Thursday, February 14

It’s another beautiful day in Samara! I woke up before everyone else this morning to do some computer work for my health & fitness group while the rest of the family slept. I’ve become a morning person the past few years, and I’ve learned that my mindset is better when I start my day with a few minutes of my own time. You now, before the kid’s constant talking / arguing / playing / singing starts. Honestly though, Tory and Aden are getting along so well on our trip. One of my favorite things this week has been watching them come up with a game to play together, or listen to the conversations they have about our surroundings. I really do feel blessed to be traveling with them.

Back to the mornings, they’re really peaceful here. Birds are chirping, howler monkeys are growling in the trees, there aren’t any bugs, and it isn’t so hot outside. In the morning around the 5:30am sunrise, temperatures are around 75 degrees.

I did my workout on the patio while Tory and Aden swam in the pool and Andi packed a cooler for our day’s adventure. The next town over is called Nosara, and we thought it’d be fun to spend half the day driving over that way.

It’s a 45-minute drive up the coast to Nosara, but not exactly the most comfortable ride. The roads are paved blacktop in town and in fairly decent shape but anywhere outside of there, roads are bumpy and dirty. It hasn’t rained since the fall, so everything is covered in a layer of dust. And before you call us weenies, let me add that these are the kind of bumps that make your insides feel like they’re dropping outside of your body onto the seat cushion! Oof.

A few beaches dot the way to Nosara, and the first one we passed was Playa Garza. We parked our SUV in the shade under a row of palm trees, and let the kids play on a small playground there. It hadn’t been cared for in some time, and Tory was beside herself wondering why someone would break the swings and the climbing net. I reassured her that “someone” didn’t break it, but rather the spray of the ocean and the sun deteriorated it. I imagine the heat is really hard on things around here.

A bit later, we drove toward Playa Guiones for a late breakfast. The employees at Beach Dog Cafe greeted our kids at the door with high fives and knuckles, welcoming us into the restaurant. Andi ordered smoothies for he and the kids. I ordered a simple omelet with eggs and veggies, Andi had a surfer bowl with eggs, rice and beans & the kids split an order of chocolate chip pancakes. All of our food was delicious; it hit the spot.

We inched closer toward Nosara and stopped at Playa Guiones to spend the rest of the morning at the beach. Temperatures were hot already, but there was a strong wind coming across the sand. Andi and I wrestled with the beach tent and secured it to the ground, and then took turns playing with the kids on the beach while one of us ‘held down the fort.’ I think the wind would have carried out tent away if one of us wasn’t sitting in it, but the shade is so nice to have so we put it up anyway.

Andi, Tory and Aden collected a big loot of seashells as they walked along the beach, and then we switched and Tory and I walked the other direction to hunt for more. There were some really neat shells on Playa Guiones. We called some of them “twistys” because they looked like ice cream cones and others Tory called “beach banks” because she said they’d be the perfect size for her dolls to insert a coin into the top.

Later, Tory and I studied the shells we collected and made a list of scientific observations. Tory loves nature, so she really enjoyed this activity.

We played at Playa Guiones until 1:00pm, and then decided to go into town for some refreshing ice cream. This little stretch of town was really trendy with beach-vibe restaurants, shopping and yoga studios. Andi traveled here 15 years ago and he said this area has completely changed. Back then, it was literally a dirt street without anything but a beach. Today, it reminded me of California, at least the Main Street we saw.

Andi navigated us to a gelato shop called Seekretspot, but unfortunately it was closed when we arrived. We were all HOT after the beach and the look on Tory’s face told me she was about ready to lose it. The girl does not handle the heat well. Scrap the ice cream idea; I told Andi it was time to head back to the airbnb. We stopped at a convenience store on the outskirts of town for cold sodas, and made the drive back to Samara.

The four of us hung out at our rental house for the rest of the afternoon. Aden swam in the pool while Tory and I did school. Our internet is pretty spotty here, so luckily I brought some workbooks to use as her online program wasn’t loading.

We bought brats from a local meat market in Samara, and Andi worked tirelessly to grill them for our dinner. Their grill looked like the inside rim of a tire, and was not a very effective cooking device at all. I bet Andi worked to light a fire and grill the brats for at least two hours. When asked, he said “I’m not giving up!”

The kids cannot understand why dinner takes so long to cook here — and it’s because there’s no microwave! Rice takes 20 minutes to boil on the stove. Re-heating leftovers isn’t as simple as pushing a button. At 6:30pm Aden laid on the kitchen floor and said, “Come on, guys. You’re killing me! Is dinner ready YET?” The sun sucked every bit of energy out of him until he finally said, “I’m not hungry, I just want to go to sleep.” So he did.

