Sunsets on the Pacific

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After a brief stay in Costa Rica with an open mind to staying and hiking in Corcovado, I decided I just wasn't "feeling it" and had to keep moving on. Golfito was pretty and surely a very small gem in comparison to what Peninsula de Osa would have been, but it just seems like there is something missing in Costa Rica. I couldn't put my finger on it at the time, but now that I am in Nicaragua it seems more evident. Everyone there seems too North American. Polite, quiet, reserved, English-speaking. Oh, and all the music sucked in the buses.

So, I decided to also forego any plans I had in the Nicoya Peninsula and just head up to Nicaragua. And here I am enjoying my second perfect sunset over the Pacific Ocean. It turns out that, although I joked to Maayan while hiking in Panama that it was my destiny to travel all the way to Mexico City with Israelis, that may not have been too far off. My morning on January 29th went something like this. Next destination: Costa Rica. Next Israeli travel companion: check. When I decided to move on to San Juan del Sur, one of the guys I met in San Blas decided to come with me, so for the next two weeks I will continue my Israeli education on the road in Central America....random.

I am really digging this town so far, kind of lazy days but people are all living in the streets, like in Naples. And, even though it is a small town of maybe 7000 people, it feels ALIVE because of it. Even the kids that have nothing to do are sitting outside on the sidewalks, not in their houses aimlessly becoming catatonic in front of the TV.

It occurred to me that part of what really appeals to me about certain places in the world is this phenomenon that is so different from life in the States. Everyone is kind of in each other's lives because everyone lives outdoors and in the streets and sees each other and talks to each other and the city itself is the common space or the living room of the people that live there. The US, in contrast, has it outdoor spaces, but in warm weather you see families out in their lawns and driveways and gardens but you get the distinct impression that it is THEIRS, not OURS and there isn't much of a communal feeling going on. It seems that, in fact, houses exist to separate us from the community as opposed to connecting us to our neighbors.

Anyway, it has been a lazy couple days in Nica so far, but I have been catching up on some much needed sleep and reading in a hammock and ice cream eating. OK, probably I don't need the last one but I have had a sore throat for a couple days and it is perfect in the noonday sun. Not that it is really that hot here though; it is pretty windy so you never really feel hot and sweaty, and never cold either. It is perfect weather. Everyone I have talked to in Nicaragua tells me that I have to go to Majagual, that it is definitely the prettiest beach in the area, so I think tomorrow or the next day will be the venture out there by boat. Until then, I will be working on getting you the link to all 248 pictures in my online Panama album...

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Photos

Nature's daily movie
...and a happy viewer