Let me just start off by saying two days in Costa Rica is not nearly enough. With less than 48 hours in the country, every moment was precious. That being said, Costa Rica was probably my most relaxing port. I had quite a bit of down time to just hang out and watch the scenery go by.
The day before Costa Rica, I had my first final: Global Studies. I got an 85. And that was with minimal studying.
My first day started with a zipline adventure through the forest canopy. It was a Semester at Sea trip, so there were a great deal of people, but a lot of my friends were on it, so I was in great company. After taking a short bus ride to Parque Aventura, we suited up and hiked up a small hill to the first station. They demonstrated how to properly zoom down the line and brake. When it came to be my turn, I hit the brakes too soon and had to monkey crawl the final portion of the line. Embarrassing. Thankfully, a few other people ran into the same predicament, saving me from being alone in looking like a chimp. I’ve ziplined before, but this particular adventure was really exciting; we had to zip from station to station and cover a whole lot of ground. One portion of the park was nothing but jumping from box to box, allowing us to keep our harness on and not hike to get to the next station. The longest line in the park took us over a huge river valley—falling would’ve surely been fatal. You got going pretty fast, and to brake you had to grab the actual line, so gloves were required. No gloves? Wave goodbye to your skin! Was that a pun? The trip ended with a journey up a huge hill on the back of a truck. Excellent morning.
That afternoon, I took the free SAS shuttle service from our port in Puerto Caldera to Puntarenas, the nearest city with Shelbi and Liz. When we arrived, we didn’t really do much. Puntarenas wasn’t exactly designed with the tourist in mind, but we weren’t really looking to do very much anyway. Our day was spent walking around, looking at the trinkets in the street-side shops, using free internet, drinking delicious piña coladas, and sitting on the beach.
We spent the evening with a bunch of other SAS kids that we met up with at the bus stop. After enjoying a delicious dinner of ceviche at a local restaurant, we wandered to a locals bar with awesome salsa dancing. We took the place by storm! Though we weren’t really good, our hips got a workout. Later, Savannah, Susie, and I ended up at another club in a different part of the city. It was sort of strange because very, very few people were dancing; everybody was standing up above on the second floor. Many people were alone. It wasn’t the most welcoming environment, but we did meet a few cool local folks. I had delicious street food, too, so it wasn’t bust in the slightest.
Annoying thing: the Costsa Rican currency, the colón, just changed. No, it didn’t change names or exchange rates or anything of that sort. It changed design. The new money is very nice and colorful, I will admit, but I came to the country with somewhere around $40 in the old money that I got from a bank in Canada back in August. It changed in September. Nobody takes the old money. It’s obsolete. It’s basically Monopoly Money. I figured I would go to the bank on our second morning, a Monday, to exchange the old currency for the new. When I walked into the bank, they said the only way I could exchange the notes would be to go to the Central Bank…in San José, the capital, a solid two hours away. Normally, I’d be okay with that, but with very little time in the country and a less reliable transportation system, I had to accept defeat. I still have the red play money in my wallet.
While eating breakfast at a restaurant in Puntarenas the second morning with Shelbi, Liz, and Johnny, we saw Hayley who invited us to a waterfall tour with her, Kevin, other Kevin, Susie, and some other folks. After finding out we probably wouldn’t make it to the waterfall in time, we almost called it quits on plans for the day. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a tricked out tour bus came around the corner while blaring its horn and playing local marimba music. On the spur of the moment, Hayley and I hopped on, paid the fee, and enjoyed an adventure around the entire city by bus! We made two stops on the way: a fish market and a church. Though the history of Puntarenas isn’t that impressive compared to some of the other places I went to this semester, it was a pleasant afternoon ride. Our guide, Jenny, was a beautiful Costa Rican woman. She let us play the marimba at the end! She also gave us a shot of Costa Rican liquor while on the ride. For $15, the trip was well worth the money. The rest of the day was the same as the day before—walking around, drinking more deliciosu piña coladas, and eating some incredibly tasty gallo pinto.
“Pura vida” means “pure life,” the unofficial motto of Costa Rica. Many of the people I encountered in Costa Rica were some of the most laid back people I have met on this voyage. The lifestyle there is slow and steady, a nice change from the go-go-go of many Asian cultures. It really seems like a great way to live.
Yesterday I had my second final: World Theatre and Performance. I think it went well. I also helped host the Ping Pong Championships with Dave Eng. The winner ended up being Michael Williams, my professor. He better give me an A.
Today was a particularly special day on the voyage—we passed through the Panama Canal. Now, I’m no builder or architect, but the Panama Canal is an engineering masterpiece. A series of locks takes ships from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean in a matter of hours. The alternative, traversing Cape Horn, would tack on an additional month and several thousand nautical miles. I wouldn’t have complained. The process of going through the locks was really, really interesting. Along the way, the elevation changed, so the canal would rise and fall along the way as the water filled the lanes. It was busy the whole filled, with many other boats, most of them being cargo. We had a barbecue lunch to celebrate, but it was moved inside because of rainy weather.
As I am typing this, we’re still passing by city lights. Soon, we’ll be in the Atlantic Ocean, exactly where we started. We are back in the Eastern Time Zone, so we have literally gone around the world. Before going home, though, we have to go back to Central Time Zone for our final port—Honduras! Cuba and Guatemala may not have worked out, but Honduras will be a ton of fun, too, I’m sure. The journey isn’t over yet. It doesn’t feel like we’ve done the actual circumnavigation quite yet, but we have. We have changed, but can’t quite explain how. Who knows when we will be able to?
So, for now, I will sit back and enjoy Christmas Carols and a cup of hot chocolate in the Piano Lounge while I procrastinate on writing my final essay for Gender and Society and reading for my final in Writing Back to the Empire, both of which are tomorrow. After that, it’s two days in Honduras, two days at sea, and then Florida. It’s all very surreal.
I’ll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams.
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