DESPACIO!

After looking through my sister's blogs, I have become quite inspired to really get into this blogging thing. I don't have nearly as many wonderful things to write about daily - so, don't start your morning thinking you're going to read about my newsworthy life. No, I am sure I will use this more as a journal and perhaps a release from the stresses of cleaning people's teeth, being a wife - youth minister's wife, and a woman in general.

First - let's talk Costa Rica!

The Above picture was one of the nearly 400 I took in the week we were in Potrero Bay, Costa Rica. The sunsets were unfogettable and unbelievable! They were so different in color each day - truly showed God's glory. His gracing us with what some might think a simple sunset I'm sure is really a glimpse of the beauty heaven will bring! Each night, Seth and I either walked the beach looking at the beautiful sunset or we relaxed at our resort and watched the beautiful backdrop for the Catalina Islands. What an experience!

Backtrack -

When Seth and I landed at the Liberia airport, I was sure there was some kind of miscommunication. You see - normally, people land at an AIRPORT - not a shack! Come on, people! Seriously? Seriously! For my family - I equated their airport to Grandpa's big hay barn. You know the one with a roof and no walls! Yes, except the airport did have a grass roof!

After going through security and picking up our baggage, we left the airport and walked into what I thought must have been a dream. You see, I've always wanted to be a celebrity - and walk into a crowd of photographers who are screaming my name! You know that dream too? Well, my reality was more like a weird version of that dream. We exited the airport...or tried. We were stopped and surrounded by Costa Ricans holding up taxi signs and begging us to use their taxi. I knew our resort would be sending a driver, but where in the world was he?? I looked around, trying not to look any taxi drivers in the eye - as they all seemed to have the puppy face down pat! I can't say no to a puppy face! That's how I end up buying four tubs of poor-tasting cookie dough from the neighbors for the cheap price of $15.99 each! Finally, after scanning the crowd several times, we found Alex, our driver and were whisked away to Bahia del Sol.

Funny story - all of the main highways in Costa Rica are similar to our residential streets. Small and pretty well paved. Their smaller highways and residential roads are dirt roads! But not like your grandpa's dirt roads - these have craters that are too similar to cliffs!! Therefore, the drivers often have to so SUPER slow so they don't jostle you around too much. Seth and I weren't prepared for dirt roads, so we automatically assumed (I say 'we,' but I mean 'I') that Alex had stolen the "Mr. and Mrs. King" sign or had been and incredibly lucky guesser and was really more interested in cutting off our ears and sending them back to our American families for ransom!! I need me ears! How else will I wear headbands??!! Back to the story.....

Finally, after an hour of driving, I saw signs for our resort. And may I say - oh my goodness! What a resort! The online pictures did no justice! (http://www.potrerobay.com/) They should hire me to take their website photos!! :) It was amazing!! Oh, the best thing ever!? They accidently overbooked thier resort and when they did, they had to move us up to a SUITE! I SAID SUITE! Instead of a normal hotel room with a mini-fridge, we got an apartment!! It was huge! And the upgrade was free!! We almost upgraded when we were making reservations, but decided not to at the last minute! Boy are we glad!!

Another quite funny story: First - I would like to remind you that Seth and I are both college graduates. I would normally say that we are two pretty intelligent people...on this trip, however, we weren't. I'll use the blazing sun as the excuse for our stupidity. So, Costa Rica's currency is Colones. There are 500 colones to the US dollar. So, that means 500colones = $1, right? Wrong, according to Seth and Sarah King. Yes, that's what I said...you're wrong. We're right. Yep...right and poor. Why, you say? I will tell you.

On our first full day in beautiful Costa Rica, Seth and I took a taxi-jeep into Playa Flamingo to get some groceries for our SUITE with a full kitchen! (just had to put that in there). Well, we felt we were rushed so we said, "okay, 500 is half of a thousand. So, a thousand is a dollar. So, take everything and divide the number by two and it will convert it to U.S. Dollars. So, 5000 colones would be two dollars and fifty cents. Sweet, grab what you need!" So, after we ran through the store that was the size of my living room, we realized that Costa Rica grocery stores were like a steal! We can get all kinds of stuff for ... like nothing! When we got to the cash register and the lady told us it would be 32,000 colones. "Sweet, 16 dollars!" I said. Then, Seth and I decided we didn't want to spend our cash, so we'd just use our debit card. Yay for debit cards, that is if you know how to do basic math. The shock finally came when we realized that we HAD spend $16. Yep, sixteen dollars....plus 48!! And would you like to know what we spend sixty four dollars on? Well, two great pairs of dollar-store goggles (kid size because that's all they had) and two pair of "hiking" shoes.......otherwise known as crocks. $64 on cheap crocks and dollar store goggles! AND THE CROCKS GAVE ME BLISTERS! I spend $64 on blisters! Yikes.

Oh, does anyone know what Despacio means? I ask this because when Seth and I were driving our little scooters, I often saw a sign that said Despacio. Although I didn't know what it meant, I enjoyed using my Costa Rican old man voice. It sounds like what Antonio Banderas might sound like after smoking for thirty years or so. A little grunge + a little Antiono = DESPACIO! Seriously, every time we drove by, Antonio popped right out!

This pic was actually taken on our last full day in Costa Rica. After scooter-ing all over the coast, paying way too much for souvineers, and hiking around the beaches and rainforest - we had to come home....to Missouri.