Before I start my rambling, I would like to dedicate today’s blog to my sister Gabby. This isn’t because she has come to an unexpected end or suddenly become deathly unwell. Rather, it is due to her persistent nagging for a blog. Apparently, Gabby’s current morning routine involves reading my blog before she gets ready for work and I am impacting her ability to stick to her routine.
Unfortunately for her, I have been enjoying some restful sea days and have had no need to blog. In all honesty, nothing of any humour has occurred and the routine has been eat, sleep, repeat. I even managed an old age afternoon nana nap one day!
During this very difficult (insert sarcasm) routine, I have had the daily sisterly love of “where’s my blog?”. Yesterday’s nagging (conveniently via Facebook) was mid exploring San Jose. Note to self: don’t connect to wifi on the tour bus. Love you Gabby. So Gabby, this is for you!
Yesterday’s port of call was Puntarenas, Costa Rica. Somehow in my pre-ginger life, I had prepared for this area by watching Queen of the South. What I failed to take in (blame the blonde and multitasking on an iPad) was that the cartel had actually been set in the area we had just come from, Mexico. Here I was thinking that Costa Rica and Columbia would be my biggest risk experiencing the cartel. That being said, I don’t think that the area is that removed from this type of activity.
This visit we decided to do the ‘San Jose On Your Own’ cruise excursion. Basically this is a high priced bus ride into the capital city. Given it was a good 90 to 120 minutes drive into the city, we decided this would be the safest way to see San Jose and ensure we make it back to the ship. Having read the Australian Government travel advice on Costa Rica, car jacking and crime was a high risk so one hoped the safety of a tour bus would prevent us being a statistic. Even this tight arse traveller would be willing to shell out for increased safety.
The drive from Puntarenas to San Jose provided some interesting sights and changing scenery. It was a range of run down and poor to lush and beautiful greenery. Our tour guide gave lots of information during the bus ride and shared that the country is a peaceful country with no military. I wondered how peaceful it was with the amount of barbed wire around houses and buildings. They do however have a range of different police forces. The police were very visible across all of the city centre. Warnings were provided to wear backpacks on our fronts and to be mindful of handbags. It was interesting to see even lots of the locals following this. All that being said, at no point did we feel unsafe as we wandered the city on our own. As in any city, being aware of your surroundings is important.
The bus dropped us off directly in front of The National Theatre. This was a central place to explore and easy to navigate from. Thanks to having already downloaded the offline map from google maps (yes I really am a smart traveller, A+ for me), there was no need for internet. Even if you did need internet, there was free access all across the city, even including parks.
After nearly two hours on the bus, desperation for the toilet had set in. Thinking that there would be a toilet in the theatre, we went in for a look. Unfortunately for us, and multiple others, there was no public toilet to be seen (a different story if you dined in the cafe). Luckily for me (pondering adult diapers about now), there are trusty old McDonalds on every couple of blocks and reasonably clean toilets are available.
Next was on to seeing the sights. I had originally wanted to try a Soda (small restaurant) in the Mercardo. We walked to the markets but unfortunately, hubby’s stomach has been hit and miss since Mexico. Unlike me, who seems to have an iron gut (well padded as well), he wasn’t game to risk it. Apparently, shitting one’s self in public, in the middle of a foreign country, with no change of clothes and a long bus ride home isn’t appealing. It might make an interesting blog though. This may have also been great revenge on one fellow passenger who hadn’t seemed to brush his teeth since 1963 and insisted on coughing and breathing in other’s direction.
We decided to continue our self walking tour and pass on the food in the markets. San Jose is an eclectic mix of colonial style buildings and modern shops. There is an abundance of sculptures and art around the streets so there were many photography stops.
Unlike hubby, who was happy to pass on any food, I wanted to give the popular Costa Rican dish, Costado, a try. What’s the worst that could happen? Revenge on a smelly breathed traveller. I was willing to risk it.
My costado meal and a bottled soft drink for hubby cost a grand total of US$10. I was really throwing caution to the wind with a mix of beans, ice cubes and some form of drink that had to have included water. Not sure what it was but it tasted good. If that didn’t get me the unidentifiable purple dessert just might. It was yum and 24 hours later my iron gut is still in good form. Hopefully I haven’t just jinxed myself!
Lunch done and we continued our walk around the city. We strolled down to Chinatown and experienced the smallest Chinatown I have ever come across. I actually thought I had blinked and missed it.
After a whole 45 minutes of walking since last eating, it was now time to eat again. In all honesty we were trying to escape the heat. I had watched a YouTube video a couple of days ago about the coffee in the National Theatre cafe. Deciding this might be safe for hubby, we went in for a drink. Of course it would be rude not to also team it with a dessert. I was intrigued by the peppermint lemonade on the menu and tried to get an explanation from the waiter. My lack of Spanish and probably my ridiculous questions resulted in my just ordering it. What arrived appeared to be lemon juice with blended mint. It could have been anything to be honest. Hubby said his coffee was good, nothing better than what he has had back in Australia but much better than the coffee on the cruise ship. Mind you, apparently that isn’t a hard task. US$20 later and we were just about ready to get back on the bus.
For anyone visiting, all shops accept US dollars and the bill has both local and US currencies listed for payment. This was lucky as the local currency wasn’t available for purchase in Australia.
After three hours exploring the city, we were back on the bus and heading back to the port. So what were my thoughts of San Jose? I am glad we have seen it and it was okay. If we were to travel here again I would be tempted to visit the jungle areas and see the wild life.
Arriving back in Puntarenas, we had some time to explore as the ship had a late departure of 7pm. There wasn’t a lot near the port, a range of eateries and some market stalls (aka souvenirs and tatt). I had wanted to try the local drink called the Churchill. Made with shaved ice, sweetened condensed milk, powdered milk, fruit and ice cream, it looks a bit like a big milkshake. I must have had mum on my shoulder saying “you will ruin your dinner”, so I passed on giving it a go.
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