Hasta luego, Costa Rica!

After returning home, it was so difficult to get back into the swing of things. Wednesday morning I had over 9 emails to respond to at work. I've caught myself answering with "si" and "gracias" a lot. Also, after 6 days back from Costa Rica, my stomach is still extremely confused. Where is the huge breakfast? Where are all of the fresh fruits? Why no more Caipirinhas? I guess time will heal.

I reminisce every day about something different on our trip that I absolutely loved. Whether it was the coffee, our tour guide Gabby, or the monkeys; there was not a single bad moment of the trip. I learned a great deal from our speakers, and our tour guides. I was also glad to develop friendships with my fellow classmates whom I would have otherwise never had the opportunity to meet. I am looking forward to the inevitable cocktail gatherings with the group in the future. Seeing Costa Rica definitely opened my eyes to the diversity of the world outside of the United States. I can see myself retiring early and spending the winter months there in a hillside mansion overlooking the ocean. It was an all around great experience, and I would do it over again in a heartbeat. Thanks to our instructor, Dr. Lanier, my fellow classmates, and our tour guides who made this a once in a lifetime trip for me. Pura Vida!

Poolside Blogging

So a lot has happened since my last update on Wednesday. Thursday was a lecture day at the hotel. We got to hear from a wonderful woman who has devoted her life to trying to eradicate poverty in a very low income area of Costa Rica. It was very touching to hear how passionate she was about this. Our last two lectures went through some historical aspects of Costa Rica including religion and political issues. 

Now to the fun stuff...Friday left for the resort. We stopped on the way to see some beautiful red macaws and a few holler monkeys. Around 3 o'clock, we arrived at the hotel and almost immediately hit the beach, and the bar. It's been very difficult to control myself having access to an open bar, and buffet almost 24/7. Saturday Dr Lanier, Liz-z, Johnae, Meriem and I went on a fishing excursion offshore. We had an absolute blast. We were catching amberjack almost every 5 minutes. We brought back probably 20lbs of fish filets to the chef at the resort to cook our whole group for supper. It was delicious. 

Sunday was our adventure day. We went to a huge ranch and started our day off with white water tubing. We then zip lined through the forest and ravines. I had never zip lined before, but it was so much fun. We then rode horses to a nearby waterfall (the horses were all very anxious to get there). Our final adventure was a long plunge in a natural hot spring.

Today is our last day here. The other guys went out to attempt surfing this morning. I quickly decided that learning to surf would likely be pretty strenuous, and I want to do absolutely nothing today. I woke up and ate a huge breakfast, and now I'm planning on hitting the bar and fresh chicken wings while attempting to bronze up with the ladies. Adios 

No pantalones cortos permitidos

Today was jam packed with activities. After a gluttonous breakfast, we departed to downtown San Jose' to explore the area and local market. It was a pretty cool place to walk around and mingle with the locals. We next headed toward Costa Rica's Congress. Much to our chagrin, Matt, Greg and I were denied access to the building because we had chosen the comfort of shorts. This was definitely a blessing in disguise though. Our guide, Fernando, took us to a local park which happened to have a temporary farmers market set up. We had the best time tasting exotic fruits and vegetables, along with other local treats. Matt had the opportunity to leave his mark in a patch of wet cement near an abandoned train station we took a look at. On our way back to meet up with the group who got to enter the Congress, Fernando pointed out to us the previous President of the Congress. We got to talk with him for a bit and take a picture.

(Downtown San Jose')

We then departed for lunch at a souvenir factory. There, we got to shop and check out the process of making all of the wood products they sell (pretty cool!). It was very interesting to see how a finished product comes from a block of rare wood.

Next stop, bubble gum! By far the best smelling place we've visited. On the other hand, we all had to wear hair nets. They were all white, which definitely did not match my outfit, but I digress. We are now back at the hotel preparing for our next activities. We have a lecture in just a few minutes centered around the medical tourism in Costa Rica. I'm sure this will be a very interesting topic. To finish off our night, we will be taking a trip "up the hill" for dinner and drinks overlooking the Central Valley area.

(Bubble gum coloring room)

Costa Rican Rhapsody

Is this real life?
Is this just fantasy?
Caught behind a landslide
Looks like no lunch for me
Open your map
We just want to see coffee
I'm just a poor student, I don't need anything fancy
Because I'm easy come, easy go
Little sick, little slow
Of course the wind blows, and blocks crater view to me, to me

Mama Patricia, pass the trash can
I feel a pain inside my head
Too much rum and now I'm dead
Mama Patricia, our trip has just begun
But I just really need my bed
Mama Patricia, oooo
I really don't want to cry
But if I'm not feeling better by this time tomorrow
Carry on, carry on, as if nothing really matters

Your move, Jacob.

Aside from the combination of motion sickness, hangover and dehydration, today was awesome. We started out at the summit of a volcano. Although we could not see the crater, there were still amazing views of the valleys below. We then visited a local market and got a taste of the some of the local foods including some pretty tasty mini-bananas and some other seed fruit.

(Inside the local market)

 

(Anona)

 

In route to our next expedition we hit a few difficulties. We first encountered a landslide blocking the road to the coffee farm. Upon taking another route we came across a bridge which the bus was too tall to pass. To our amazement, there was a third route that lead us to the farm. The main building was pretty cool. It looked onto a reservoir that fed a nearby hydroelectric plant. We ate a great lunch, then got a crash course in coffee production.

