefoot children riding bikes in the middle of the road. Surf shops, beachwear stores, a couple of real estate offices, a few restaurants and a lone yoga studio made up the whole of downtown. "Main street" consists of rows of wooden stalls where beach towels, pareu skirts, colorful dresses, jewelry and other crafts are sold.

Our hotel, Villas Rio Mar, was a real find: an eco-lodge nestled in the jungles along the River Baru, where signs warn of crocodiles. We kept a wary eye out but never saw one of the hungry reptiles, although locals told us dogs are regularly lost to the beasts. 

A bountiful buffet

The hotel seemed safe enough, however, each secluded casita a haven of privacy and comfort surrounded by tropical gardens.  The staff was friendly and helpful, the rooms were clean and well appointed and food in the restaurant was excellent. In fact, the breakfast buffet, which is included in the room price, was the best Layne and I have had and we've sampled quite a few now. Fresh fruit, gallo pinto (the national dish of savory rice and beans), scrambled eggs, sausage links, hash browns, pancakes, French toast, coffee, juice -- all of it delicious.

Our open-air living room

This first day being Layne's actual birthday, we decided to spend the afternoon lounging by the pool with margaritas for refreshment. When our poolside waiter learned it was Layne's cumpleaños, the birthday boy got a free drink. 

After an idyllic couple of hours swimming and relaxing, we cleaned up for the birthday dinner, Eroca's treat. Following this festive repast, we hung out at the pool table then retired for our next full day of fun.

Marc, the Shark

After a leisurely breakfast we were off to the beach to frolic in the waves and take in the scenery. As the "high season" had not yet started, we found the playa all but deserted, with just a few beach walkers and locals wandering around. Dominical's oceanfront is a long wide expanse of sand littered with a few large pieces of driftwood, one of which made a good "sofa" for us to sit on. Eroca and I headed for the water -- deep blue and luxuriously warm. The waves were just right for giddy jumping to avoid a face full of salt water and occasionally big enough to require diving beneath the curl as it broke in front of us. We laughed our heads off.

Eroca shows off her new dress

Soon enough Eroca and I, along with Marc, decided to wander down the road for some shopping. Only about 100 yards away was at an open-air store run by a delightfully friendly Tico who told us his name was Eddie. "You know, like Eddie Murphy!" he said, laughing. The brightly colored dresses hanging in front of the shops were hard to resist, at least for Eroca. Eddie's wife makes all the clothing and most of the jewelry, some of which she designs from coconut shell cut into star shapes or heart shapes, painted and bejeweled. Eroca found a lovely green embroidered dress with earrings to match. I chose a new beach towel and a colorful backpack with room for all my "stuff," which I'd been searching for. When Eddie's wife showed us the clever pareu skirt clips she makes from coconut shell and which make ten different ways to use the skirt, we both had to have one.

Eroca and Marc took off to meander through town and perhaps find something for lunch while Layne and I stayed behind to watch our things. Petty theft continues to be a problem in Costa Rica, particularly around tourist towns like Dominical, although this beach was so deserted I was hardly concerned. We watched as surfers began to paddle out and dogs with their owners romped on the sand. This pair of German Shepherds tossed a stick around and greeted beachgoers as they awaited the return of their surfer owner.

Finally, the surfer  has returned

Sesame Tuna - Yum!

Instead of going out for dinner that night we enjoyed another splendid meal at Villas Rio Mar. The dinner special was irresistible: Caesar Salad, Sesame Tuna over steamed vegetables alongside creamy mashed potatoes and Peach Melba for dessert -- all for $16. We agreed it was an outstanding meal. Afterwards we retired to our patio "living room" for wine and some jovial conversation.

The next day was off to the golf course for Layne and me. Watch for that upcoming report!

(Click on photos to enlarge.)

Costa Rican Shopping: Check Prices!

We had an enlightening shopping experience the other day on a quick turn through the aisles of AutoMercado, one of the large supermarket chains in Costa Rica that caters to the tastes of expats. We had taken the bus into San Jose, disembarking at Hospital Mexico, just outside of the city. From there we taxied a rather short distance (about a $2.00 cab ride) to Plaza Mayor, a mall where Layne and I have our eyeglass prescriptions filled. After picking up his new glasses, we headed to AutoMercado where we had recently found tomatillos available at a very good price, only about 1000 colones ($2.00) for a good size plastic container with 12 to 15 of the little green globes. I love this piquant tomato-like vegetable; it's a principle ingredient in Chili Verde, one of my specialties, and is delicious in Roasted Tomatillo Salsa. Oddly, despite being a Latin American country, Costa Ricans are unfamiliar with tomatillos, an item ubiquitous in Mexican, Guatemalan and other Latin cuisine. After treating our Santa Eulalia gang to a pot of Chili Verde last Saturday night, I wanted more, this time to freeze for a future dinner.

