The Final Days in Sunsets

Moar Lobster Feasts!

I've been hearing about these lobsters from Charlie and Kelsey since Day 1, March 1. We've looked for them in Brasalito I don't know how many times, but we finally lucked out! They're pretty inexpensive at about $5 per lobster.

To find the lobsters, you have to be fairly clever. First, you have to know where to find the fishermen. Then you have to know when to find them. If you drive through Brasalito through some dirt roads, you'll see houses with coolers outside. It's likely those coolers are full of lobsters! 

We picked up $40 worth of lobsters the first time. They were so tasty.

Charlie and Lorenzo with the lobsters

Lobster Feast Part 1

Grilled Lobsters with garlic butter

Tomato Garlic Rice

Salad

Charlie and Billy prepping dinner

butter with garlic

the feast crew: Billy, Lorenzo, Charlie, and Kelsey

look at all the lobster

shrapnel

the Feast!

We grilled those babies up real nice. Just throw them on the grill whole and they take about 15 minutes. All you have to do is wait until they're bright pink. Billy made a really good salad, and I made some rice with tomatoes and garlic and onions. 

Lobster Feast Part 2

Grilled Lobsters with garlic butter

Shrimp and Clam Paella (based loosely on this recipe)

It wasn't very nice of us to have Lobster Feast the night before Colleen arrived, so we had to do it again! This time I made a super yummy paella with shrimp and clams to go along with the grilled lobsters.

chorizo, garlic, onion, rice stewing for paella

in go the shrimps and clams

peas make it the final addition

the Feast part 2

even Lucas came to visit!

Lobster Feast Part 3

Lobster Tomato Basil Pasta

Garbanzo Artichoke Heart Salad

Third time's the charm, and we still aren't sick of lobster. I made a seafood broth from the leftover lobster shells with some potatoes, garlic, and clam shells. That simmered for about an hour and created a fairly dark and flavorful broth. I cooked the noodles in that since we only had a little bit of leftover lobster for the pasta.

The salad had garbanzo beans, tomato, artichoke hearts, parsley, lemon juice and feta. It was tasty and simple.

simmering stock

fresh salad

the pasta base

spaghetti cooking in the broth

perfecto!

We still aren't tired of lobster, and all we can say around here is, "It smells like lobster!" I'm pretty sure lobster is coming out of my pores today. Or I'm going to turn into Zoidberg.

Now that we've had the lobster feasts, there's only one thing left on my list of things to do. Get chifrijo.

Learning to Live Simply: Only 1 Week Left To Go

I can't believe how fast 2 months goes by. It seems like I was just stepping off the plane with the warm tropical breeze in the face.

Every sunset here is so different from the next, and I've only missed a few. With the rainy season coming on, there are a lot more clouds which lend to intense colors and patterns as soon as the sun slips behind the horizon. Did you know it takes 2 minutes for the sun to fully disappear once it touches the horizon? Yup, I timed it because what else am I going to do for 2 months? :)

So Grateful For the Work I Do

I can't help thinking about all the things I've done since I've been here. I'm so grateful for the work I do that it allows me to do something like this. I have so much gratitude for my clients who have put up with some serious 1990s international-phone-call-lag, poor internet connections, and overall not getting mad at me every time they ask what the weather is like here. Sorry, but it's still sunny and in the 90s. Every. Day.

Learning Tico Time 

If you're familiar with Island Time, it's the same thing. UrbanDictionary defines Island Time as such:

The time vacuum created by the ocean's presence. Similar to stoner's time, everything moves nice and slow. This carefree aura even has the ability to travel with islanders and can engulf you in their presence.

I'd say that's pretty accurate. Learning to slow down has been very beneficial but also conflicting with my work schedule. But in general, things move slower here and it's a stark contrast to life in MN.

There's Only One Road to Get Where You're Going

One of the recurring themes while I've been here is that even if you don't know where you're going, there's only one road to get where you're going. And just trust that road will take you where you need to be. A fairly perfect lesson for life as well, don't you think? Thanks, Costa Rica. I needed reminding of this. :)

All the Visitors, All Different Mini-Vacations

One of my favorite parts about this experience has been all of the people who visited me. Each and every visit was so different from the next. I loved spending that vacation time with everyone and seeing how different "vacation" is to my friends.

