It's a small world after all ...

We are doing well settling in to the new house, spending money like we have it (though we don't lol) and loving every minute of it. Mario got himself a weedwhacker (note it is HIS cause I never want to whack) and is outside chopping everything down that looks unruly. Those of you that know my Mario know that almost everything is unruly (he is a tad bit OCD), so he is really happy. I still haven't found my cords, I have his awful feeling I tossed them into the tangled mess of cords I brought from the states "in case". It is on my to-do list to sort them out and organize them into neat little rolls ( a job for Mario? lol) but if my camera cord doesn't show up soon I will have to get to it.

So the other night about 7:30 - 8:00 I am inside on the computer when I hear Mario talking to someone outside. Now this is VERY strange since we live on the mountain and never see anyone when it is light out let alone in the pitch black, and it is pouring! Turns out our only neighbor, up the mountain about 300 feet, across the road, and down the mountain about 300 feet, decided to walk over and meet us. Well, not exactly meet us, since she already knew us! Remember the nurse that came out to see my leg and scheduled the rush appointment since it looked so bad? Well guess what?! She is our neighbor! What a small world! She said she had passed by and saw us and thought we looked like the couple that she had helped. Her husband laughed and said something along the lines that there are a lot of gringas and this couldn't possibly be the same one she helped. Then she saw the bandage on my leg and said HA! It is her!! lol. So we have a new friend, Patricia!

Off to look for my cords and work ... Pura Vida!

I'm back and boy have I been busy!

I got back on Sunday night. After the Spirit fiasco everything went smoothly. I got to the airport with plenty of time. I hit the first snagget when I tried to get a boarding pass. The gal at the check in said she couldn't find my return flight. I handed her my bus ticket and she was concerned because it was an open ticket, not for a specific date (lesson learned, next time I will pick a random date). The manager wasn't around and her coworker nicely explained to me that Americans can't leave the country without a return flight. Hmmm never heard of that law, but she said it with such authority. So finally they find the supervisor and she says my ticket is fine. They note it in the computer as the "authority" slunk away. I asked for an empty seat next to me because of my leg and the gal was really accommodating. I was on a flight to Orlando that continued onto Ft Lauderdale and apparently you need to keep the same seat on the whole trip. She found me a seat with tons of legroom right behind the Big Seat row and I had no one else in my row for both flights! I spent the extra for a Big Seat on the CR leg of the trip so that was no problem. So on to security, of course I am the random traveller to get searched, but then I think I have only flown once where I wasn't. The searchers were nice and the woman with the wand was really careful with my leg. The rest of the day was uneventful. I met a really nice Tica in the airport in Florida, we chatted for a bit and exchanged numbers. People are so friendly here. I got to San Jose at midnight and by 12:30 was in the car with Mario and his brother. Oldemar drives a taxi at night and we figured out it was cheaper to use him then rent a car and stay in a hotel. So off we go, they had borrowed someone's GPS because no one knew how to get home from the airport. Usually you go into San Jose and then grab the interamerican highway. This GPS however took us on the scenic route and we got to climb a mountain through some really dicey neighborhoods and traverse a rut filled dirt road. What fun at 1 AM, but we finally got home at 5:30 in the AM.

The next day we got up late, I even managed to sleep through the roosters and we looked for a doctor. Mario was convinced that I needed to go to the hospital so he never made the appointment (sigh). His dad recommended a clinic but they were booked, gee SOMEONE made appointments. They sent us to the next clinic 2 doors down. They also were booked, but the nurse came out to look at my leg (I had stayed int he car this time because it was bleeding and hurting). She looked at it and had Mario go back in with her. They fit me in later that day - not a good sign for me since that meant it was BAD. We went to the appointment and the doctor told me the skin had died and I was heading for gangrene. He had to cut all of the dead skin off and it would be a BIG open wound that will take months to heal. Oh joy. He said there was really no other way. So he opens this door in his office and there is an exam room. He did it right there. I was my usual big baby self and cried. It REALLY hurt! He gave me anesthetic, but still there were parts that he cut that felt like I had nothing. He also gave me more antibiotics and pain killers and explicit instructions on how to care for the wound. It is actually looking much better now so I am hopeful the worst is over. Oh yeah - cost? $80, and he apologized and said from now on it would be $60, but he had to charge for the operation.

The next day we signed our lease and Wednesday we moved to the new house. I said I have been busy lol. I LOVE LOVE LOVE it here! I will tell more about it in another post, when I find the damn cord to the camera and I can post pictures. But it is a dream come true, I never thought I would live somewhere so beautiful.

