Last Day of Vacation

Today was a day to do odds and ends. First we went into town to a chocolate shop. It was handmade chocolates from Costa Rica chocolate. Peter found souvenirs for his office mates. They are cute. I hope they like them. Lori went next door to the chocolate shop and bought two pieces of art. One was a Toucan painted on a feather–it was unique I liked it but didn’t find anything that I just had to have. We came back and had lunch from leftovers from the night before. Then we went to a beach that had ground up shells mixed with the sand in it. It was touted as a spectacular place to see. Yes, it was nice but we had to drive for 45 minutes to get there and we had to drive through a river–shallow one but a river just the same. We couldn’t go directly to the beach with the crushed shells. We had to go to the beach next door and hike in. David couldn’t walk that far and stayed at Playa de Brasilita while Peter and I hiked up a little hill and checked out Playa de Chonchal. Playa de Conchal was crowded with tents and people selling trinkets. The water was a little bluer and the sand had crunched up sea shells but I liked Playa de Brasilita better–no tents or trinkets. We went the long way home to avoid the river and it was better paved. For Lori’s birthday, we went to an Indian restaurant called Tandoori. It was delicious. Then we hit the gelato shop one last time. Our holiday is almost over. Tomorrow is the big travel day we fly from Costa Rica to Los Angeles. Then late morning on Wednesday we fly from there to Seattle and drive home from SeaTac. I have enjoyed this vacation but I am looking forward to coming home.

Diamante Eco Adventure Park

Today we went to an Eco Adventure park. They have the longest zipline in Costa Rica but we weren’t interested in that! We went to a cultural experience which talked about two of my favorite things-coffee and chocolate. We saw the seed pods of the Cacao plant and got to make a sweet chocolate paste that was delicious. There was also a zoo of sorts that had several different types of cats, and monkeys and birds and butterflies. I got a beautiful dragonfly ornament for my Christmas tree. We had lunch there at the buffet line–it wasn’t bad but wasn’t anything to write home about either. Now we are going to dinner at a place called Coconutz which serves hamburgers and micro brews. We sent out for laundry again–I could get used to sending a dirty load and having it come back washed, dried, and folded. Tomorrow is our last full day in Costa Rica. Then on Tuesday and Wednesday we have two travel days ahead of us. I love traveling but coming home is nice too. Peter is ready for his dinner so I will end this entry now.

Two beach day

Today was a beach day. We visited two local beaches, one in the morning and the second in the afternoon. We went back to the hotel for an hour for lunch because one beach was to the south and the other was to the north. My favorite was the afternoon beach. The sand by the ocean was really smooth and the water was warmer. Both places I took a dip but I mostly I sat on the beach and read my nook. I have really enjoyed the time to unwind and just read. I burned through 5 books on my nook so far on this trip and the trip is barely over half-way done. Peter went searching for a bathroom at the first beach and ended up at a bar. He ordered a coffee and David a pina colada–he said it was very good. We ate at a Greek food restaurant tonight for dinner. We found out that Lori’s birthday is on Monday, our last night here so we planned something special for her. We are going to go to an Indian restaurant for dinner and haven’t decided what to do during the day yet but we will think of something. We also found out we are expected to return the car clean and vacuumed out so we will be looking for a car wash–these dirt roads do not keep the cars clean! Tomorrow we are going to Diamante Eco Adventure Park. We are going for the cultural experience–none of us were crazy about ziplining. We should see sloths and monkeys there too. I am looking forward to it.

Monkeys and Crocodiles

Today we headed to a Hacienda. It included a boat ride, a cultural tour, and lunch in their restaurant. We saw a howler monkey sitting in a tree near the veranda of the hacienda. The boat ride included birds and crocodiles. It was on protected wetlands site. The cultural tour included learning how they make sugar from sugar cane, trying our hand at making tortillas, and samples of cornbread and empanadas. Lunch was excellent. I had chicken with rice and steamed veggies. Peter had beef and we all had a micro brew beer–they make it on site. I broke my record of not spending as the Hacienda had a gift shop with Christmas ornaments so I was able to get one for my collection. Peter got a coffee mug that was handmade with painting in the style of the local Indigenous People. It is a good thing we rented an SUV-the roads are largely unpaved dirt ones getting to and from the Hacienda. When we got back “home” we hit the pool to cool off. It was 93 degrees here today. Tomorrow is a beach day and we are traveling to nearby beaches to explore them. I can’t wait.

Costa Rica Waterfall

Today we went to a local waterfall called Llanos del Cortes. We went in the afternoon to escape the buses of tourists. It was a five minute walk down steps to get to the falls. It cost us $7 a person to get into the falls. It was beautiful but the water was really quite cold. We saw a monkey up high in a tree and two lizzards that could have been Iguanas I am not sure I don’t know one lizzard from another! First, early in the morning Peter and I took a walk around the town. We ended up at the beach and got to see a different side of the town. We had dinner at an Italian restaurant. Italians are the third largest group of ex-pats here after Americans and Canadians. The food was excellent and we topped it off with some gelato from a shop next door. We also did a little bit of housekeeping–sent a load of laundry out to be washed. For less then $12 it will be washed, dried, and folded. Bug spray and sunscreen are in high demand here and I have managed not to get either bitten or sun burned. The roads are very interesting here the residents are a combination of extremely daring or somewhat polite. Peter said his favorite part of the day today was getting back to the hotel safely. The drive for him was somewhat nerve wracking and that is saying something. I can see why you should stay off the roads in the dark. It has been fun spending time with Peter’s brother David and his wife Lori. Tomorrow we are going to a Hacienda that has a boat tour and a cultural tour combined. We get to learn how coffee is made, try our hand at making tortillas and checking out the birds and crocodiles. It should be fun!