Shawn's visit was a lot relaxing in the pool, eating Taco Star tacos, playing the hell out of NetRunner, cooking lots of yummy food, getting lost on the crazy roads to Arenal but realizing how worth it it would be once we sat in the hot springs, and celebrating his 40th with a joint on the beach. Pretty epic.

Nick, Julie and Valerie's trip can be summed up in one word: adventurous! What a treat to see Costa Rica through Valerie's 13 year old eyes. She's so full of life and excited about everything. We spent a lot of time at the beach, and I had the thrill of my life zip lining. Lots of boogie boarding and late night swims with our beloved Pilsen. And the introduction to Spa Day.

Maxine and Gisela's trip can be summed up in a totally different word: Drama. With a capital D. This was the week everything at the Beachouse broke, disappeared, and all around they just forgot people were staying here. Some stressful intrigues with the manager Rebekah put me really close to over the edge. And on the flip side of their trip, we had some really incredible food and saw some excellent live music. A lot of pool time and great music was perfect. Lots of late nights with Maxine (no is surprised there) were just what I needed to be reminded of home.

Poor Marta and Chris... they had a pretty rough go with Costa Rica. It was Semana Santa (Holy Week - when everyone in the country goes to the beach for a week) and Tamarindo was overwhelmed with tens of thousands of people more than there usually is. The quiet, calming CR I had told them about was hard to see that week. On top of that Chris got sick, and Marta flipped her ATV. I don't know how they made it out alive...oh yeah, Spa Day round 3.

With only 1 week left, I'm starting to make preparations for when I get back. I can't wait to get a proper manicure/pedicure. So silly, I know. Haircut, check. My hair has gotten really long for not cutting it in 3 months. When to pick up the Jellster (I miss her a ton). The ABF event on May 1 is quickly approaching too!

Living Simply

Overall, I've learned to live simply while here. I brought very very few things with me, and I wasn't sure how that would work out. Would I be missing anything? Did I bring too much? Turns out, I brought too much for the most part. And I forgot some key things (AUX cord for the car, duh tunes), but all my friends were quick to ask what I needed and before long I didn't need anything else. Just some quality time with friends and family.

Spring Cleaning has a new meaning for me this year. I have so much clutter in my house that's been accumulating. That will be resolved this year. All those things I've been holding on to for who knows why will be getting tossed.

And finally, work. I worked way too much while I was here. I don't normally like working 40 hours a week even when I'm in Minneapolis, but I had way too many 10-hour days here. Granted, that allowed me to have a few days off to spend with my friends. But overall, I had too many projects going on while here. I'll keep that in mind as I get back to Mpls and skim the fat. Life is just too short to spend a lot of time working.

Looking forward to seeing all of my friends and family, and looking forward to meeting new people (you know who you are).
xo

Adventure Day! Everything you've ever wanted to do in Costa Rica

There are so many fun adventurous things to do when in Costa Rica. Zip Lining is probably the most prevalent, but other things include hot springs, volcanos, horseback riding, rain forest tours, and seeing lots of cool wildlife.

Kelsey went to Guachipelín when her friend Emily was here a few weeks ago and said it was amazing. Julie, Nick, Valerie and I headed out to the Rincon Volcano National Park to the Hacienda Guachipelín. They have an Adventure Day Pass that lets you do pretty much everything outdoor and adventure related that you would want to do in Costa Rica.

It. Was. Awesome.

For only $85, you get to do all of these things: horseback riding, swimming in a waterfall river, tubing down a river with monkeys chasing you, zip line canopy tour with a tarzan swing and rock climbing, hot spring pools, mud baths, and they include a really great lunch with the whole thing.

You can start your day any time between 8:00am - 9:30am. We were there for almost 9 hours doing everything! If you are traveling to Costa Rica and want to do any tours, contact Mariana at info@youarecostarica.com - she has been amazing for setting up our tours.