Today Mario brought the rest of our stuff. We got a late start because the cable guys were here. So he got here late and it started to rain before they could get the big truck out. To get to our house you need a 4x4. We couldn't find a 4x4 so Mario borrowed his brothers box truck and his dad helped it along by pulling with his 4x4. That worked great on the first trip on Wednesday. Today however, the rain made the clay/rock road slick. They decided that it had just started and they could make it out. So they tied the 2 trucks together and started out. Mario had problems from the start, they big truck had no traction, his dad started to pull it and we heard a horrible noise. They think it is the transmission on his dad's truck. Then the bumper snapped off on the big truck. So now we had 2 trucks that couldn't move stuck on our road. So Mario hiked up to the top of our road to see if anyone had a tractor (this is why I love it here). He called me from the highway, nobody could help us. He called Oldemar and he was going to take the taxi to his 4x4. I suggested a tow truck but the look on his father's face and Mario's reaction told me this wasn't gonna happen. I started dinner for everyone because I figured we would be stuck for a while. Mario left with Oldemar to go and get his car, but his dad got impatient and decided that he and his wife would walk to the highway too. Now I know where Mario gets it. So I called Mario and back he came, he got them safely, they are in their 70's and I was so worried that something would happen to them on the gravel mountain road. Hours went by and I called mario to see what happened. He said he was on the way with his dad, his brother, and a tractor. Sure enough a half an hour later the tractor pulled out his dad and the big truck. They can fix the bumper with 4 screws so it is not a big deal. His dad's car drives but they need to get the 4 wheel drive fixed.

Whew that's it! I'm heading to bed and can't wait to see the mountains in the morning!

Last Day in the States

Well this is it, I leave tomorrow. What an odd feeling, vacation in Pa and NJ and home to Costa Rica. I had a great time! A HUGE thanks to all the friends and family that gave me such a warm welcome, took me shopping, transported me from here to there and back again, and just made me feel sooo happy to come back! But I miss my Mario and Costa Rica so I am leaving with mixed emotions. My leg is awful. I am really worried, the wound is black and the skin around it is red. I went to an internist and he wouldn't even touch it. He wants me to go to a surgeon for a possible skin graft. I explained that I was leaving on Sunday so he put me on stronger antibiotics and advised me to get to a doctor soon in Costa Rica. Mario made an appointment for Monday so I will go then. I think it is looking pinker and I have been icing it so the redness is less. Who knows how much damage I will do tomorrow with all the planes.

I was supposed to fly out of Atlantic City to Ft Lauderdale and then on to Costa Rica. When I got the confirmation today I noticed that it said Atlanta and not Atlantic City. I am flying Spirit for the first time since a) they are cheaper and b) I could buy a one way ticket. Costa Rican law says you need a ticket out of the country within 90 days when you enter. When I came in April I had a round trip ticket. That's how I just got back. Now I don't want to commit to a date so I didn't want to buy a round trip ticket this time. I bought a bus ticket to Panama. I read that this is acceptable. It is an open ticket that needs to be used within 3 months. Let's see if I can get by with this $14 purchase.

Anyway, I called Spirit in a panic because obviously I cannot leave from Atlanta. They say no problem for a mere $270 I can switch my ticket to Atlantic City, but wait there are no flights tomorrow. So I look and there are 6 flights from AC to Ft Lauderdale. Oh but the flight from Ft Lauderdale to Costa Rica is full so I cannot reschedule for tomorrow. OK I am not a rocket scientist, but if I HAVE A TICKET from Ft Lauderdale to CR why would I not be able to get a seat? Well it seems that the ticket is from Atlanta so you cannot reschedule only 1 leg and the flight is booked to CR. So I try again - if I reschedule then my seat is not being used so therefore there is room on the plane. Again I get the same answer. I demand to speak to a manager. No luck she reads from the same script and cannot think on her own. She tells me to call the Spirit desk in Ft Lauderdale and see if they will let me board the plane if I fly there from AC without changing the reservation (which would cost $150). So I look up the number and call, there is no Spirit desk in Ft Lauderdale but I can have baggage. The woman there tries to help, but there is no one I can talk to. She directs me to someone else who is a supervisor but that woman tells me she is much too busy to talk to me, can I wait on hold? 20 minutes later I give up. So after this 2 hour stressful interaction with Spirit I decide fine I will pay the extra money and book the flight on Monday. So I get the next moron err customer service rep on the phone and he says he will be more than happy to rebook. He rebooks me for a Tuesday PM flight. While he is confirming etc. I check again online for a flight tomorrow and voila! Now there is a seat. So I have him look again and he tells me oh yes a seat has opened - DUH could it be MINE that you just switched???!!! You could hear the light bulb click as he realizes this is what I had been saying all along. He says but I just booked you for Tuesday. I practically reach through the phone to strangle him but say in my sweetest voice through clenched teeth - but I really want to go tomorrow. I am waiting for him to say he can reschedule for another $270 but to my relief he says OK hang on and books me on the f-ing flight I asked for 2 hours ago. But now I get to leave AC - fly to Orlando - fly to Ft Lauderdale and then fly to CR. I will be travelling for 12 hours but dammit I will be home tomorrow!

