Friday morning, after a mix up with timing and online information, I discovered that I was supposed to register for my next quarters classes at Cal Poly WHILE I was supposed to be on the bus en route to Tamarindo! I was panicked and sad and couldn't decide what to do. With literally one minute to spare I decided to go. My friend Krysten had promised to help me register and I planned to just be in contact with her via phone while traveling. That plan seemed good until she was unable to log onto my portal or open the registration account. Grr...I was flustered. I needed my classes - with only two quarters left at Poly, not getting one class could result in my having to take summer classes. I was a texting machine and stressed out mess for close to an hour before it all finally got settled out. Several times in the middle of my frenzy I stopped to pray. I prayed that God would work things out, I prayed for trust, and I prayed for peace. I kept telling myself not to worry because God is the giver of all good things and the director of my steps and future, but my words weren't sinking in. I still had that icky feeling.
Then all of a sudden things worked out. Krysten got in, my classes were all open (even those which that very morning had appeared full), she was able to easily register, and my schedule was perfect. Just like that. What? God, thank you. I cannot explain the peace and relief I felt at this moment. I was over joyed. And then I looked up and realized I was surrounded by good friends in the middle of Costa Rica headed to a gorgeous beach for the weekend. Wow. God is not just good, he is incredibly good and full of grace. =)
The bus ride, which we had been told would last 4 hours ended up taking closer to 5.5 hours and we arrived in Tamarindo around 6:30pm.
After a quick visit to the hostel to drop our things, we headed out into town to meet the others. Those of us who had been on the bus were quite hungry at this point. With no real stops and only snacky foods we were ready for dinner. We met up with the rest of our friends and snagged dinner at this little outdoor food cart circle. A few of us ordered delicious salads (I'm pretty sure it was the first really good salad I've had since being here!) and after, of course, got ice creams. We have a way of finding the best and cheapest ice cream places in every town we visit. =) Haha!
At this point we went back to the hostel for some hanging out, relaxing by the pool, and mixed drinks - rum and coke, rum and pineapple. We chatted, dipped our feet in the pool, sang and plucked on my friend Maddy's guitar, and enjoyed the warm evening air. The hostel where we stayed was such a cool place and the vibe and atmosphere were perfect for just chilling. =)
As a group we went out for drinks and walked around town for a while. Once it was quite late, Ellie, Lindsay, Ben, and I walked around town looking for some late night grub. Ben hadn't eaten dinner yet and we were all craving pizza, or something of the sort. We found ourselves back at the food cart circle, but this time ate at a different vendor. It was a sub shop with delicious paninis. It was Lindsay's idea to order a sandwich with the instruction "surprise me". We were served a scrumptious warm chicken ranch with guacamole. Yummm. That first sandwich was so good we did it again, requesting a surprise, and this time got the "Pineapple Express" which consisted of mahi mahi, pineapple, onions, roasted bell peppers, and some sort of sauce with a slight kick. Wow was it good! Aside from good food this was a really fun chance to hang out with Ben. Ben is definitely a quieter, more introverted guy and some times you only get very limited conversation from him. But, it was different he was much more vocal and seemed so happy to be hanging out with us. =)
That was just night one, like 6 hours, can you believe it?! Our group definitely knows how to have fun and make every minute of our trips count! Fun to the max. =D
One the second day we woke up around 9:30 and Maddy and I made breakfast for everyone in the communal kitchen. We had bought groceries the night before, knowing that a group breakfast would be much cheaper than anything we would find in town. We hade eggs, sourdough toast with strawberry and guava jam, chicken sausage, avocado, bananas, and coffee. Being in the kitchen always makes me happy and everyone was extremely grateful.
After breakfast, some of the group headed straight for the beach. Others of us, however, decided to poke around in the towns many shops. We visited clothing boutiques, surf shops, and souvenir stores. Its always fun to just relax and leisurely see the town this way. =)
At about 1pm we hit the beach, it was absolutely gorgeous.
As we reached the beach, intensely dark rain clouds began to sweep over the beach. Maddy and I rain to the ocean for a dip before the clouds broke and rain pummeled the beach. We grabbed our towels and sprinted for covering. All hunkering under an overhang we made plans for lunch once the rain stopped. It was fun to watch everyone else reacting to the downpour as well. Some people, those wearing only their bathing suits, went about their business like nothing had changed and walked up or down the street without a care. However many others were doing what we were doing - hiding under an overhanging and waiting. Once the rain let up, it was funny because everything just resumed as though life had been paused for a short time.
With wet feet and damp towels we all walked to lunch. We chose a less expensive little delicatessen off the main drag. We ordered sandwiches, pizzas, and salads.