Also on my shopping list were pine nuts, another delicacy that is difficult to find here. We had looked all over Atenas with no luck but I suspected that AutoMercado just might have them. And indeed, as we cruised the aisle of nuts, I spied some small packages of pine nuts. Without a glance at the price since the bags were so modest, we headed to the checkout. On this particular trip, the lines we chose were so slow and we were in enough of a hurry to catch the bus back to Atenas that when we finally got to a cashier, we quickly paid our 10,000+ colones and headed for the bus stop across the street.

While waiting for the bus, however, I began to think about the purchase. 10,000 colones?? My goodness, that's about $20! How could two containers of tomatillos and two small bags of pine nuts have cost that much? I pulled out my receipt and discovered that the pine nuts were about $8.50 per bag! Back we went to the store and in my broken Spanish I explained to the woman at the Recepción booth that I wished to return the pine nuts. She was muy tranquilo about the whole thing, ringing up a refund receipt, which I took back to the cashier for a refund.

Lesson learned: Imports are expensive here. Read all price tags.

Eating and Hiking: Calories In, Calories Out

Carmen patiently teaches the Gringos

What a busy week it's been with Thanksgiving, a festive dinner party for the Santa Eulalia gang here at home (yes, another one!) and the 1era Caminata y Paseo Recreativo La Zopilota (1st Walk and Recreational Outing of La Zopilota - at least I think that's more or less the translation) held this past Sunday the 25th. Now I'm rushing to get a blog posted before I have to stop and do my Spanish homework. Layne and I have been hosting a Spanish class on Thursday mornings in our home with friends Stephen, Bonnie and Eroca. Carmen, a delightful Guatemalan friend who has helped us with organic gardening questions in the past, is our teacher. We've all learned a lot although I must admit that I started out somewhat ahead of others in the class by virtue of two years of Spanish in college and then some dedicated effort through Rosetta Stone; more recently I expanded my knowledge on LiveMocha.com, a free online language tool. Even though my vocabulary is pretty good, the problem I face is in understanding Tico friends and neighbors. Most of them speak so fast - as do all native speakers, of course - that as soon as I grasp one word in a sentence, they are on to the next paragraph. It's one of the few frustrating things about living here. I sometimes wonder if I'll ever be able to carry on a real conversation.

Thanksgiving Dinner is served!

But I get plenty of opportunities to work on my language skills, such as at the Thanksgiving dinner party I enjoyed last Thursday evening.  Held at the spectacular hilltop home of Dennis and Gerardo, the charming proprietors of Pure Life Development real estate company, the thirty-five or so guests included many members of Gerardo's large Tico family, friendly folk who are always ready to engage in sociable banter. Dennis is an excellent cook and the juicy turkey and all the trimmings was fabulous. Although Layne stayed home because of a bit of an upset stomach, I certainly enjoyed the evening and met a few new friends as well.

Almost in the clouds

The 1era Caminata y Paseo Recreativo La Zopilota mentioned above was a challenging hike through the extensive coffee finca of El Toledo Coffee, the excellent organic brand we buy most weeks at the feria. Gabriel, whose family owns the farm, is usually staffing the booth at the feria, ready with a pleasant smile and some new Spanish phrase for me to learn. For some weeks he has been promoting the Caminata, a benefit for the San Isidro neighborhood where the farm is located. We Santa Eulalia weekend hikers were eager to put our walking skills to the test and signed on for the event. During the long and exceedingly hilly taxi ride up to the farm, I began to have trepidations. Just what had we gotten ourselves into?

Had we known exactly what "La Zopilota" referred to, we might have been better prepared for the steep inclines we faced as we confidently marched off through the quaint streets of San Isidro. 

Off we go! 

Onward!

La Zopilota is a huge rock perched at the very top of the Aquacate mountain range that separates the community of Palmares from Atenas. That peak was our destination! Getting there took us through the beautiful hillsides of El Toledo farm, covered with lush deep green coffee plants, each dripping red berries ready for harvest. 

Coffee plants and magnificent views

The incredible vistas from each turn in the trail made the day well worth the effort but it was a challenge. So much so that at the rest stop about 2 miles in, Layne and I opted for a ride the rest of the way up the mountain. Even that ride was a test for the four-wheeler we were riding in: dirt tracks deeply carved by rainfall into a jagged ruts studded with big rocks, climbing up incredible slopes and skiing down steep precipices, all the while passing the more stalwart hikers and bikers still on the trail. With my foot pressing an imaginary brake and my hands gripping the seat, I was mentally exhausted by the time we made it to the finish line at the top.

