Monday morning and JP had to go back to work and Natty needed to recover from being surrounded by English idiots for a week, so we were left in the very safe hands of JP’s father, Fabio.
Now, Fabio doesn’t speak a word of English and my Spanish was limited to 12 months of Duolingo so I could tell him I like water, milk or bread but not much else. Armed with Google translate and a shared mobile connection, we would make the most of it.
We jumped in the truck and headed down the mountain to the capital and he stopped at a place called Rio Azul, Blue River, as it had stunning views of San Jose below. He explained that it was a place where people went in their car to ‘be romantic’ and drink while enjoying the view below. He also showed us where he had lived as a child and he seemed to know a lot of people as he parped his horn and waved at a lot of folks. Duolingo didn’t allow me to catch the details I’m afraid!
On we went to San Jose and we parked up in the middle of what looked like a building that had been knocked down and the space left over was filled with cars. There seemed to be some form of fight taking place as Fabio had cut some pedestrians off as we turned into the entry zone.
I am still not sure if he was completely unaware of the threat, or if he is such a hard man that he knew of the threat but knew that he could handle himself it needs be…..I don’t think for a second that he was going to rely on me and the kids to back him up in a fight, that’s for sure!
We walked through the town centre and there were a number of shops that looked unusual so I asked Fabio about them. We managed to work out that these were stores that were filled with second hand stock that had been bought from the USA and they took a delivery once per week. On day one of the new stock, everything in the store was a set price and that price reduced each day as the stock quality reduced.
A really clever idea, and we spent a while pottering about a shop looking for bargains. The sort of stuff that you could pick up was, in general, pretty crazy. We are talking about t-shirts and sweaters that had been printed as a one off for parties, hen parties, family gatherings and such like and then discarded.
There are people walking around Costa Rica wearing what they think are cool English language logos but actually states stuff like “Auntie Anna’s 90th Birthday” or “I love butt plugs’. All very childish.
My daughter’s nose ring had gone missing at some point the previous day so we had a little walk around some tattoo and piercing shops looking for a replacement which, when we did find one, Fabio paid for as a gift. I think we must have been behaving well to earn that!
And it was a good job that we were on our best behaviours as he took us around some very nice places that afternoon. We started off in the Museo Del Oro, Gold Museum, which gave a history of Costa Rica from pre-settlers days right up to modern time and how gold has been a constant thread in that story. We must have spent two hours walking around and it was never boring but filled with interesting artifacts and stories. Even the kids were taking it in and that’s saying something!
We then went to the old post office building that looked stunning from the outside and inside were the original post lockers where Fabio told us that he would have come to pick up his post as there was no home delivery service.
We then took a walk over the road to the National Theatre where he showed us around. All very unofficially of course, by nodding and winking at the security guys and explaining that ‘he has English friends’ and we were waved by without an issue! Fabio was such a good guide. I think he enjoyed ‘showing off’ his home and I respect that, it is exactly how I would have felt if I had shown him around my local area. We spent a while watching a lady on scaffolding that was repairing and cleaning the incredibly ornate painted ceilings.
The next stop was the cathedral that was, as most cathedrals tend to be in Catholic countries, absolutely stunning. It was in use and very popular and there seemed to be an energy to the place that was hard to describe, but very uplifting. As is tradition, I lit a candle in memory of my Dad and took a moment to think of him and, I hope, how proud he would have been of me and his Grandkids on this adventure.
We had exhausted ourselves with our walk around town, including a walk through the old market that was just an attack on the senses; the noise, the smell, the colours and the vibrancy. It was absolutely filled with history. You got the impression that this place had changed very little in a hundred years or more.
In fact, Fabio took us to the La Sorbetera De Lolo Mora, which has been in the same spot in the old market for over 120 years and is famous for its cinnamon infused sorbet. It’s unique to this store and is handmade to a family recipe. It was incredibly sweet and, I have to be honest, it was a bit too much for me, but absolutely worth spending some time chatting with the guys behind the counter that were relatives of the founders.
We made our way back to the car, and all that was left was food and home. We stopped off at a place called Chiharronera Cacique Acseri. Fabio looked after us amazingly well. Basically he ordered 2 of everything on the menu, and we ate like kings. Chicharrones is a deep fried pork belly and we had a mountain of the stuff along with plantains, cheeses, cassava, and all sorts of dips.
Fabio, incorrectly, told the serving team that it was my birthday and so this was all topped off with a complimentary birthday cake too!
We drove home in a food coma and it felt like it would be a long time before I would be in a position to eat again…..well, at least until breakfast!
Itchy Feet and Titchy Feet 