Tuesday, March 20, 2012

National Lampoon’s Tico Vacation

For those of you who don’t know, we have been pedalling on this trip for almost seven months now!  The six month mark or roughly halfway point of our trip had us just entering Costa Rica; the perfect time and place for a family vacation.  So, that’s what our family did.  Dave’s parents, my parents and my brother Dan all flew down to spend two weeks with us in Playa Hermosa, Guanacaste. 

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Woohoo!  Family vacation!

And what a two weeks it was.  First off, the beach was beautiful and the town was laid back and quiet.  This allowed us to spend a lot of time just enjoying each other’s company and the sunsets.

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We prepared at least one or two meals a day in the kitchens of the two villas we stayed at with Dave’s parents, Judy and Alex. 

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One thing we’ll miss is the abundance of delicious, cheap tropical fruit.

This is also where Judy and Alex perfected the art of the margarita and I, the pina colada.  And of course there was always a cold Imperial to go around.

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Two weeks is a long time to just sit around and eat and drink, so we took part in a couple of excursions too.  One, was a sunset sailboat tour.  The winds were strong and the sea was a little rough, but good times were had by all.  Especially entertaining, although sadly missed by the kids was the spill Judy took out of the zodiac used to take us back ashore.

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Dan, my brother, the captain and apparently a local (or so many people seemed to think, until they got his blank stare after they jabbered at him in Spanish).

Other (mis)adventures include a trip out to Rincon National Park, where we took on a 3km loop trail highlighting volcanic activity with steaming sulphurous pools and bubbling mud pits.  Underestimated was the difficulty of the terrain and the heat of the day, but everyone made it back.

Upon our return the front desk clerk at our villa surprised us with a bottle of the volcanic mud and explained it’s healing/beautifying properties, so of course it had to be tried by all.

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Rejuvenated, Dan rented a car and he, Dave, my mom and I took a two day roadtrip to Santa Teresa at the southern end of the Nicoya Peninsula.  This was a complete success.  We were able to meet up with friends Paige, Jessie and Nate from our Spanish school in Guatemala and I took a 2hr surf lesson and have come to love a sport that used to cause me so much frustration and discontent.

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Dave, Dan and I enjoying a sunset surf in Santa Teresa.

Another source of constant entertainment was the unique and abundant wildlife of Costa Rica.

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One of the many resident howler monkeys.  Unprovoked, one of these guys actually hit my mom with a half eaten mango as we walked by.

One of our first lessons taught to us by a local here was to “suck it up and swim” when we asked about the tiny (we’re talking pinky finger sized) jellyfish we sometimes encountered in the water. We were glad we did. Dave, Dan and I got in a really amazing snorkelling experience here because of it. However, our next attempt was foiled when these larger (about 3” across) guys started rolling in.

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Jellyfish washed up on the beach.

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The solitary nesting turtle we encountered on a somewhat shady “guided” trip to a local nesting site.  What a unique experience!

All in all it was great to see everyone again after so much time apart.

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Enjoying some father-daughter time with my pops.

It was hard to say goodbye.  No matter where you are in the world, nothing can compare to the joy of spending quality time with those people who are most important in one’s life.  I am incredibly grateful that I get to share this once in a lifetime experience with my best friend, companion and biggest fan.

4 comments:

  1. Wonderful update! Your families are very lucky to have the two of you together. Have fun! John

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  2. That's great that you guys all got to spend time together! Those Howler monkeys are trouble.. they were chasing after a woman with a granola bar when I was there with Rainbow! My Dad sent me the picture of you with the pouty face, Jenn. That looked like quite the downpour.
    Glad to hear all is well! Ashley

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  3. Thanks Ash! Those monkeys are trouble. Was that when you guys were in Manual Antonio? We stopped by one our way down the coast. The road from Quepos was SOO difficult.

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  4. aww i love it!! im so glad you guys got to share CR with family too! and that you guys get each other the whole way down!! xoxox

    ps. yes we were in Manuel Antonio and yes those monkeys were trouble!!! haha

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