Where was Tory? Oh, she was asleep too. Earlier, she was upset because I wouldn’t let her have any Fresca to drink so she stomped off into her room and put herself to bed. Hmmmph! Seriously, the sun and swimming is causing our kids to drop like flies by 7:00pm every night. No dinner for her either.

So in a surprising turn of events, Andi and I enjoyed a candlelit Valentine’s Day dinner - just the two of us - on our outdoor patio. We ate grilled brats (which finally cooked) and grilled zucchini. A quiet ending to Day 4 in Costa Rica.

Friday, February 15

Friday morning started off slowly. Aden found one of our iPads, and got sucked into screen time for the first time all week. Tory and I did some math puzzles and then read several chapters of Judy Moody, Get Famous in the hammock while Andi sat on the phone with American Express for over an hour ironing out insurance for our rental vehicle. I’m very appreciative of all the thought and planning he’s put into our trip - the rest of us reap the reward of his efforts!

Around Noon, we drove into Samara for lunch. We opted to go to the Natural Center food court again, so everyone could order what they wanted. Tory had a burger from Casa Maxou (a real burger, not a black bean burger like we made her eat the first day of our trip - oh, the horror!). Aden ordered a hot dog from Sub Express and Andi and I went back to the falafel place again. It was so fresh and delicious on my birthday; I wanted to eat it again!

After lunch, we walked across the street to the Samara Info Center to ask about activity options suitable for kids. Then, we hopped in the car and drove to Carrillo Beach on the other end of town. Once we arrived, Andi realized he forgot his water bottle back at the Info Center, so we decided to go back and get it and then stay in town at Samara Beach instead. Good problems to have — which beach should we go to?

Samara Beach is right in town, so it’s the busiest but also has the safest waters for the kids to play in because there’s a natural reef there which makes the waves smaller. At Playa Samara, we set up the tent on the beach and played in the sand for a while. Both kids were itching for some social interaction. Aden spotted two boys kicking a soccer ball around with their mom & dad and announced he was going to go over there and play with them. “But you don’t know how to play soccer, Aden!” Tory worried. “Yes, I do,” he said, and ran right over. I admire his confidence! He will try anything once and has no fear he won’t fit in.

Aden walked up to the boys and started playing. He was terrible, having never kicked a soccer ball in his life, but didn’t seem embarrassed. The boys slowed their fancy soccer moves and kicked the ball back and forth with Aden. Shortly after, Andi and Tory walked over there to introduce themselves. When Andi didn’t come back, I packed up our stuff and walked over there too. The family of five was from Seattle and spending a three-month sabbatical in Samara. They shared stories about what it’s been like living here so far, their experiences with school here, and gave us some tips on activities they’ve enjoyed doing together.

Tory and Aden took over playing in a big sand pit one of the kids had been digging, and they were covered head to toe in sand by the end. They played for a while, and then rinsed off in the ocean. We watched the sunset together on the beach, and then packed up to head back to the airbnb.

On our way home, we stopped by a fish market to pick up something for dinner. One of the locals told us they bring in fresh fish caught from the day at 5:00pm, so we hoped there’d be a good selection.

One thing that’s different here is that everything is measured in kilos, not pounds. Andi made the mistake a few days ago of asking for a kilo of meat at the meat market and the employee said, “You want how much?!” We later figured out that a half kilo is equivalent to a pound. Knowing this, Andi went into the fish market ready to order a few filets of fish. The kids and I waited in the car and when he came back, he said “that was quite an experience!” Inside the fish store, Andi stood there a while while everyone worked around him. Finally they asked if he wanted to buy some fish, and he said yes. A young boy opened a cooler full of different types of fish and motioned for Andi to pick out what he wanted. Not completely sure what measurement he was suppose to say, Andi asked for a kilo of fish and the employee gave him the same reaction: “You want this much?!” In the end, Andi ended up with a few mahi mahi fillets that looked fresh and would be delicious for dinner.

We’re learning that in Samara, grocery shopping isn’t as simple as going to the store and buying whatever you want. You go to the fish market to buy fish; the meat store to buy meat; the bakery for fresh bread; the fruit stand for fresh fruits and a different store for fresh veggies. Shopping here takes two hours and you only get enough for one or two days! Fortunately, we’ve located the convenience store that sells Nutella because the kids are already on their 3rd jar this trip.

Andi cooked dinner for us again, and the kids were impatient as usual to eat. We all enjoyed the fresh mahi mahi filets and green beans for dinner.

Aden put himself to bed after dinner, and Tory stayed up with Andi and I for a little while longer. Tory and I discovered an app called Duolingo the family from Seattle mentioned. We practiced our Spanish using the app until it was time for bed.

Tomorrow, we’ll leave this house and move to a new airbnb for our second and final week in Samara.