Family Time in La Fortuna and Surfing at Playa Samara

This is Janet’s turn to blog:

In February, my teenage daughters spent two weeks with us exploring our world in La Paz and meeting our friends here. It was a special treat for me to share my Costa Rica life with them. We interspersed their trip with visits to some of our Costa Rica highlights: a day at the hot springs, a visit to La Fortuna, and surf time at Playa Samara.

It was wonderful seeing Madeleine and Lydia exploring La Paz with the local children, going for unexpectedly long likes, swimming in the river and sharing their slack line. We are amazed at how in two weeks they became comfortable in the language and culture of Costa Rica.


The girls came to Costa Rica determined to ride on a zipline. Our good friend Graciela made reservations for us at her family's famous Sky Tram and Sky Trek in La Fortuna (www.skywalk.co.cr) in the shadow of Volcano Arenal. On the drive up to Sky Trek, we pulled off to take photos of the panoramic view of Lake Arenal. When we returned to the car, it wouldn’t start. This inconvenience became an opportunity for the girls to experience one of the true highlights of Costa Rica….the warmth and generosity of its people. We walked the final two hundred meters to the reception desk where the Sky Trek staff went out of their way to help us. While the girls rode the zip lines together, Sky Trek’s maintenance person did what we could to ascertain what was wrong with the car and help get it going. A local hotel owner at Sky Trek with her guests over heard my plight and stepped in to help. She offered us a ride back to La Fortuna with her guests and a room for the night at her comfortable Hotel Vista del Cerro (www.hotelvistadelcerro.com). By evening, her husband had helped tow our car back to the hotel, the hotel cook had given the car a once over by flashlight in the hotel parking lot and had pinpointed the problem before calling a local mechanic who came at night with his family to repair the car’s electric system. We left the next morning with a working automobile and many new friends.

Our days at Playa Samara were equally magical. The girls spent two days playing in the surf with our used surfboard. After many failed attempts to stand, the surf teachers at Surf Samara came to their rescue offering the use of a long, stable board for the day and some surf pointers (www.samarabeach.com). The girls got up on the next try and were surfing like experts by the time we left the beach for home.



The final night was spent back in La Paz with our neighbors. We shared a feast. The Arias family contributed a chicken, rice dish and a tres leche that the girls helped make. We brought a salad and pasta with fresh vegetables for the most part from our shared garden. The evening ended with all the children piled on the beds giggling and playing. We will treasure this time together and everyone here will look forward to the chicatitasnext trip.

Samara Beach.....Playa Samara

While many foreigners are buying up land and houses at the beach, my San Ramon friends always share their wisdom of living in San Ramon (the mountains) and vacationing at the beach. There is some special connection between Samara and San Ramon for many Ramonense (San Ramon folks). Many families from San Ramon also have houses at Samara and the standard joke is during Christmas or Semana Santa you can find more of your friends in Samara than at home in San Ramon. After experiencing over 50 Costa Rican beaches, Samara is still my favorite one to spend a few days.

While there's much more of a scene in Tamarindo and Jaco, I prefer vacationing in Samara.

The opening a few years back of a new bridge has shortened the ride and in 3-3.5 hours, I'm in a different world...a beautiful one. While development has overwhelmed many of the Pacific beaches, Samara retains much of it's magic even though you can see the development emerging on all the hillsides.

Luckily, we've made friends with locals who rent us a 1-BRM oceanfront apartment for a very reduced rate. This starts us off right with the constant sounds of the waves, a breeze, and a nice outside sitting area to eat drink and take in the expanse of the Pacific. Two hotels I'd recommend are Casa Valeria if you're on a budget and the new Treehouse Inn if you can splurge a little. They are both oceanfront which makes the time in Samara more dramatic and inspiring. A block from the beach the heat is intense and not the same sense of magic.

Samara is a beautiful crescent white sand beach, the perfect distance to walk it's entirety. If it's morning or afternoon stop at Restaurant Sheriff for breakfast or a refreshing smoothie. This simple beachfront spot is a great place to take in the scene and feels like the unofficial center of town.

The beach is filled with surfers, mostly beginners learning to ride. Beaches like Malpais/Santa Teresa at the tip of the Nicoya Peninsula seem to attract more experienced surfers, but it looked like a smiling group of learners. I prefer to just bounce up and down in the waves and ride them in when the right wave comes along. There is a natural joy playing in the waves....it reminds me of the carefree summer days at the Atlantic beaches of my Brooklyn youth.

Walking the beach at sunset is THE daily ritual that shapes my open schedule. There is a daily soccer/futbal game on the beach which is fun to check out. The SUN is strong in the middle of the day so be careful and make sure to use sunscreen and cover up ..... The middle of the day is a great time to get lost in a good book in a shady location with a cold drink.

Going out at night for dinner after sunset and maybe a drink at bar Las Olas afterwards completes my mellow days at the beach. Although most restaurants are much more expensive than my meals in San Ramon, I enjoy the variety and it's part of being at the beach. Many of the restaurants are on the street leading down to the beach. Shekina Restaurant is a new choice and a good one with enthusiastic owners, good food and a pleasant outdoor dining area. If you're looking for a change from Costa Rican fare try the Italian restaurant in Hotel Giada. The pizzas and pastas are very good and the Italian owners have done a good job here for many years.

I've taken my mother, sister, girlfriend and others to Samara and they all smile when they reflect on their experience. As we drive back to San Ramon, I feel satiated with sun and sea. When the first cooler breezes hit me as we near San Ramon, I feel grateful for my 3 days at the beach and happy to be returning to my home in San Ramon.

Go to the Samara Beach website for contact information and listings www.samarabeach.com

Enjoy!

Riteve : Costa Rica Car Inspection

Costa Rica has a national system of annual car inspection called Riteve. Having a current Riteve sticker allows you to drive confidently and legally. It is a common experience which makes me feel like I really live here. Both of our 2 experiences at Riteve were weird and notable.

While many people think moving to Costa Rica is about living in a country with no army, ecotourism, seeing lava at Volcano Arenal, surfing at Malpais/Santa Teresa or doing the canopy tour at Monteverde ..... getting your car inspected is more indicative of day to day Costa Rica life.













The process starts out impressively smooth and logical as you make your Riteve appointment on the internet choosing place, date and time. We did our first inspection in Alajuela. They said our emissions didn't pass the test, but that was the least of our issues. By the time we had worked our way through the inspectors' paces, one of the technicians destroyed our brakes. We had to drive home using the handbrake to stop. Last week, we decided to go to the Puntarenas Riteve for our second inspection. This time an inspector destroyed a line that held the car's power steering fluids. We drove home with the steering wheel barely working. On a better note, a technician allowed us to re-do one of the tests 5 times until we finally passed.

In a different culture I might have complained or written a letter to right the wrong. That seemed like a waste of time here.

Many people pay someone to take their car for inspection. I'm beginning to see the wisdom of not going through this process.

Once again patience and a sense of humor are a virtue in navigating aspects of Tico life.

Cerveza, por favor...Gracias!!!