Once we'd finished lunch, Sarah, Karmen, and I ran down to the beach to sign up for a 5k that was coincidentally being hosted that Saturday. We had debated whether to run or not, but at the last minute decided to just go for it. I AM SO GLAD WE DID! The race started at 3:30 and we didn't sign up until 3:15 (and at this time were still wearing bathing suits and sandals). We rushed back to the hostel and made it to the corner at 3:30 exactly. The race had just started so we hopped in and took off. We ran the three miles in a beautiful part of town that none of us even knew existed and ended with a sprint across the beach. At the end of the race we were greeted with metals (apparently we did really well running it in 26 min, hahahaha!), water, fresh fruit, and gatorade. After satisfying ourselves on bananas, pineapple, and watermelon we walked to the beach for a swim. As we pulled off our shirts and slipped out of our tennies, a few large raindrops began to fall. Without a care, we ran for the waves. We stayed in for nearly 45 minutes! - rain falling on our faces, gorgeous clouds spread across the sky, sharp rays of light piercing through from the sun, and a FULL rainbow overhead. We couldn't stop jabbering with excited because it was so beautiful and we'd had so much fun running our little race. It was definitely another one of those "Wow, this is life, this is really living!" moments. =D
We walked back to the hostel sandy, soaked and smiling. By this time the rain had stopped and the rest of the group was relaxing on the patio. We joined them by grabbing cups of coffee and climbing into the pool.
Once we were finished we showered up and got ready to go out for the evening. On the way back from the race, Sarah and I had seen a sign for a happy hour with 50% off sushi and so were quite set stopping by. While most of the group headed off to get drinks we lingered back and order some rolls. We got Indonesion Rolls (coconut meat, spicy peanut sauce, seaweed) and Golden Cruncy-Rice Rolls (smoked salmon, mango, seaweed, puffed rice). They were delicious and felt so "tropical". It was also fun to spend the one-on-one time with Sarah because we haven't had that chance before. We talked and munched for an hour before asking for the check. We each only paid $4 for eight rolls! Win. =D
After sushi we strolled over the ice cream cart and got double scoops, which we happily licked all the way to the restaurant where the rest of the group was sitting down to eat. We joined them with dripping cones and once we were finished even got to taste some of the yummy falafels everyone had ordered. Que rico! I hadn't had a falafel in so long and these ones were really, really good.
With everyone fed and happy we walked to the Beach Club bar and restaurant for free welcome cocktails and hors d'oeuvres. Sangria, pizza, and chicken and beef skewers. All while we sat around a big table just meters from the crashing waves with colored twinkle lights casting a light glow over the sand. Seriously, seriously. Mhmm...life is good.
From here we walked back toward our hostel (stopping en route so everyone else could get ice creams) and stopped in bar that was promoting ladies night with free drinks. Lindsay, Ellie, Ben, and I followed the group in, but after about 10 minutes decided we were exhausted and ready for bed. We made our way back to the hostel slowly, enjoying the incredibly clear sky and brilliantly shining stars.
This morning I rose early; at 6:10am to be exact. In order to make it back to San Ramón in time for Ignacio's birthday party (which I did NOT want to miss), I had to catch the bus by myself at 7am. On route to the bus stop I ran into a little bakery called Saritas and bought a homemade pumpkin muffin (yay for fall). Once I reached the spot where the bus was supposed to pick up I was inquired of several men standing nearby. I was told that, because it was Sunday, the bus I was previously told to catch was actually not coming and that only the bus at 2pm went directly to San Ramón. Right as I finished this conversation a bus pulled up. With the drivers assurance that I would be able to get to San Jose, I climbed aboard and started an adventure. Hah! Over the course of the day I traveled via 4 buses! I left Tamarindo at 7am, arrived in San Carlos at 9am, caught the bus for San Jose at 10am, arrived in San Jose at 2:00pm, left San Jose on a bus at 2:30pm, and arrived in San Ramón at 3:30pm! Despite the long day, it held many clear blessings from God. To start, the morning air was beautiful and the first bus ride (which was about 30 minutes) I couldn't stop smiling. From there, my pumpkin muffin was delectable, I got to sit next to an adorable little boy and his grandfather on my first bus, I met a girl from Germany (with whom I chatted in Spanish and travelled from Tamarindo to San Jose with), all the bus drivers were beyond kind and helpful when it came to directing me at each bus switch, and after chatting with the driver of the last bus I took he asked/said, "You're Tico, right?!" (Hahaha! Guess my Spanish is getting better and apparently I look as comfortable as I feel now being a part of the society).
When I finally arrived in San Ramón I quickly located a cab and rushed home. Felt so good to walk through my front door after so long on the road.
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