Sabana Park

This morning, I got up relatively early and took the bus (by myself!) to Sabana Park. The park is only about a 10 minute bus ride from where I live and it's a lot like Central Park in New York City. Sabana Park is huge and on the weekends there are lots of people out there. I walked around most of the park today and saw all kinds of activities...

Aerobics Class - my friend Julia goes to this class 4 or 5 times a week




Basketball Games -



Baseball Games - I sat and watched the first inning. Saw a beautiful double play on 1st and Home, a bunt sacrifice to put runners on 2nd and 3rd, a Grand Slam, and the third baseman get wiped out by the runner stealing from 2nd.




Pick Up "Futbol" Games and League "Futbol" Games -






Bike Jumping -





Fishing -



Pony Rides for the Kids -




It was very interesting to see all the food/drinks/things for sell...

Fresh Squeezed Juice -



Kites -



Ice Cream -



and all kinds of snacks, drinks, etc...no vender license necessary!



Sabana Park is the largest area of trees in the San Jose area. There is also a huge lake, sculptures and plenty of places for families to hang out and enjoy the day.










By the way...the bus ride to and from Sabana Park cost me less than $1.50 total.

All In A Day's Work...Maybe

The good news is I have a job if I want it. I had an interview today with a call center and can start next week if I choose. Although it’s not the “perfect” job, it’s pocket money and that will help. However, the call center is about 20 minutes away from my house by taxi. The hours for part-time would be Wednesday and Thursday, 2 p.m. – 10 p.m. , Saturday 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. and Sunday, 1 p.m. – 9 p.m. I could take the bus to the call center but since my hours are late, I would need to take the taxi home. Unfortunately, the taxi ride costs $10 and I’d need to work at least 2 hours just to pay for the taxi! I’m going to give it a week and if nothing else pans out, I’m going to take the job with the call center. Eugenia mentioned the possibility that Jimmy could pick me up to save me money and be safer. However, I have a couple of other options and I’m hoping one with the local hospital works out. Everybody keep your fingers crossed and pray for a good outcome!

Random Pictures

I don't have alot to say tonight...not much has happened today and I'm too tired to make stuff up! But, I did walk to an internet cafe today and took some pictures along the way...

A View of Escazu


McDonald's - Notice the "Auto-Mac" and phone number for delivery!


Rosti Pollo - the equivalent of a "Raising Cane's" or a "Shoney's" with less variety.


La Chocolateria - went in here for the first time today. Way too dangerous for me!




My New House


My Room - the second bed is used as a catch-all since I don't have a desk, table, etc.

The Great Job Search

My original plan for working while in Costa Rica was teaching English to business people. While I am doing that, it is only for 4 hours a week. The school has other clients but not in the area where I live. So, I can either spend more than I make on taxi rides to and from work in another area or I can spend 2 hours on a bus getting there. Neither seems like a good option so I am looking for something else, part-time. I have an interview on Friday at a call center and was told by the man who called me that the job is mine since I'm a native speaker with an impressive resume. As a matter of fact, he said he'd give me two spots if he could. I'm also looking at an opportunity as a graphic designer and hope to know something about that in the next day or so. Wish me luck!

Blue Things For My Aunt

My aunt is a freak for anything blue. She emailed me and told me she wanted to see pictures of blue things. So here are some photos of “blue things” that I’ve put together.

I Paid Money For That???

I’m not sure when I’ve had a more miserable experience that I actually paid money for. The tour we had planned for today (Volcano Hike, Hot Springs and Dinner) ended up not happening so Beth and I decided to go on the Lava Rock tour offered by the hotel. I, along with others, was under the impression that this was a “walk”. Not so at all. Turns out it was a HIKE up the steep side of the volcano, complete with loose rocks, slippery mud and constant rain. I kept thinking to myself, “I could be at the hot springs, relaxing and enjoying myself.” Beth loved every minute of it, of course. Her background and interest in geology and geophysics outweighs all the inconveniences of schlepping up and down hill in the mud and rain. I will say that the view was pretty amazing from high atop the mountain...we were within 100 meters of the area where it's too dangerous to be because of the sulphuric gases.




Arenal Volcano is pretty active, spewing lava nightly. It’s probably a beautiful sight when you can see it. Unfortunately, our view was obstructed by clouds. However, we did get to see lava coming down the side of the volcano several times. I'm working on posting a video that shows the lava as it rolls down the volcano.

On Top Of Old Rocky…

The hotel we are staying in is named the Arenal Observatory Lodge. We have a great view of the lake and volcano from our “Casona.” We are sharing the 5-bedroom cabin with a family from Canada who are on vacation in Costa Rica for three weeks. At the main building, there is an observatory deck that looks out to the volcano. Not very often in life can you say that you are sleeping on the side of an active volcano!

This Is The Way Horror Movies Begin…

Beth and I started our adventures in Costa Rica this morning. We set out in our rental car with a map and a lot of trepidation about driving in Costa Rica, the country with the 2nd highest per capita deaths by car accident, and about getting lost in the rainforest. Amazingly, we did really well considering that official sets of directions here include phrases like “turn left after you pass the hardware store and keep going until you reach the dead end with the iron man statue.” Seriously, this kind of thing is printed on brochures in the directions to get to various places!

Along the way we stopped at a souvenir shop/bakery where we purchased a few items and spent some time enjoying the view. Across the street was a man giving his oxen a break. I’m don’t know for sure that the oxen are really working oxen…I think it’s a tourist trap as the man asked for money to have his picture taken.






Our first destination was La Paz Waterfalls. I visited it when I was here in April and knew Beth would enjoy it. We walked through the aviary first, where I got attacked by a African Gray something or other. The bird also stole the button off the top of Beth’s cap. From there it was to the butterfly garden, hummingbird sanctuary, snake pit (ugh!) and frog house. I got some better pictures this time.







I was dreading the 2722 steps but it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I did get soaked though since it was drizzling most of the time we were walking the waterfall paths.






When we left La Paz Waterfalls, we headed to our hotel on the Arenal Volcano. It was about a 3 hour trip and went very smoothly considering we didn’t have any written directions, just a map that may or may not be accurate. We only got off track once when we had to circumvent a washed out bridge but when we asked for directions, found we were only a couple of blocks off course. The best part was driving down the 9 km dirt road full of potholes in our little Mitsubishi Lancer. That car will never be the same! We arrived safely to the hotel, had some dinner and gazed at the Arenal Volcano. Then, exhausted and completely wiped out, we called it a night.

I Prefer a Chauffer

AAAcccckkkk! I drove in Costa Rica today. It was VERY scary! Eugenia went with me to pick up Beth from the airport. Then the three of us went to lunch at a restaurant high above Escazu. I wasn’t sure the poor little car was going to make it. I was practically standing on the gas pedal and we still were only inching up the hills. We had hoped for a 4x4 mini-SUV but weren’t able to get one that is an automatic (I can’t drive a 5-speed). So here it is…