Adios Samara, Hola Dry Country

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Hola Todos,

We have arrived in Manuel Antonio and as a result of my slight mention of the tiny stomach ache I've had, my parents have insisted upon helping us to "upgrade" our situation while here. Who are we to disagree.

We left Samara yesterday morning and it was the first place that we really spent enough time in (albeit much on the toilet) to really miss when we left. On the plus side, the bulk of our journey was in a private van because no one else was going from where we went to Manuel Antonio.

We'll miss Jo-el and his cigarettes and mumbling franish (spanish and french combined); we'll miss Gretel, the cleaning lady and her pleasant greeting every morning; we'll miss the solitude of our little pool at Hotel Marbella; we'll miss the giant ants trying to burrow in our clothing; we'll miss the geckos in our room trying to eat the ants trying to burrow in our clothing; but alas we move on and are now in Manuel Antonio.

Loco Country

Now I've been writing all along what a wonderful place this is and how nice the people we've met are etc. But I have to take a step back and alert you to the madness we've encountered. The national election takes place tomorrow (Sunday) and Costa Rica is a diamond in the Latin American rough, since they have open democratic elections and have done so for many years now. However, they have this wacky law that forbids sales of alcohol for the day before thru the day after the election - that would be today through monday for those keeping score.... for those also in the know it is the same day as Super Bowl Sunday! We have to watch freakin' Pittsburgh and Seattle without booze, COME ON (said like Gob, for Arrested Development fans). Good thing we bought a bottle of rum to get us through the night.

Villas El Parque

We've been in Manuel Antonio for only about a day now and it is magnificent. The area is very hilly but the views are amazing. Our hotel, Villas El Parque, is great. After a room switch (Elise is becoming more and more like a Jaffe girl by the day) we settled in to our room which has a closed in bedroom with a/c and a nice bathroom and our "living room" is a large balcony overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Manuel Antonio National Park. It has a long L shaped couch and a hammock. This place might allow me to accomplish two of my favorite activities all at once - sitting on the couch, and watching monkeys. What more could one ask for?

Well, one could ask for a working bed. How does a bed not work, you ask? When the wooden bed frame cracks each time you adjust your (only slightly overweight) body, that bed don't work! So, we were given another room for the night and hopefully they are replacing our bed with one that caters to my zoftig physique.

Brown-O-Meter

Thanks to a newfound health for me and a solid base to start with:

Elise = 3.75 (a little extra for the effort)
Gregg = 7.0 (very nearly native)

That about does it for now, we'll update later when we see more monkeys (other than me shirtless) and more.

Adios,
G and E

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Comments

["A Jaffe Girl"]

Guess Which One
I don't think there's anything wrong with switching rooms to ensure a comfortable night of sleep (and a L shape couch w/hammock overlooking the ocean)! Love the blogs, keep 'em coming.

[Marc Martinez]

Nice excuse
Glad Geraldo's stomach is doing better. Elise, don't let him blame you for wanting a decent room. Stay safe and healthy.

[dad & terrie]

glad gregg is feeling better. if elise is becoming a "jaffe girl" then it sounds as if gregg is going the other way (stomach aches, etc.). sounds as if the country is really beautiful and that you are still having a great and interesting time. thanks for the call on my birthday--- we are in ventura, calif., and the weather is sunny and medium warm. i am about an 8.0 on the red-0-meter, as i didn't realize the strength of the sun yesterday and did not put on block!!! terrie is thus far a -1. i have figured out how to make vacations last long. GO TO FLEA MARKETS AND SWAP MEETS!! love you guys!!