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Published: March 2nd 2007
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San Jose Airport
Touchdown Costa Rica. I bolted wide-eyed out my sleep on my flight from Atlanta to San Jose, Costa Rica. For a solid minute or two, I had forgotten what I was doing and where I was going. Not exactly the best feeling to have at 30,000 feet.
“Are you traveling alone?” asked an American woman, who was traveling with her husband and two sons. I nodded as I rubbed the sleep from eyes. We weaved in and out of conversation with each other until we landed. Her main points were that I was going to get kidnapped or robbed, and that she had vacationed in Costa Rica many times previously, but she had never heard of Mal Pais... “But, you seem like a smart girl.” Good, great, grand, wonderful, I thought. And she’s never heard of Mal Pais, thanks for the reassurance, lady. Why do people do that? Impose their own fears for themselves on you? Already, I had my own doubts about the trip, but…Hello?!...I was already on the plane.
I attempted to shrug off her words as I gazed over the aisle and out the window. Mountains and hills covered in the richest green stretched to the horizon. Jungles.
San Jose
Do you know the way to San Jose? Central America. Less than a day prior, I was surrounded by the lanky skeletons of the trees in St. Louis. Departing the plane, I wished the family luck, to which the woman responded, “It sounds like you’ll need it more than we do.”
I was convinced that I was going to miss my next flight to Tambor as I stood in the massive, snake-like immigration line. Stamped and welcomed, I raced to pick up my luggage (always a comforting sight), and realized that my flight was in a separate landing strip within walking distance.
My 30 minute Sansa flight from San Jose to Tambor was on a 12-person, single-engine plane. Single-engine plane, surrounded by mountains, overweight luggage…I was feeling fantastic. Each passenger had to be weighed with their luggage before receiving a plastic, universal boarding pass. Lesson learned to travel a lot lighter, or lose more body weight. Originally, Felipe wanted to send my bags on a separate flight, which did not depart until the following morning, since the weight capacity for my flight was maxed out. I pleaded with him, and then, he wanted to charge me 100 USD, but I charmed him down to 60 USD.
Bird's Eye View
View from Sansa Flight from San Jose to Tambor. As I stepped onto the plane, a newsflash ran across my mind, “Overweight plane crashes into mountainside.”
The ground crew swung the propellers around, and plane took off into the sky like the little engine that could. In true Tico style, the co-pilot chatted with two, beautiful Tica gals seated behind him. And why not? It’s not like he had anything to do…like fly a plane. I didn’t even see the landing strip in Tambor, which was nestled between dense mountains and the Gulf of Nicoya, until we were on it. I almost kissed the ground. I was so relieved that I was done with flying.
The sun was setting as an off-road jeep greeted me as my taxi. The unpaved ride to Mal Pais was 45 minutes. The landscape was breathtaking. The rolling hills against the mountainous backdrop appeared virtually untouched and uninhabited. I arrived during the full moon (la luna llena). As we approached Mal Pais, everyone was hustling about the different towns to celebrate la luna llena. I did not get the reason behind the fiestas, but I suppose any excuse to party, is a good excuse.
La luna llena lit up the night as
Bird's Eye View 2
A natural beauty. I arrived at The Place Hotel in Playa Carmen. (playa=beach ). The Pura Vida Adventure surf camp would not start until the following evening; therefore, the hotel was empty. A pool, low-key bar, yoga space, reception, and 5 bungalows make up The Place. One thing was clear as I entered my bungalow; I was a visitor in a bug’s world and the animal’s kingdom. Colossal ants were scurrying across the concrete floor, geckos peeped from the ceiling, mosquitoes buzzed in my ear, and the iguanas drug their bodies so heavily across the rocks outside my door that I thought they were human footsteps.
Exhausted, hot, and restless, I laid in my bed surrounded by the mosquito net. I could hear the ROAR of the ocean, but in the darkness, I could not tell where it was. Daylight could not come fast enough.
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auntie
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karie lady How fun .... it sounds like you are having a great time except the bed bugs I would be feaking.... I hope you get this let me know if you go. G'ma is doing the same. I pringt all your stuff out and they read it. Auntie Daneeescccee