But what a view and what a rock! Rejuvenated by fresh watermelon and pineapple along with cool water, we enjoyed the Mariachi band and chatted with Stephen and Bonnie who had also taken advantage of a ride up. 

Yours Truly, leaning on La Zopilota

Stephen greets Seidy as she approaches the Finish Line

Marcial and Seidy, of course, along with their sons Daniel and Gabriel and Gabriel's wife Alou, made the whole trip on foot. Seidy looked like she hardly broke a sweat! In fact, they were still so energetic they all walked the long way back down the mountain to the partying taking place at the starting point, food and drink, beer and tequila, music, craft sales and a raffle.

Daniel and Gabriel on top of La Zopilota

One delightful surprise I enjoyed was meeting one of my blog readers at the finish line, as we were all relaxing after our strenuous walk. A vivacious redhead whose name escapes me, she had a lovely smile and some nice comments on my efforts in chronicling our lives here in Atenas. Of course, I've often come across newcomers to Atenas at the weekly feria who have discovered the blog in their research before traveling to Costa Rica, and customers of Marcial's Italian Sausage are sure to be given one of my cards with the blog address on it. (Marcial is my one-man public relations firm here.) But it was an unexpected pleasure to meet one of my fans on top of a mountain! Muchas gracias, señora!

  

Hiking Palmares, Costa Rica

Eroca, Marcial, Seidy and Layne

Here it is almost time for another Sunday outing for the Santa Eulalia gang and I have yet to share last weekend's day trip with you. Compared to some of our strenuous excursions, this one was more a sightseeing trip than a hike. As unofficial leader of our hiking club (or as he likes to call it, "a drinking club with a hiking problem"), Marcial thought a bus trip up to Palmares to explore downtown might be fun. With an eye to the early Sunday bus schedule, we got our exercise by hurriedly huffing up the long hill to the Palmares intersection, or cruce, where we just made the 7:15 a.m. bus. The thirty-minute trip took us up and over the Aquacate mountain range that separates Atenas from Palmares and curved through some charming barrios, twisting along hillsides of coffee and sugarcane plantations and verdant tropical jungle. Topping the ridge we looked out over the picturesque valley of Palmares, a town that boasts perhaps the biggest two-week fiesta grande in the country. Beginning in mid-January each year, the small town is transformed into party-central with a big tope or horse parade, rodeos, dancing, concerts and fireworks. Cabelleros and their finest mounts come from all over Costa Rica to ride through the streets showing off their fancy gaits and colorful costumes.

Toros a la Tica, the Costa Rican-style of bullfighting, is one of the highlights. Unlike the Spanish tradition, these bullfights involve hundreds of Ticos who become bullfighters-for-a-day, jumping into the ring to taunt the bull but not to kill him. All it takes is a lot of nerve and a willingness to test fate by joining the rather comical event.

Our day in Palmares was less exciting than a bullfight but fun nevertheless as we wandered through the Parque Central where large iguanas lounge in the trees and reddish-brown squirrels vie with pigeons for treats left by local citizens. Like most Latin countries, the park is adjacent to the Catholic Church, which was just ending Sunday morning mass when we arrived. 

The capricious fountain 

Eroca, the juggling gringa

As the church emptied out, we were amused to watch one hapless gentleman stroll across the plaza and get showered by the fountain as it turned on in a seemingly random schedule. In another entertaining moment, Eroca showed off her juggling skills to the surprise of a Tico juggler who was suitably impressed by the bold gringa.

A squirrel enjoys a snack

Lazy iguana taking the sun

The church itself made an imposing photogenic subject for Eroca, Seidy and me. Seidy is a budding photographer taking photo lessons from Stephen, who taught photography back in the US. Although Stephen and Bonnie were not with us on this outing, having gone up to Monteverde for the weekend, Seidy was dutifully working the camera in anticipation of her Monday class. 

Seidy doing her "homework"

Eroca tries to capture stained glass

Inside the grand church

According to Marcial, each stone of the large building had been hand-hewn and lovingly installed to construct the church. Inside we photographers gazed at the vivid stained glass windows and tried to capture the dramatic colors in our cameras.

From there we ambled over to the Central Market for a coffee and some tamales, then headed out for a short exploration of the local community, enjoying beautiful flowers, lovely homes and the activities on the soccer field along the way. 

