Borracho en Costa Rica (Drunk on Costa Rica)

Finally taking a chance to write a little.  Me y mi familia have been in Costa Rica for 5 days now, and are settling in. As always the flight over was uneventful and always seems to take too long, because we are always so anxious to be back.  Being here a few times now, as soon as we are off the flight, we take a big sigh of relief, and quickly make our way through customs. While some are still wandering around wondering where to go, and who to see, we are out the door to our car.  This time, we got into San Jose later, around 7pm, and decided to stay the night.  Wasn’t too thrilled about making the drive over in darkness to the coast.  Driving here is always “interesting” but at night….no way!

We headed to the coast the next morning.  We knew there was a possibility that the new highway might still be under construction.  They are replacing the temporary bridges.  So the old way it was.  I actually don’t mind diving the old way over.  It is longer, but very beautiful.  Big mountains, many coffee farms, lush rain forests and gorgeous scenery.

We made our regular stop in Jaco’ to stock up for our kitchen.  Already the heat seemed unbearable to us.  Always takes us a couple of days to acclimate to this heat after we leave Idaho.

We got into our cabina at Tranquilo, unloaded our groceries, and bags, changed, and headed down to the beach. Gorgeous!

This is where I truly feel myself unwind.  Not that I am especially ever wound-up, but there is something that happens when my feet hit the sand, then the water.  I feel the salty, ocean breeze against my skin, and I melt.  It’s what I explain to people as the “glass of wine” melt.  That feeling you get after drinking a glass of wine.  That relaxed, loosened up, slow, unwinding that takes place.  That’s how I feel when I am here.  That sooooo relaxed feeling, as if I have been tippin’ back a few.  My happy sweet spot.  We spent the rest of the day, walking the beach and soaking up as much Vitamin D as we could take, watching the crazy Macaws flying, and doing their extraordinary, acrobatics in the trees, and having a few Imperials on the beach. 

That night, The Low Tide, of course, and then off to bed with the warm breeze coming through our open windows and the sound of the cicadas, crickets, and other little singing critters, serenading us to sleep.

Every day has been gorgeous, and warm, in the 90’s.  We get up early, to get a walk/run in before the sun gets higher and we can’t. Another thing that takes time to acclimate are my little wintery Idaho feet.  They have been pampered, and pedicured, in slippers, fluffy socks and soft carpet all winter, and that first run on the sand always sends them into rebellion.  It has been amazing running in nothing but shorts and a sports bra.  It feels so liberating after the confines of our long winter.

We were able to catch breakfast this morning at a great little place called No Worries.  Great owners, delicious food, and then took off to spend the day in Jaco’, a little touristy town just 15 minutes north.  It’s a whole different scene there.  We like going in every once in a while, but much prefer the non-turista areas.

 We have all eaten enough fruta since we have been here to kill someone.  I cannot get enough pina (pineapple) it is so juicy, and taste like candy.  I even had to pull off at a stand coming back into Esterillos today to get another.  Can’t wake up without the pina!  This place is a vegetarians dream.

Juicy papaya

We tried to teach Alli a little driving today in our tiny little car.  Of course it is a stick, and that was……an adventure.  I had Greg get in back.  HA! I had to allow her to try.  All of our kids have had their first driving experience in Costa Rica, and Alli HAD to give it a go.  Yah, no…maybe next year!  She does have a couple of years before she can drive in the States.  Needless to say, Greg aged 15 years in the back seat, and came up front with sweat teeming down his face.  I of course, with my little “half drunken” outlook, thought it went ok, and laughed the rest of the way into Esterillos.

Our little hammock loving girl!

Now, I am on a quest to learn or find out how to make Gallo Pinto.  Which is one of the typico dishes of Costa Rica.  I fell in love with it the first time we were here, could eat it by the truckload, had it again this morning for breakfast, and am now determined to make it on my own.

Anyone know? Hopefully I will figure it out in the next few weeks that we are here!

