I´m on a plane to ECUADOR???!!

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¿¿¿Qué qué qué???

Wow, so much to tell. Best place to start is the beginning right?
Well, I have to say I have two very comfortable hours in which to write, because the nice man at San Jose airport in costa rica gave me a window seat, alone, with double leg room. Really pays to be tall here sometimes!
Ok, so you probably really want to know what´s going on.

Last week - on wednesday 1st Nov - my good friend Dennis (rasta) came over for lunch to my house in Santa Teresa. Rasta is a tico and the best friend you could ask for. He is positive, caring, motivated, fun and full of ideas. Originally from San Jose, he decided 2 months ago that Santa Teresa should be his home so rode his BIKE with all his stuff for 13 hours to get there. Everything went well for him until all his stuff was stolen from his tent and he left his job after being cheated in his pay.

OK, I have to interrupt this broadcast to say I just got served FREE vodka and orange from the OPEN BAR on this plane! Wow, viva costa rica and Lacsa airways!!

Anyway, when rasta came over for lunch we hatched a plan to earn money ourselves and to live in Santa Teresa this summer. We decided to go to San Jose and buy up a whole lot of really really nice, really really cheap, jewellery (about 50c for a ring or necklace) and lots of materials to make jewellery, then return to Santa Teresa to sell the lot over summer. On the beach, and most places in costa rica, tourists expect to pay at least $3 for any item of jewellery so we´re talking 600% profits here! correct my math if thats wrong...

Now this all indicates that I am planning to stay in costa rica even longer. Bingo! All of summer now at least until January. What will I be doing? Living and working at the beach, meeting and knowing great people, getting some experience working with turtles during breeding season, becoming more fluent in spanish and possibly making connections with more wildlife biologists.

Now, there was just one hitch to our plan. I had already nearly used up my 3 month visa in costa rica and needed to hop the border and return to renew it. No problem - rasta and I would travel together to Panama for a week or so after San Jose to stay with his family and to do our shopping. San Jose is a beautiful, vibrant city (or maybe just because rasta could show me the great stuff he knew so well). We took bus after bus and walked all over soaking up the atmosphere.

OK, WOW, I just got served another vodka and orange. What´s going on here?

Staying with rasta´s family and meeting his friends was wonderful. All the neighbours are uncles, aunties and cousins of the family too so its a very happy and welcoming community. Every second I spent there was happy. After staying a night there me and rasta left for Panama...
BUT, our trip to Panama only lasted 9 hours on the bus, up until the border crossing - where I was told I need a visa to enter!! WHERE have I heard that before?! Yes, the story of my life. I checked this before too, and there was no problem so man, I can never trust any visa info again!
Anyway, no worries, we spent the night in a little hotel at the border and travelled back to San Jose the next day.

Getting a panama visa would take 22 days, so how about going the other side to Nicaragua? Ok, we asked who needs a visa for that one and found that rasta does. So we wait in line 3 hours for his, only to be told ´oh wait, south africans do need to send their papers ahead a month before entering the country´ What??! yea... so quickly running out of options I decided ´what the heck, I´ll just stay here illegaly until my new official passport arrives (which luckily is waiting to be sent to me from NZ - I´m travelling on a temporary passport) which doesnt have my date of entry so no worries.¨
But no, everyone freaked out when I told them this idea, and told me I´d never be allowed back into costa rica should I be found out. Now way, I don´t want that.

Hence the reason, two days later, I am on a plane to Ecuador. The closest country who will let me in without a visa. I will spend 16 days in Ecuador - having some fun, visiting my NZ travel buddies, seeing all I can see, then returning to Costa Rica.
Meanwhile rasta will set up our business in Santa Teresa ready for summer (mid Nov to Feb).
I´m so excited. I love crazy things, changing plans, doing anything to enjoy yourself and keeping busy and happy.

Ok, that was a really long entry but now we´re all up to date!

Loves
Cass

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