Costa Rica vacation day one

We flew from SeaTac to Las Angeles and stayed overnight at a Residence Inn. We had to get up at 4 am and first misstep on the trip was the coffee maker would not work. Peter without coffee that early is an interesting experience to say the least. He took the coffee pot down to the lobby and they gave him a new one. It still wouldn’t work. He noticed the light wasn’t lighting up on the pot. He tried two other outlets before finding one that worked and voila coffee. But first, we microwaved the coffee pods with hot water to sorta make a beverage that resembled coffee. Peter and I met Lori and David in the airport yesterday. They say not to drive here in the dark–of course by the time we got through immigration and customs, got to the rental car, and got on the road, and to the hotel,it was pitch black. Peter and Waze managed to navigate us safely to the hotel. Unfortunately, Lori lost her luggage. So we spent the day exploring the town of Playas del Coco. We were going to check out a waterfall but decided to do that tomorrow. Lori was able to get a few essentials in town and we had an awesome lunch at a brewery. She wasn’t feeling well so we came back to the room and Peter and I went swimming in the hotel pool and Lori and David took a nap. We were able to walk down to the beach. It is a balmy 90 degrees. We forgot to bring our coffee so one of Peter’s first purchases was some Costa Rican coffee at a grocery store across the road from the hotel. I have managed to not purchase anything just yet but I am keeping an eye out for ornaments–I have time.

Victoria & Albert Museum

Today we went to the Victoria and Albert museum. It was rather a low-key day. The museum is huge you could get lost for weeks in there. We did manage to look at some artifacts regarding Henry VIII to tie in with our Hampton Court visit and the play last night. We saw replicas of David and other casts of gigantic architectural pieces from the medieval and ancient eras that they built an entire wing to house them. Tomorrow we start our travel day home. We fly from London to Iceland and then to Washington DC landing there at 7:10 pm. We have a hotel and a very early flight the next day. We land in Seattle by 10 am. Our epic adventure is almost over.

London City & Henry VIII play at the Globe

Yesterday was a hang around London kind of day. We visited Sir John Soane’s house. He was an architect that left his house in its entirety to the British government with the stipulation that nothing ever change. He died in 1837–he collected a lot of different antiquities. I was most interested in seeing his Hogarth paintings of “The Rake’s Progress”. We went on a 75 minute tour and as part of that got to see it. We were going to do a City Walk after that but we were short on time. We went to lunch and visited Saint Paul’s cathedral. We were going to go up in the dome but the Whispering gallery was closed and it is 562 steps up to the next gallery–we decided to pass on that and just visited the crypt. After that we went back to the room for a rest break. Then we went to a play at the Globe Theater. We saw Henry VIII–a fitting play since we saw Hampton Court the day before. Today is a low key day. We are going to check out the Victoria and Albert museum. We are also doing our last load of laundry before traveling home. lt has been a marvelous trip but I think I am ready to return home. That is the interesting paradox about travel it is fun to go and experience new things but it is equally nice to come home.

Hampton Court

Hampton Court home of Henry VIII

Yesterday we spent the morning doing travel chores. Laundry and a little bit of grocery shopping. The afternoon was spent at Hampton Court a palace fit for a King–Henry the VIII as a matter of fact. We spent about 4 hours there and barely scratched the surface–the place is immense. It was home to more than just Henry VIII and the Tudors. William and Mary and some of the Georgian Kings also lived there. The palace did a great job of talking about day to day life in Tudor England. After that we traveled back to London and went to St Martin in the Fields for a cafeteria type dinner complete with a glass of Merlot. Then there was a Baroque concert by candlelight in the church. The performance was amazing very talented people played for us. Today we visit Sir John Soames museum and do the City Walk. This vacation has been amazing but I think I am starting to be ready to come home.

Travel to London day

Train from Scarborough to York

Today was a long travel day. We left our hotel in Robin Hood’s Bay at 8:30 and got to our hotel in London at 5 pm. We took a bus from Robin Hood’s Bay to Scarborough then boarded a train to York. We had a layover in York and we went to a pub called Trembling Madness for lunch finally I had a beer that I could enjoy. Then we had a two hour train ride from York to London. Got to our serviced apartment and had to lug all our luggage up 5 flights of stairs. It is a good thing we are in shape from all that walking and where is Packhorse (our luggage transfer service) when you need them? Both Peter and I looked around the hotel lobby for a second for our luggage we are so used to doing that! Now we are back to schlepping our own bags. Oh well, the vacation is almost over.