Things Remembered.... Things Forgotten...

Welcome to Tico Time...

As we sat yesterday and snoozed on the beach, explored the mysteries of crustacians and molusks digging in the sand and resting in tidal pools many things come to mind

Things Remembered

• Vacation is a great thing and we Americans simply don't take advantage of it
• International travel does the soul so good ... to have to struggle some times to simply communicate makes you focus on the other people around you and not on the things you have
• At the equator (or very near it in this case!) its STINKING hot in the sun
• I actually know quite a few more words of Spanish than I thought I did
• Food doesn't have to be expensive to be good
• Slowing down for a while is not only good for me but required... somehow I always seem to forget that

Things Forgotten and Lost

• My Credit Card... AGAIN!  Yes I know, somehow it is amazing at the places I can leave that thing and still not have a mysterious 65" LCD show up on my charges.. this time in the lobby as I was making hotel reservations
• My sunglasses... Its Halong Bay, Vietnam all over again.  For some reason I have a problem remembering my sunglasses are on my face as I dive into water.  This time while wading in the surf and taking a spontaneous body surf the wave takes its toll on my glasses.
• My rain jacket .... Begining of rainy season in Costa Rica and I forget my rain jacket! 
• My camera battery charger... this one of course being the biggest pain in my butt as they do not have the stores down here for me to replace this.  I'm metering my usage and leveraging Neels camera but it still tweaks me off when I thik about it.

So aside from these oh so grand and lofty thoughts yesterday was simply amazing.  Here on Playa pan de Azucar (Sugar Beach) we have found Hotel Sugar beach.  As there are only about 6 other guests in the entire place we were able to get a cabana all to ourselves with a poarch and two chairs that look directly out onto the ocean harbor we are situated on.  The morning starts with coffee on the porch with my book.  Then to an amazing breakfast Quesadilla and then down to the beach for exploring.  It really is amazing the amount of life that hides under the dirt and in the tidal pools.  Shelled creatures of spirals, and crecents and spherical shape pull themselves along and dig into the sand with more efficiency than a three year old with a shovel at the beach.  Sea slugs and urchins clinging to the tidal pool walls while the most mysterious somewhat amphibious fish swim about the pool and actually hop out and pull themselves along with thier fins to the next pool.

After our little biology lesson we lounge, and I do mean lounge, you float like a raft here, in the 85+ degree azure water.  Blue doesn't do justice... relaxing convey the feeling.. restfull can't be enough of a description.

Up to the cabana to grab a 6 pack of Imperial and the afternoon is spent in the sun/shade on the lounge chairs under trees reading, snoozing and sipping the beer.  Life just doesn't get any better.

In the late afternoon we head into Playa Tamarinda to explore the "big town" nearby.  It is a busy and bustling surfer destination with boards, board shops, and surfers everywhere.. no longer no persono but mucho persona!  I think I have Neel convinced to join me for surf lessons tomorrow when he sees that they teach you to surf in the shallows not in the deep ocean on 20' waves.

Finally we want to catch the sunset from a guidebook recommended Mar y Sol restaruant in Playa Flamingo, the next closest town to our hotel.  Rolando (sorry still no photo yet, we'll take one today!) winds his way up to the top of the hill and there it is.  We missed sunset but there wasn't too much of one anyway... we still have 4 more days.  But as we sat atop the open air bar on the second floor of Mar y Sol we watch dusk creep over the bay and the stars and the moon come out to play.  Simply a fantastic display of everything I love about the ocean.. fresh air.. wide sandy beaches.. lush green forests and stars as far as you could see.

Finally we return and make our reservations at the Marriott for tonight.  It is then that I do two things:  1) leave my credit card at the computer in the lobby (told you this already) and 2) realize that I have stayed nearly every wedenesday this year in a Marriott somewhere and didn't even manage to break that steak on vacation ;)

Well, we're off at 10am and on our way to Playa Herradura for a night.  So I'm headed back to our little sugar beach here for some swim time and reading and then back in the van.

Miss you all!