Right now I am off to lie in the hammock on our patio.  We are getting an amazing tropical storm outside.  I wish you could all hear and smell it!

Pura Vida

Greg playing in the outdoor shower

Running...cheaper than therapy!

Happy to say, we survived our first week of The Little Mermaid, and Alli’s gymnastics meet.  Man, those kids work so hard, and the show has been amazing!!

This week, we are still in “show mode” AND trying to gather our stuff for our trip.

I keep getting up and opening my blinds to all of this snow,  and think….a few more days.  Love the snow, not the cold…well, the bitter cold.

The weather is Costa Rica has been steamy.  95 degrees everyday.  Ahh, that’s what I am talking about.  That is my kind of weather report.

I always get giddy this time of year, knowing we are going back to our home away from home.  Biggest thing, I CANNOT wait to be running on the beach.  I LOVE running on the beach.  It is one of those simple pleasures in my life. I get up early, and walk onto the beach…the sand squeezes between my toes, the waves make a beautiful music in my ears, the macaws sing in their squawky voices, cheering me on along the way, the monkeys looking at me from their homes perched in the trees, the sun is rising, the steam is coming out of the rain forests, and I am off.  Running along these beaches for mile after mile where I never see another soul.  It is magical. 

My feet will be sore from the sand the first few days. But I will love it.  My eyes will sting with sweat, and ocean water, but it will make me smile.  After two days, I will be hot and sweaty, and I will laugh thinking about how cold I have been.  I will most certainly fall and be rolled to the ocean floor catching my first wave on my surfboard, but will be joyful!  This place for me is my Heaven.  I look forward to going every year.  I need to go every year, just like I need to run, it’s my drug.  It’s my therapy.  And after this long, cold, Idaho winter, I am ready for 3 weeks of therapy in Paradise! 

A New Start

Kinda seems like this fall I fell off of the planet.  With the business of our summer, fall came in, all slow, and tired-like.  Resting its lazy head on my lap, and saying, “Let’s take some time to chill.” 

And I did just that.  Had some great down time.  Ran when I felt like it.  A lot of days with no route in mind, no Garmin to track my mileage.  Just me, my Vibrams, and the road.  Biking the same way.  No agenda really, just enjoying some time to tootle (yes, I said tootle) around with nowhere specific to go, no time to beat.  It was great!  I loved having the time to acclimate my feet to running in my Five-Fingers.  And even though I was used to running in my Newton’s, which seemed pretty minimalist, I love the way my feet feel on the ground in the 5-Fingers.  I was also happy to have the opportunity to try on all the different varieties of the shoe, as the ones I thought I might have wanted ended up not being the ones that felt the best to me.  As for running a marathon in them, we will see.  I am up to about 8 miles in them before I switch out for my Newton’s if I am running longer.  I swore I would never run in anything other than Newton, but the Vibrams are giving them a run for their money!!

I just came off a detox cleanse last week…boy was that something. 

    A few days of fasting, so to say, clearing out my mind and body.  I was thankful for real food come the 5^th day!!  I am re-committed to my Vegan diet, and clean eating.  Ready to try some great new recipes. Also ready to get back into the “swing of things” as far as my training.

I sat down over the last weekend going over races, and schedules, and am finalizing my races for the next year.  It will be a lot of fun for me this coming year, with Greg deciding to jump in the ring, and start racing as well.  His new Tri bike has been ordered and is on its way.  We should be receiving it into the bike shop within the next 2-3 weeks.  WooHoo for the Hub’s!  I am REALLY hoping that the snow doesn’t hit before he and I can get in at least ONE ride after he gets it. Fingers crossed!!

I am still contemplating racing IMCdA again in 2011, among the other races already spreading their fingers over my Spring/Summer/Fall 2011 calendar.  Guess I will have to make up my mind here pretty soon.  Keep ya posted!