Things to Know Before You Go:

1. bring sunscreen and reapply often
2. bring snacks - it was almost 2:00pm by the time we finished tubing and went for lunch. we were starving
3. bring a waterproof camera for everything; bring a non-waterproof camera everywhere except tubing

About the Activities

Horseback Riding
This was just ok and my least favorite part of the day even though it was the first part. I didn't think the horses seems very happy, and they really wanted to run and trot. I haven't been on a horse since I went to Camp St. Croix with Nika Bachman in 6th grade. I like horses just fine, but it was a little scary. We stopped half way through at a beautiful waterfall. We got to jump in and swim in the really cool water. It was perfect since it was so hot. Bring your camera. We did not because we didn't know what was going on. Here's what you're missing. 

Tubing
This was my favorite part of the day! We had awesome guides helping us down the river. It was about 5 kilometers for the whole ride and it took about an hour. It was part white-water rafting and part lazy river - does it get much better? It does. Halfway through the ride, we were at a lazy river juncture and we had a troop of 12 white-faced monkeys lounging in the tree above us. Julie was at the back of the group of 26 tubers and the monkeys started following us along. How cute! They have prehensile tails which is pretty bad ass.

Lunch
We had a really lovely buffet of arroz con frijoles y pollo (rice with beans and chicken). They were chicken drummies! Yum. And we were really hungry. Kelsey was right - bring snacks. There was salad and dessert and this really yummy watermelon juice that we're pretty sure was straight up pureéd watermelon. So delicious!

Zip Lining - Canopy Tour - Rock Climbing = NERVOUS WRECK
I've always thought I was one for thrill seeking and adventures. I also thought I wasn't interested in zip lining while in Costa Rica. It turns out, if you haven't zip lined then you haven't been to Costa Rica. Plus, Valerie was super excited about this part! She had such a blast and all the guides were excited to show her around.

Here's what you need to know about zip lining if you've never done it: trust the guides, don't let go, stay balanced, and hope you don't die.

Our safety lesson

We went through a course of 9 zip lines, 1 Tarzan rope swing, 1 rock climbing wall, and 1 Indiana Jones Temple of Doom canyon-crossing bridge. It was just as scary as you are imagining it right now.

We went over tree tops, down waterfalls and through a canyon that you better keep your feet tucked in! Here is Valerie on the first zip line (this was the longest one):

I was terrified for the first one. Did you hear that god awful sound? After our safety lesson, I wasn't sure I'd be able to break when I needed to. And honestly...how does one STOP??? You don't know until you go your first time.

By the second one, I thought I had a handle on it. "This is kinda fun!" I stupidly thought...by zip line 6 I was shaking so bad from adrenaline, stress and terror that I wasn't sure I could continue. That's when the damn Indiana Jones Temple of Doom canyon-crossing bridge came up. No one told us about this. NO ONE. I like my expectations set, people.

This is how bad I'm shaking. I can't take a photo.

This isn't any better - with two hands. Still shaking.

So I am all alone now after the Tarzan swing just dying to be done. Only 2 more, the guides keep saying. I arrive to the last platform....and there is a ladder. It is rickety, it is wood, and I have to climb up it. This is how it goes down in my head:

WHAT THE F IS THIS? YOU MEAN TO TELL ME I HAVE TO CLIMB THIS??

OMG, I don't think I can do this. *deep breath* *deep breath*

I will do this. This is the only way out.

I'll cut a bitch. Get me out of here.

By the time I got past that bridge, I wasn't sure I could climb up the teeny tiny metal "ladder" if you can even call it that. "Just get me out of here" was all I could think. Finally I was there. I zip lined down to the last platform and thanked my lucky stars that I made it. I've never pushed myself out of my comfort zone this far before. Whew.

Canyon. Zip Lining. 

Do I look terrified? I felt terrified.

Hot Springs & Mud Bath

I don't really remember the ride to the hot springs because I was reeling from so much adrenaline from the zip lines. Once we got there, it was great. Super relaxing with a lot of pools and a cold spring running through the middle.

The big idea is to paint yourself with mud, let it dry, then sit in one of the waterfalls in the river and let it wash off...your skin will be super soft. :)

Best way to finish the day. All in all, I would totally recommend this adventure.

Pura vida