One of many nice homes

Plantain in a front yard

Community soccer field is always busy

But we soon had to mosey back to the bus stop for our return trip to Atenas and the afternoon potluck by the pool at Bonnie and Stephen's who had by then returned from their weekend trip.

Just another wonderful day in the life of pensionados, enjoying Pura Vida in Costa Rica!

  

Parties, Protests and Photo Projects

The "late crowd"

Given how close we live to a "blue zone" here in Costa Rica, one of those areas around the world where people seem to live much longer, you might think that turning seventy would be no big deal. After all, if you're likely to live to be 100 or more, seventy is practically a teenager. Nevertheless, when we learned that our good friend Marc was leaving his sixties behind, it seemed like a good excuse for a party. So on Friday the 2nd of November, Layne and I hosted a big to-do for Marc and about thirty of his friends and it turned out to be a festive event indeed. Even our favorite bus driver Johnny and his wife showed up plus several people we didn't even know were invited!

As luck would have it, just before party starting time, the heavens opened up and we were hit with the kind of downpour that only happens in the tropics. Although it did deter a few people who were coming from a distance, most locals braved the weather and made the trip up to Santa Eulalia. Unfortunately, the inclement evening made dancing on the back patio difficult since chairs were congregated on the "dance floor." 

The crowded "dance floor"

But my spaghetti -- made of course with Marcial's Italian Sausage -- Eroca's eggplant parmesan and Stephen's fabulous salad were welcome treats for the stalwart group. At the birthday boy's request, his cake was the decadent Delicious Temptation chocolate-on-chocolate-topped-with-caramel concoction made by the crew at Kay's Gringo Postre; it was definitely the star attraction of the dinner. Wow, what a cake! 

Marc with that Delicious Temptation cake

The early crowd soon made way for the late crowd and even with Eroca's invaluable help in the kitchen, Layne and I were still cleaning up as midnight came and went.

Eroca on KP

Nevertheless, the extravagance of Friday was no excuse to avoid our walk on Sunday morning but at least we all agreed to push the hour a bit later. At 9:30 a.m. Layne and I were on our way to Marcial and Seidy's, Marc and Eroca's, then on to Stephen and Bonnie's place where we hiked off cross-country toward San Jose Sur, a community up the road toward Palmares from Santa Eulalia. Along the way, we were met by a horde of racing bicyclists as they tore along the back roads, watching carefully to avoid potholes. As some of us took a break on a bridge, we noticed a huge nest in a tree hanging out over the stream, apparently home to a zillion termites. 

Bicyclists heading our way

A home for termites

Stephen under a huge Guanacaste tree

The plan was to time our walk so we could enjoy lunch at the beautiful El Mirador el Pueblo, a glass-enclosed restaurant with killer views that boasts some of the best fish around. The owner is an old friend of Marcial's, as he used to run a small bar and restaurant just around the corner from our house and thus almost across the street from Marcial and Seidy's place. Naturally, we got first-class service at El Mirador. Most of us chose a "casado," a curious Tico term that means "married" but also refers to a typical Costa Rican plate of rice, beans, salad, plantain and your choice of meat. In our case, we opted for the excellent corvina, or sea bass, browned to perfection.

After such an indulgent weekend, Layne and Bonnie and I dragged ourselves to the gym on Monday morning to work off some of the good times. At the grocery store afterwards, we happened to see our friend Eric who runs the organic market here and who informed us of a demonstration set for the next day in San Jose to protest the introduction of genetically modified seeds into Costa Rica. Since Layne and I had plans to go into San Jose anyway, we decided to put on our journalist hats and attend the event in order to write up a report for The Costa Rica News. It turned out to be well worth our time with almost 100 people standing against transgenicos, as genetically modified products are called here. You can read my article in the Eco section of TCRN tomorrow.

"Perro" protester

Our trip into San Jose was originally set up with Felipe, Marcial and Seidy's oldest son, who is interested in photography and had done some excellent wedding photos recently for his friends, using Layne's high-end camera. Layne has been helping him package the photos into a professional-looking portfolio and a wedding album for the newlyweds. This trip was to have high-quality prints made for the album. After the bus trip into town, we walked a few blocks searching for the photography shop, no easy task since, as you recall, there are no street addresses here. But with a phone call by Felipe (in Spanish, of course), we soon located the store and he and Layne gave the instructions for the print sizes. 

Layne and Felipe order prints

The finished product is terrific and today Felipe is delivering the album to his friends. It's been a very satisfying process for Layne and me to help guide this young man in developing his talent in photography. We hope this is the start of a productive and lucrative vocation for Felipe and we're very proud of his hard work.