 



(View from the farms event facilities)

 

Our last stop was at a beautiful old church. It is a very important church in Costa Rica, and once a year in August, millions of people walk there to pray.

 





(Inside the church)

Not as funny as Jacob's

Today was action packed with adventures in the third floor meeting room of our hotel. The chair covers added an extra level of excitement I will likely never see duplicated. Our first guest speaker was Vanessa Gibson from CIND (Costa Rican Investment Promotion). She was a very enthusiastic lady and it was evident she was passionate about what she does. She spoke of how the non-profit  organization she works for aids countries in making foreign direct investments in Costa Rica. FDI is a huge part of the Costa Rican economy; over 5% of GDP. She related that her company aids companies both large and small such as Intel and Equifax with how to structure their investments in Costa Rica. She also went over the tax benefits for these companies, which were very impressive.

Our second guest spoke to us about marketing Costa Rica to the world. It was important to note (I know this because I wrote it down) that there are over 1 billion people worldwide employed in the tourism industry in one way or another. He brought us through the different marketing stages the country has gone through in the past century. It was interesting to learn that the country saw a sharp rise in the amount of tourist, then overbuilt hotel . This lead to them having to increase their marketing budget like 500% or something. He then spoke of the value propositions relayed in marketing the country to prospective tourists.

After lunch, we could barely hold our excitement getting back in the meeting room. The now sub-zero temperature only heightened our sense of adventure. The next speaker was Carlos with PROCOMER, which is the unofficial export agency of Costa Rica. Their job is basically setting up meetings for manufacturers, farmers, etc. with buyers in other countries. Not only to they connect the local business with potential buyers, they also attend trade shows where they set up a Costa Rica booth to present what they country has to offer. Their main goal is to get export contracts executed.

By this point in the afternoon, those of us not yet in the final stages in hypothermia were ready for a cat nap. However, we were diligent enough to learn about the "state of the region" from Alberto. Alberto works for an agency who compiles data for a randomly occurring report on the state of the region of Central America. He outlined the problems facing the region as of 2011, which seemingly only applied to half of the countries in the area (Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua). These challenges included : migration issues, rapid climate change, social exclusion, weak infrastructures, and political problems. These challenges were followed by potential solutions.

Fun stuff, right? Just got my first taste of the local rum. Very bueno.

Rican Rapids

Where to begin? Today was awesome. Although a bit early for my taste, we departed the hotel with our aims set on the rain forest for a white water rafting adventure and a tour of a chocolate harvesting facility. On the way to the rafting site, we drove through beautiful, lush, uninhabited rain forests. We arrived at the rafting place, and were met with a breathtaking view of the river we were about to raft down. The rafting was tons of fun. I thought that I would be more scared than I actually was. The tons of forest scenery, combined with the rush of the rapids made for a very enjoyable ride. We were able to get out of the boats for a bit to jump into the water and snack on fresh pineapple. After the rafting, we returned to the lodge for lunch (finally rice and beans). After a quick walk through a butterfly house, we were off to the chocolate plantation.

(A view of the river from the rafting facility)

 

After arrival at the chocolate planation, we had to chance to see some of the local wildlife including a very large wild iguana and a poisonous dart frog.

 

(Blurry shot of a poisonous dart frog)

 

Our tour began with a long walk done a seemingly unstable and unreliable suspension bridge over forest, and the rapids we had previously rafted down. We continued to walk through the rain forest's canopy and encountered a few monkeys, and a jack-rabbit type varmint.

(Suspension bridge)

 

After reaching the plantation site, we were given a crash course in chocolate and the production of cacao throughout the centuries. It was so interesting how this fruit has evolved throughout the history of its cultivation. We got to taste the cacao at just about every stage of the process. After the tour and learning session, we were given a private lecture on ecotourism and sustainability in Costa Rica by one of the plantation's managers. He taught us about the different certifications a hotels, theme parks and other businesses can receive on the degree of environmental friendliness found in their operations. 

(Manager teaching us about the fermentation process of cacao)

 

I definitely had a blast today, and learned a lot in the process. Also had a great dinner consisting of pizza and wine. Until tomorrow, Pura Vida





Still no rice and beans

The first day of our excursion did not get off to a great start. Lafayette to Houston - Delayed; Houston to San Jose - delayed even longer; mean customs guy. Never the less, we made it here. The beauty of this country was almost automatically evident. The mountains surrounding the city are an awesome sight (like a book, I do not want to ruin the mental picture you already developed by inserting a picture). The infrastructure of San Jose' is definitely very different than anywhere I've been. After arriving at the hotel, our group took a stroll around the vicinity to get a feel of the culture. I got my first taste of the food - tacos and cabbage. I did not know what to do with the two rather large piles of cabbage oddly placed on the side of my tacos, so I just left them there to be safe. Also very surprised the dish did not come with rice and beans. The tacos were great, though. I immediately got a sense that the people of Costa Rica are very welcoming towards visitors. They all seem to have great attitudes. I am just noticing that this blog does not automatically capitalize the first words of my sentences, so I just want to apologize in advance for the seemingly elementary grammar mishaps. After eating, we checked out a local grocery store and headed back to the hotel. After a long day of traveling, I am ready for some shut eye. Or maybe a beer. Definitely one of the two. Until tomorrow, Pura Vida