Tales of the Cloud Forest Part I: Just Walkin´ in the Rain
Tori and I had a relatively uneventful journey to Costa Rica. Although Tori did make an apt comment ¨Given that it is called American Airlines you would think they would get into the spirit of it more and give you bigger seats!¨ I got very familiar with my seatmate´s bony elbow on the way to Texas. At one point I started playing the Byrds "Eight Miles High". It was partly out of amusement because I almost literally was...and partly to celebrate my inner hippie...as these trips are always her idea.
Thus far I just constantly find myself comparing Costa Rica to what I´ve seen of Mexico. I have been very impressed with how clean the San Jose, the capital city, is...and what great conditions the roads are in. Also got a kick out of the sign "Welcome to Costa Rica: The Happiest Country in the World." Tomorrow we venture out into more rural areas, so we´ll see how that is.
I had fun chatting with our driver on the ride in. Already I think I have used more Spanish here than my entire trip to Mexico. The dialect here is wonderfuly slow, clear and easy to understand.
One surprise we had from the getgo was how much shorter the days are. We are pretty close to the equator, and the length of days and nights stay pretty even all year round. That also explains why Costa Rica is currently on Central Standard Time....as what would be the point of Daylight Savings?
We wandered around the area near our hotel this morning, and then met up for our tour at noon. We booked a tour with Intrepid Travels. The tour groups can be as large as twelve people, but apparently travel is slower this time of year. Thus far it is just me, Tori, and an Australian woman named Angela. We may have a 4th or 5th person join up with us tomorrow.
We started out having a nice lunch. Beans and rice are the national staple here....which is just fine with me, as I love beans and rice. Then we had a tour of the downtown area. The Parque Nacional is especially neat. There are a lot of art installations, often made out of computer parts, which has gotten to be one of the big industries here. I also got a kick out checking out the various busts to see who they were. One was Jose Marti, Cuban poet (I did a report on him in college) and revolutionary. The other was Mexican revolutionary Fr. Miguel Hidalgo. I laughed "Aren´t there any Ticos in this park?" "Tico" is the local term for a Costa Rican. I also got a kick out of the fact that in their only Civil War, one of the big troublemakers was a man named William Walker....must be an ancestor to Scott.
I´m told the weather can change pretty drastically here depending on where you are. It has been pretty steadily in the 70´s and drizzly here....which I will take over humid 90`s any day. But this is why on the walking tour, I mysteriously got this song in my head....what with my subconscious serving once more as my own private DJ: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DOdqOkYjtA
We should have internet access pretty readily on the trip, so I hope to send a few more updates while I´m here. :)