As the rain finally comes through, breaking from the weight of a day´s thick humidity, i have at last decided to take the time to document a bit of my recent travels.
Ive been relatively stable - having spent most of the past week on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. My father, step mom and siblings left on sunday morning and i headed back to Puerto Viejo. The city is the largest one south of Limon, and only one road runs along the shore here. The culture is a mix of Caribbean, Costa Rican and I whole lot of touring surfers. It was definitely a good place to spend New Years, but I dont think I will be one of the ones who falls out and sets up a life down here.
On this trip, I have had a lot of firsts - the climate here is really, truly jungle. If you know where to look, or have someone with you who does, you can spot sloths and howler monkeys right alongside the road. There is a richness and a diversity of plants and animals that amazes me.
On Sunday morning, I headed on a bus back to the coast. I stayed in a huge youth hostel, complete with tent villages and dozens of hammocks. The floors were covered with bright mosaics and every other surface was painted with vivid, sometimes lude, often funny murals and phrases. The bathrooms were clearly marked, or i should day depicted, and the signs made it clear that there was no nonsence allowed in the kitchen. The backpackers there were from allover, many of them drawn to Puerto Viejo for the surf.
For dinner, I cooked up a stirfry with a fascinating nad atypical family from Alberta, canada. The parents had brought there 3 boys, ages 13, 13 and 15, to Costa Rica. While limited monetarily, they allowed the boys an unusual amount of freedom. The kids were incredibly well behaved, independent and able to create a good time for themselves. Their mom would cook up the meals for them, remind them to brush their hair ' and then they were off to the beach, or to laze in the hammocks. Meanwhile, mom and dad partied with the rest of us, playing pool and cards, or drinking beers.
They cared deeply for their children, and always knew where tehy were, but had a much more laissez faire approach than most.
After dinner, we could drink from the cooler full of punch. I met up with some Israelis and two guys from Jersey, plus this couple from Brazil. BEfore midnight, we headed to Johnny´s downtown. No one was exactly sure when 12 struck, but when the fireworks seemed especially intense, we all hugged and wished each other a happy new year. Then, along with most of the town, we danced until 2 or 3 am. I finished the night as I did a year ago ( on the opposite coast) with a walk on the beach and a dip in the ocean. I was happy to be facing east.
Saying goodbye to 2006 was easy; it spite of all of the amazing things I have done this year, I have had to let go of a lot of things, quite suddenly, and I am excited by the prospect of a fresh beginning, regardless of how arbitrary the moment is. With my outward bound class on the horizon, I know that this year will require strength, mentally and physically.
And so, I woke up early on the first day of this year, and knew not what the day would hold. With a prayer book borrowed from an Isaeli surfer, I welcomed in the new year with prayers and songs - combining blessings Ive known for years with songs recently acquired at Teva and the spontaneous songs of my heart. As I prayed, and listened, I felt in good company as the crabs peaked out of their holes in the sand, as if in response to the traditional call to prayer. At one moment, together, they poked their two eyed tentacles out of the sand and set out toward the surf, ready to retreat if a big wave came along.
I spent the day relaxing, enjoying the soft black sand of the Playa negra, trying to notice the small things, like the pattern on a piece of drift wood, or the way that a little boy laughed as a he played soccer on the beach with his father. In the afternoon, I ran a few miles down the road and stopped for a drink of water in a small cafe. The night was hilarious... I cooked again, and then a bunch of us played hilarious card games that involved burning a cork and marking ourselves with char if we lost. It was fun to just be goofy, and to note the many commonalities among us - a random sampling of backpackers from 5 continents. I also noted, however, the dearth of Costa Ricans.
Thus, today, I resisted the incredible urge to head to Boco del Torros (which i dont think is spelled like that!) It´s an island in Panama with beautiful coral reefs. I left my new friends and headed north to the small town of Cahuita. Here, Ive had amazing Caribbean food and wandered the streets. I try to breathe deeply on this trip, to save somewhere inside this fresh breeze. This store of serenity and ease will serve me well if I can drink of it next month as I hike through the desert...
