Costa Rica day 37 Feb. 14

Well happy valentines day! Had a quick breakfast in San Jose at the B&B & then made our way to a new busstop about 6 blocks away. We were first in line for the bus to La Fortuna. We had to check our bags in the underbody compartment so I did that while Jo jumped on and got us the two seats up front and across from the driver so I could take pictures through the windshield. It was about a 4 1/2 hour bus ride and it stopped a lot to pick up more people so we finally moved out of the "gimp" seats and moved to the back.
About a half an hour from the busstop we passed an accident on the hwy on the opposite side. Some guy on a motorcycle had been hit and was laying in the road. This brought to my attention that half the motorcycles down here (that use every lane in random fashion) don't have any rearview mirrors! Now that's a death wish if there ever was one. Around 1 pm. we started to experience drizzle and low clouds after climbing to a very high elevation on twisty, hilly roads. This turned into a full blown downpour when we arrived at La Fortuna.
As we retrieved our bags a young guy was there trying to round up people to stay at this place 3 blocks from downtown. He was talking to two guys from Alberta and we overheard the $7.00 a night per person which really got our attention so we all piled into a cab which he provided because of the rain and off we went. The pavement ended after two blocks and out front is almost cobblestones but not that orderly. We have our own room, hot water shower, internet if you can ever get onto it, and a kitchen/fridge for our use. The electrical outlets are different so I found a store and got a cheap adaptor. The hot water shower is an electric gizmo in the shower head but it seems to work. I'm going to get a picture of the fancy wiring job used to activate it. It's the kind of thing you want to throw a cat into first to see if it lives.
After checking in and paying for a trip tomorrow night to see the lava and hot springs we went for a stroll downtown. Had a great meal consisting of a pork chop, rice, beans, fried banana, and two kinds of salad for under $5.00. Then Mario brought us some excellent rice pudding with cinnamon in it for dessert. We then continued our stroll through the rain wearing our "big bird" yellow ponchos. We looked like a couple of ducks. This is the first time we've had them on and they do the job although they're very hot. They had some amazing souvenir shops with large wooden bowls which I'd love to get back but they're too big and heavy. Jo has had to chuck her runners a few days ago (either that or they ran away on their own) so her valentines present was some new ones. We also bought some more baking soda to fill mine but I think they're also beyond help. The good side is they guarantee you a seat to yourself on the busses.
On the way back to the unit we picked up some granola and yogurt to have for breakfast and then came back and sat on the patio. No sooner had we sat down when Jeremy the guy who rounded us up at the bus stop arrived with 3 more candidates for a $7.00 room. One was a young girl from Kelowna named Bri accompanied by two guys from the States. She'd been in Nicaragua for the last month, had sold her condo in Rutland and hit the road.
She and the guys went out around 10 pm to the disco while Jo and I were going to bed. Later in the evening (I thought it was morning) we heard some very heavy banging on a door and a lot of yelling. Turns out when they came back around 2 a.m. their door was open and all their belongings had been rifled through. Bri lost everything of any value. All her money ($400), her camera with all her pictures, her passport which had been under the mattress, her id including her visa etc. They called the cops and it seems this Jeremy guy is a seedy type as they knew him well.
She needs to go to San Jose to get another passport and they close Fri. at 1 for the w/end so she's stuck here although the police have offered to drive her. One of the American guys gave her $100 as she's completely broke now. She'll have to stay here for the w/end and then head to S.J. on Monday.
We always carry our cameras, passports, etc. with us no matter where we go so all that's in our backpacks are clothes and replaceable stuff. I've burned all my pictures onto dvd's and think we may mail them home as a backup. We also have photocopies of our passports, credit cards, social insurance etc. that we keep separate from the orig. A good lesson for all of us as when we checked in they offered these tours which tells them when we'll be out of the unit for hours at a time. Their place next door was opened with a key as there were no visible signs of entry and someone must have known they were at the disco while their room was being tossed. Live and learn. Now it's time to think about our next step.
LINK OF THE DAY
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28460&l=ea4c4&id=680056043