Advertisement
Published: November 10th 2010
November 5, 2010
Well, I hope most of you realized that what those characters in my last entry said was not copied with any precision. As a matter of fact, I embellished their actual words with what I imagined they wanted to say. So, thanks for the advice, but I don't really need to go to the American Embassy for how I'm being treated down here.
On Tuesday, I drove down to Esparza in my second attempt to get my Pathfinder inspected at one of the ten or so national inspection factories. It was a much smaller operation; only two lanes as opposed to the 12 or so in that gothic warehouse/hangar I visited up in Alajuela on Monday. In all of them, you have to drive through a building set up like a car wash; only instead of the washing devices, they have all these things set up to test your car. One time, I was told to stop and rev my engine to 3,000 and keep it there. Well, the car started to shake after a while, and I lowered my RPMS, thinking my engine or radiator fan was screwing up. It turned out to be some
machine under my wheels that was shaking the car to test the suspension.
At the end of the car wash, they told me to park outside and go into a little office. There was one person waiting ahead of me. She was called up to the counter, and, after a minute, she left, smiling. I was next, and I just knew I was not going to pass. But they gave me the sticker with a smile. I said, "I gano?" (I win?) They were so pleasant, it was almost fun (especially since I passed). (Stupid gringo doesn't even understand when I ask him to sound his horn.) I don't know what the word for horn is. I may have known it before, but I've been gone for a while.
And all that cost me was $20. Not bad.
So yesterday, because of all the road closures that you'll read about below, I drove to Esparza just to escape the three days of constant, and I mean constant, rain. There was no one on the road. It was closed to through traffic, and I've never experienced a nicer drive in Costa Rica. When I drove home, I absolutely did not see another car on the long winding road up the hill. For once, I could drive slow and look all around; not worrying about someone riding my tailgate, or a truck stopped in the middle of the road just around the bend. Man, if you could just tour Costa Rica like that all the time.
Uh oh, I hear Fabian the cop whistling, walking down my driveway. I keep my outside alarm on until I finally go out, so that it will sound and deter people from disturbing me early. I figure they'll get the message if I have to fumble for a while, turning the alarm off. Hang on. I've got to go hide, in case he comes down and looks in. Okay, I'm back. I guess he got the message. And didn't even set off the alarm.
From Today's Paper. www.amcostarica.com
Nearly three feet of rain may have fallen in the Central Pacific since Monday, but it was in Escazú where the loss of life took place.
A landslide from Pico Blanco entombed familiesss as they slept in Calle Lajas, Barrio El Carmen. San Antonio de Escazú. Emergency workers recovered 20 bodies and they still are looking.
Elsewhere nearly 1,400 persons are in s helters, more than a hundred section of road are damaged, homes are flooded, bridges are down and utilities are cut off. Many routes are blocked by landslides.
President Laura Chinchilla Miranda declared two days of national mourning starting today. She will visit the scene of the Escazú disaster today.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.188s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 14; qc: 56; dbt: 0.054s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Jay
non-member comment
In the loop!
Yes Paul ! I feel like I'm in the loop again. Thanks car fires and lots of rain realy don't sound like lots of fun :( your life in Costa Rica reminds me so much of my twenty years in the Virgin Islands! I realy did enjoy those days !! Although now I don't think I could do it more than a few months a year! LOL good luck:)