(Repost July 13th, 2017)

Summary:

We just returned from our second trip to Costa Rica or as we call it the CR. (July1st – July 8^th). It got off to a very rocky start when upon the descent to the airport we were told the plane would have to circle around for several minutes. And why, pray tell must we circle around these rugged mountains? It was because the entire country as well as most of Central America was without power. Si’… de nada on the electricidad. (first time in history) It took 40 minutes of circling the country before we were allowed to land. (reason #137 on why I don’t like to fly). After landing we were instructed to wait in the Customs line until the power came back up for them to process us into the country. It took 5 hours before the power came up. Those of you who know me, know I don’t like to wait… in fact this is my biggest pet peeve. Was this some sick test to see if I had what it takes to live in a Latin American country where promptness is not a priority?

Needless to say the Project Manager in me kicked in and I immediately started inquiring about the airport’s Disaster Recovery protocol. Well that request was met with a smile and a “Pura Vida”. As we looked around at the hundreds of stranded travelers and then back at the airport personnel who were unnervingly cheerful, it hit us – Pura Vida… Yes we get it… We are trapped in paradise… life is good. From that point on we knew things were only going to go up from there. We took a chill pill and just embraced our new adventure.

On this trip our journey took us to the city of Grecia. We decided to not do any sightseeing but just focus in on finding a place to live. We picked Grecia because we had read that it was cooler than Atenas, the place we visited on our first trip.

Originally we were supposed to stay at a vacation rental but that fell through at the last minute. We ended up staying at a B&B owned by an African American – La Terraza Guest House. We are believers of things happening for a reason and this was no different. Ms. Jeanetta the proprietor of the B&B rolled out the red carpet for us. She made arrangements for us to meet up with expats now living in the CR. Her motto is she wants you to experience life in Costa Rica so that you can better appreciate it. (that is exactly what we set out to do)

We met some amazing couples who we regard now as friends that opened up their homes to us and made us feel so welcomed. In fact an example of this kindness was seen when expat DeVon contacted her friends Audrey and Kevin to see if they could meet up with us at the salsa club in Sarchi. She reached out to them because Kevin is a Harley guy and she wanted us to know firsthand what it is like riding in the CR. We were not able to meet up with them there but instead they invited us over to their house. There we were all 6 of us walking down the middle of the street at dusk in the barrio of Sarchi over to their home.. yelling out “hola” back at the neighbors as they greeted us.

That night as we sat on the porch of the B&B listening to the rushing water of the river with the full moon casting a spot light on the palm trees we realized that Grecia was home. Yup… another Pura Vida moment.

Pros:

·   Farmers Market (Feria) – OMG!!! 80+ booths of the freshest, biggest, most amazing fruits & vegetables we have ever seen (check out some of the fruits we experienced for the first time –  Mangosteen & Mamon Chino)

·   Weather – AMAZING – we had to sleep under a blanket every night (highs mid-seventies and the lows upper fifties)

·   Network – great network of expats to help us navigate the CR

·   Town – hospital, private clinics, animal hospital, supermarkets, bus depot and even a small mall with cinema (a metropolis coming from Wimberley)

Cons:

·   Roads – still a little rough. In fact the road to our new home can only be accessed by four wheel drive. (that’s why we have a Toyota FJ Cruiser – problem solved)

Verdict:

Have you ever searched your whole life for something… not knowing what it was you were searching for until you finally found it. Well this is what happened to us when we visited Grecia. This place connects to us on every level – mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Now we are frantically working to get the house ready to put on the market next month so that we can be in Grecia by September.