Costa Rica Day 19 - San José

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We decide to stick with our original plan to drive to San José this morning. There are several reasons for this 1) the hire car is due back; 2) we are 60 miles from the nearest hospital if either of gets ill and 3) it gives us the opportunity to book a hotel more conducive to self isolating. I’ve only been stuck in this room one day and I’m already going stir crazy!

First, it’s time for breakfast – a bit of a mission when every time I swallow is excruciating. I manage a couple of fork fulls of scrambled egg and a few chunks of pineapple whilst the old man hovers, waiting for any scraps. Then it’s time for the 4 hour drive north to the capital. Instead of our original plan to spend a night at an airport hotel, convenient for tomorrow’s scheduled flights, we drive to our newly booked destination; ‘Casa Conde’ in a rather seedy looking suburb of San José, for 5 nights to round off my period of isolation.

I’m not sure what to expect – all the reviews I’ve read give it either 5 stars or 1 star; it’s a kind of marmite hotel. I fall in love with it immediately. It’s a rambling, colonial style complex like something out of a film set. It’s a bit shabby chic (leaning towards shabby) but it’s set in beautiful gardens, there are murals on the walls (and who doesn’t love a mural) and it has a good size pool in a tranquil courtyard. It’s just what the doctor ordered!

The suites have 2 bedrooms, a kitchen and a living/dining area and there’s even, joy of joys, a washing machine.

I take a nap after the journey, while the old man deals with the car, then do 43 tonnes of laundry and try to decide what to eat. The old man wants pizza. The nearest pizzeria is 100 metres away and has excellent reviews. I choose a Mexican pizza, which turns out to be the best pizza I’ve ever tasted. The old man returns with burger and chips. I asked him why he changed his mind? Apparently he realised the pizzeria was vegan!

We spend the rest of the evening replanning and rebooking the remaining two weeks of our trip, working out a way to fit in most of what we wanted to do. This is mainly achieved by replacing two long bus trips with flights – extra expense, but freeing up some time to replace what we have lost from having to isolate for the next few days.

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