Needless to say I won't be travelling Spirit again.

Emergency Room Visit :(

I got to see the medical system in action yesterday. We went to Dominical to pickup some last minute gifts and I had to run to the sanitorios when we got there. I went up these rickety stairs to get there and when I came back down I managed to severely cut my leg on the rusted nails and rotted wood. The blood was gushing out and I had the sense to apply pressure quickly. Mario saw it happen and grabbed a paper towel from the little food stand that was right there. We got the bleeding to slow down and wrapped it with a rag (dirty of course). We opted to return to the hospital in San Isidro because we had Diego with us and it was too hot to leave him in the car. So we drove back and went to the emergency room.

What an experience! There were people everywhere in wheel chairs, on stretchers, in the hallways, wandering. As soon as I started walking I started to bleed again. A nice woman offered me her seat, another started talking to me to calm me down. I was scared and upset because I had no idea what was going to happen. Mario took my passport and went to fill out paperwork. He came back and grabbed a nurse and said I was bleeding and they had to help me. I never saw him so forceful! I didn't know he had it in him, but he was really worried about me. In about 15 minutes from the time we came in I was on the stretcher face down getting ready to be stitched up. Pretty impressive for a non-life threatening injury. I am sure I would have waited hours in Philly. They shot me full of Novocaine and stitched the wound, Mario said there were a lot of stitches and it was very neat. They put a bandage on and I was ready to leave when a doctor came in with the person that had stitched me up (I don't know if she was a doctor or a nurse) and asked them to remove the bandages so he could look at the wound. He said that I needed to be stitched again since she had only used one thread. Because the wound was so large he wanted the stitches tied off each time so that if there was infection they could remove a few and not all. So more Novocaine (man I hate needles) and out came the old stitches and she restitched. Now the wound looks kind of hairy but I guess it's better.

Next we were told that I would need antibiotics and pain killers and a tetanus shot. We had to pay first so we went to the caja (cashier). We expected the worst, but everything came to 36,000 colones or about $72. That's with no insurance because we procrastinated about looking into any here. Incredible.

The pharmacy is in the hospital so we got the medicine right there. I go the tetanus shot in the same emergency room. The people were really nice and they explained everything that they were doing and how I need to take care of the stitches. All in all I am really impressed. We stopped in a local pharmacy today to buy gauze and stuff to keep the wound clean. The pharmacist asked what they gave me for pain and then sold me something stronger than the Tylenol they had prescribed. I am not sure if I will take them, but I bought some because I will be on the plane all day tomorrow when I fly home so I wanted to have something in case it hurts. He also sold me a cream that is an antibiotic and will also help scarring. Pretty cool if it works.

Anyway I probably won't be updating for a few days as I am travelling to see friends and family. When I come back we are moving so stay tuned!

We may be nuts but we are moving!

So we have been working like crazy to fix up our house and it looks really nice, but I really wanted a house with a view. Our house is in a little town, filled with people, dogs, and chickens. It was starting to get to me waking up every morning a 3 to the song of the rooster that sleeps outside our window. This wasn't the tranquilo life I had imagined. But still I LOVE Costa Rica, I could live in our house for years and still be happy here. One day as I was looking through my favorite real estate site Chirripo Bienes Raices I saw this house. WOW what a beautiful house, and the view!

My sensible side said nooooo you are living rent free, no mortgage, why would you rent a house? Save save save and one day you can buy a house with a view. But my adventurous side said it can't hurt just to LOOK at the house. So we went, we looked, and we rented. Not without obstacles, apparently you need to have a 4x4 to get to the house. Our little Toyota couldn't handle the driveway. So we traded it in and poof we have a Suzuki Sidekick that can make it. So when I come back from the states we are moving in. Crazy I know, but you only live once. So if you know anyone looking for a really cute tico house in Barrio Los Angeles we are renting ours out for $200 a month! Rooster wake up calls are free!

So why do I want to live in the mountains? Well for one it is about 10 degrees cooler. I hear it is blistering in New Jersey and Pennsylvania right now. There is no escape. Here in Costa Rica, just drive up into the mountains and it gets cooler and cooler until you actually need a sweater. The other reason? These are some picture I shot from the restaurant on the way to Dominical:

This is the center of Perez Zeledon (San Isidro del General), the church is the same one in the header of my site.

So green! and the lofty clouds over the mountains are ever-changing.

Just loved the clouds that day, so peaceful.

So there is my dream, to wake up to views like this everyday. Let's hope this house is as perfect and peaceful as it seems....