¡Que Rico!

The drive from Mal Pais back to San Ramon can be summed up in a few words: 4 wheel drive, pouring rain, 8 hours. We began the trip in the muddy dirt roads near the coast. Our SUV got covered with orange mud and we bounced around so much that we felt like the dukes of hazzard hitting bump after bump. We finally reached some pavement and our nerves settled.

The views on the Nicoya Peninsula are breathtaking. On one side you have steep, cloud covered mountains and on the other side you have the most beautiful beaches. The people who live in this part of the country have truly found paradise. They have fantastic views, all the tropical fruits they could ever want, and endless beaches to swim in.

We reached a brand new bridge that the Taiwanese government built as a gift for the people of Costa Rica. The bridge and surrounding roads were all paved to perfection and our drive through the mangroves was straight and relaxing. After we crossed the bridge, the rain began to fall more rapidly. It quickly felt like we were driving in a car wash. We still had 3 hours of driving to go!

Finally we made it back to San Ramon ... just after the sun had set. We parked the car outside our Tico family´s house and happily went inside for some warm cafe. We stayed up late and told the family about our adventures. Eventually we went to sleep. If you have never slept in a home in Costa Rica, let me explain the design of the rooms. Many Costa Rican homes have tin roofs. This helps to amplify any sound made inside the house. Also, none of the rooms have ceilings! Not even the bathroom. No matter where you are in the house, you hear the tiniest whisper from any room. So, as we lay in bed we all took turns telling jokes and laughing at each other. Don Filimon is hilarious and he had us all laughing uncontrollably. The great thing is that this happens every night when we sleep at the house. The beautiful thing about this Tico family is that they always go to sleep with a smile.

Today we played soccer with the kids. And tonight we are going to watch the Costa Rica vs. US soccer match. This is our last night in Costa Rica ...