Training officially starts back up today, and I am excited to be working with 2 new swim coaches.  One who just finished the Ironman World Championship in Kona last month with an awesome 9:48 finish! Two days a week, at 6am!  That’s something I will be getting used to.  6am workouts in the winter!  Summer great!  But something about getting out of my warm bed, pulling myself from under my down comforter and into a cold pool at 6am in the morning is just frightful to me.  BRRRRR!   Especially since the snow will be flying soon.  I have always had the luxury of getting in my workouts on my own time, any time of the day, but I am dedicated to my new workout time….at least 2 days a week for swimming.  The biking and running…maybe not so early!

So my few weeks of laziness will now come to an end as I hit the road again.  Back in the saddle.  It will feel good, and as much as I enjoyed some time off, I am even more-so looking forward to training again.  Once again pushing to see where my body can take me in the year to come!

Smiling, naked, feet!!

So we are back in Costa Rica again. Got here last Wednesday, on a horrible over night flight. I figured I would get plenty of sleep, and am unsure if it was due to the fact that there were too many lights on in the middle of the night, or if I was just anxious to get back to one of my favorite countries. I knew as soon as we landed, my tiredness would be over-taken by my “want to hit the ground running” personality. We met our little Tico guy, and got our tiny little rental SUV. By tiny I mean, if we ever needed to, Greg & I could probably pick the thing up and move it. We loaded our backpacks, (side note~~ we did in fact stick to the back pack plan, and only brought what would fit onto our back) and were off on the drive over to the coast. We knew that since we had been here the last time 2 years ago, they had completed a new road from San Jose to the Pacific Coast, that was supposed to cut an hour or so off of the drive, because you don’t have to go over the mountain passes. Think we found it? NOPE! You would think, new highway leaving from the capitol city, maybe some signs…NOPE! So we took the usual route. The route that we knew…over the mountains. It takes while, but it is stunningly, beautiful.

We got to our little village of Eserillos Oeste, and to our little beach house. It was still early, since we had landed at 6am. I could not wait to get into the water. I have an odd and amazing relationship with the ocean. I swim, boogie board, and surf, all the while being intrigued, in awe, and extremely afraid of the ocean. I respect her awesomeness. I fear the power she has. However, I cannot stay out of her briny waves. She is like a seductress to me. Luring me in. I am cautious, but absolutely cannot stay away. I can’t help myself.

After splashing around a bit, tasting the salty waves, I looked down the beach. No one. Not a sole. Which is exactly how this beach is all the time. I had to get out on a run. I changed into my running clothes, put on my Inov-8’s, and headed out. All the while thinking and knowing I really wanted and longed to run barefoot. I am fascinated by barefoot running, and have worked my way down to more minimalist shoes over time, but have never had the guts, to pull off my shoes. I took about 10 strides, and thought, “I HAVE to do this” Free the feet!! Free the feet!! I thought it would be easier starting out on a sandy beach instead of a road or trail, which I know many have done. My hat goes off to all of you “true” barefoot runners. I will get there someday. So, I took my running shoes off, stashed them in some dead palm tree branches, HOPING they would be there when I got back. My feet were tender, timid, afraid, to take their first virgin barefoot run. I started slow, but it felt so good. So freeing. Like I was naked. I picked up the pace. My feet were smiling, and so was I. I did an easy 2 miles that day, and have worked my way up to 5 barefoot beach miles. My calves, arches, and Achilles have been achy in protest. I did find a great Yoga class right here on the beach which has helped with some of the soreness. My feet remain tender, and know they will for some time. And I am trying not to think about the day we go home to Coeur d’ Alene, and they have to be confined back into my running shoes.

So for now, I will continue the beach running on my smiling feet until we leave on March 5^th to backpack up north in the country, and over to the Caribbean. I know over on the Caribe side, I will again be free to run without my shoes, and I already look forward to that. Like being lured by the Sea Seductress, I just can’t help myself!!