When Kevin first told me about these flights I was a little skeptical. Super tiny plans and dirt landing strips? But the fare was only $12, so I decided to give it a try. We pulled up to a tiny little building next to the airport and lugged our luggage inside. It was a little worrisome to see that not only were they weighing the suitcases (mine was over 80lbs), but the passengers were getting weighed with their carry-ons! Well....here goes nothing.
At the counter the service agent told us that they had canceled our flight (the 8am flight) and instead moved all the passengers to the 12pm flight. However, she had some trouble finding our reservations, and after about 15 minutes of searching she finally informed us that our reservations had been canceled, but the airline didn't bother to notify us. "Okay....sooo...are there any other flights going to Samará today?"
"No, but there is a flight going to Tamarindo which is about a two hour taxi ride to Samará. Oh, but there is only one seat available."
"D'oh"
So, since Sansa only flies in the morning, we had to change our plans. Which is always how it seems to go when traveling. Travel plans are more like a guideline, I guess. So we rented a car, got ourselves a map and drove the 5 hours to Samará.
Driving to Samará isn't as easy as one might think it is. In Costa Rica, there aren't very many signs or even paved roads. Our Living Abroad in Costa Rica book said it best:
Without a doubt the biggest threat to your safety here comes from the cars and the way Ticos wield them like enormous machetes. Some observers suggest that the national character - which is one of avoiding conflict and smoothing things over at any cost - does a flip flop when Ticos get behind the wheel, with drivers asserting every bit of the hostility they repress in other parts of their lives. They pull out into traffic that would give others pause, pass even if a truck is bearing down from the other direction, and cut off cars so closely that you are amazed that there aren't even more accidents.
The guy at the car rental place told us to "stay on this road until you see Mary's restaurant and a giant bull, then turn left." That's pretty much all we had to go on to get to Samará! Lucky for me, Kevin is a great driver and extremely patient.
Since it was Saturday, it's of course the busiest craigslist day of the week. I was trying to read the map (not a talent I posses), while at the same time figure out how to get my cell phone to work (what? no 3G in the jungle?), so that I could communicate with Neil and Erika back in Santa Cruz. Neil and Erika have graciously offered to help me sell off a few of my things, that I wasn't able to sell before I left. Like my car.
Luckily we spotted the giant bull before it started to rain. It's hard to tell the scale of this bull from the picture, but it was roughly the size of a dump truck.
And when I say rain, I mean a torrential downpour! I love the storms in Costa Rica, rain drops as fat as quarters and as warm as bathwater. When it rains, it really rains...and the roads get flooded (because most of the roads aren't paved and are full of pot holes) and you think that perhaps the end of the world is at hand, and then it suddenly stops and the sun comes out and you think...'wait a minute, was it raining today?'
We made it to Samará at 2:00pm on the dot! By the way, for those of you that are curious about the time difference, we are 2 hours ahead of California and 1 hour ahead of Utah. Costa Rica doesn't have daylight savings! The sun comes up at about 6am and goes down at about 6pm everyday, all year long.
Our little place is right next door to my Spanish School and less than 1/2 a block away from the beach.
Even though tonight is Halloween, I think I'll be turning in early. I feel like I've done nothing but ride in planes, and cars and travel for two whole days. Neeeed Sleeeep!
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