PURA-VIDA! (Turrialba, San Jose & Dominical)

My last night in Samara was also Toronto John's last night in Samara. he is a painter from Toronto who comes down and rents a house for a couple months a year. We had a bbq at his place with a few neighbours, mostly Canadians either visiting or living in the neighbourhood. Grilled pineapple, spicey quesadilla rollups (amazing), Fish, rice, chicken, salads and a sort of rhum/fruit/candy cake. I think I had 7 servings in all.

Once I arrived in Sj, I met a couple guys from NYC. We headed up to a less-than-touristy part of town past Guadalupe and up the Central Valley a few kms. The view of San Jose from up there is amazing - more to come on that.

I took the direct bus to Turrialba last Monday and met Massi, Marvin's cousin, at his office. He took me to his place to get settled. That evening we had Tuna sushi and a couple bottles of wine, while listening to Bob Marley and other Central-American and Carribean artists with two of Massi's friends, Mario and Anna-Maria. It's hard not to get into the vibe of the Latin/Carribean music down here. There are so many talented artists from Jamaica, to El Salvador, to Costa Rica and South America. The next morning, I headed out on a rafting expedition with Massi's outfit, Explornatura. They are the leading outfit in Turrialba for rafting. The town of Turrialba is also hosting the rafting World Cup later this year. Massi is well-connected as he is the president of the Chambre of Tourism of Turrialba. We rafted mostly class III and a couple class IV and our full day trip also included a fabulous shore lunch.

Massi has business is Dominical (Central Pacific coast), so I hopped in the car for the ride and we spent two days there. The first night was spent having beers with a few random Americans and El Salvadorians (sp?) on the beach. With not much sleep in me, I spent all of Friday lying on the beach and generally doing nothing. Friday night, we had a riverside BBQ at Chappy and Andrea's place, Massi's business partners. Our BBQ consisted of freshly caught Mahi Mahi, marinated in a fruity, spicey blend 'a la Chappy' with roasted potatoes and cooked over a grill overlooking the river - Best meal I have had so far hands down.

Early yesterday morning, we left Dominical for San Jose. I wish I could put into words the sights we saw along the way. The Pan-American highway runs through the southern central valley - This is the same chain of mountains connecting with the Andes. To the north, above San Jose, the Central Valley mountains connect with the same Rocky Mountains that wind their way up to BC. The highway winds its way through Central Costa Rica, above the cloud line and eventually to the top of Costa Rica, 3500m up. On a clear day, you can hike another couple hundred meters up and if there are no clouds in the sky, you can see both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The view is jaw-dropping. I am having trouble uploading pics, but be sure to have a look at them when they are eventually posted.

I am hopefully going to meet up with Dave, Marvin and Johnny today as we have all been sort of off the radar the last few days. It is election fever in the city as their presidential elections are being held today and people are taking to the streets. They sure take their elections seriously around here. The honking and chanting goes all day long and through the night.

As I prepare to leave Costa Rica behind and I think about all that I have done in the past three weeks and all the people I have met. One word sums it all up. Pura Vida! Literally translated it means Pure Life. Ticos use this word when they meet someone from another country to say welcome. It also means cheers, high-five, no worries, good times. But most of all, it means live life to the fullest and live it now. Pura Vida!

Onto Rio de Janeiro Tuesday with a mild stop-over in Miami. Viva Carnaval!