We Went to a Dance Competition, but El Tope Intervened

Upon our return from Quépos, our good friend and neighbour, Alfredo clanked on our patio door, shouting,"Upe, Upe!" We could sense Alfredo's excitement; he seemed to have big news to share, and big news it was, indeed: tomorrow, he was an entrant in a prestigious dance competition, and we were on the exclusive list of invitees.
He and his dance coach, Marcial, his younger brother, had been tirelessly training and felt anxious, yet quietly confident at Alfredo's chances of finally receiving the coveted Medalla de Oro.

I could see the steely determination and competitive drive in the eyes and posture of Coach Marcial and the almost casual arrogance of Alfredo (El Lobo), his student.
The road to success, however, would be longer and more filled with obstacles than we expected. On our way to the venue, the streets were overrun by horses off all shapes, colours and sizes ridden by outiftted cabarellos- El Tope, or horse parade, that featured over 1,700 entrants.

Some of them foreshadowed the dancing to come,

others preferred a more comfortable and relaxing mode,

and there were those who made sure that they took advantage of every refreshment stop along the route.

As El Tope drew to an end,

we made our way to the ballroom where Marcial gave final instructions to El Lobo, who was engaged in last minute relaxation techniques.

Finally, the moment we had all been awaiting with growing anticipation arrived-the performance,

a dazzling display of artistic delight, each series of steps and moves enthralling the audience as the performance built to its breath-taking conclusion.

Another of many remarkable days in San Ramón.

Our Excursion: Part Two

From Puerto Jimenez, we headed north to Quepos, the home of Manuel Antonio, the most visited National Park in Costa Rica. On the way, we stopped at Uvita to visit Parque Nacional Marino Ballena, a rather ignored jewel that stretches for miles, named after the humpback whales that migrate there annually to mate.

After our short stay in Uvita, we stopped by the tiny beach town of Dominical about an hour's drive from Quepos. One of the most appealing aspects of Costa Rica is the remarkable variety of ecological systems such as tropical rain forests, cloud forests, dry Pacific forests, Parmo sub-alpine systems, mangrove forests and intricate coral reefs that one can encounter in a day's drive.

When we arrived in Quepos, we headed up the hill toward Manuel Antonio and checked into our hotel, the Trés Banderas (the three flags). The owner is Polish, his wife is Costa Rican and their son is American:

As it was a long day of driving, a beer was in order; drinking during the day did not seem to be out of the ordinary at Trés Banderas:

Although my Spanish leaves much to be desired, my Polish is outstanding. The sign was clearly an invitation to savour a cool cerveza:"Anyone who is not smashed will not be served."
Manuel Antonio, despite being relatively small by National Park standards, attracts hordes of visitors; it contains four beaches, over 100 species of mammals and countless types of birds.
Perhaps, most unique are its array of herding "Teleskopos Secuutus" who gather in great numbers and in multiple groups all hoping to catch a glimpse of a brown throated three-toed sloth, or even better, a Hoffman's two-toed sloth avoiding discovery in the upper branches of a tree.

One of the simple rules that should be followed when one is in the vicinity of animals is:
Avoid interfering with a mother and her young.
For example:
A mother monkey taking a sip of water with her baby on her back is a very appealing photo opportunity.

However, if you ignore the aforementioned rule like the camera guy next to us did by cooing, "How cute", and attempting to pet the baby, watch your fingers!

And the beaches,

Our Excursion Part One

Last week, we decided to venture out to explore Southwestern Costa Rica. We headed through the Province of Puntarenas to the Osa Peninsula, a finger of land with the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Golfo Dulce to the east.
Heading south, we passed by the Tarcoles River, famous for its population of crocodiles:

Despite the warm weather, we chose not to go for a swim as the water seemed a bit murky.
Instead we proceeded, past Jaco and Quespos and wended our way south to Dominical.

After a seven and a half hour drive, we finally made the descent to the Golfo Dulce to our first destination, Puerto Jimenez, the largest city on the Osa Peninsula. Even though it's not exactly a thriving metropolis, it does feature a main road with opportunities for shopping.

Puerto Jimenez is the gateway to a number of isolated beaches accessible by bumpy gravel and dirt roads only suitable with a 4x4. One of the nicest is Playa Pan Dulce, a favourite of surfers. Although, I neglected to pack my board and was unable to perform a "Backdoor" or "Clidro", I did dazzle onlookers with my incredibly, risky and bitchin' "Lose your sandals (or sandales as we locals call them) and try to retrieve them without losing balance" move. Needless to say, the onlookers and experts were impressed!

After a day of marvellous views and spectacular feats, we drove back to PJ but not before capturing the heated passion of two Latino Macaws.

Some Things Change; Others Remain the Same

Well, it has been a few years since I have composed and posted on the blog. So... a summary, albeit brief, of events in the barrio of our casa in San Ramón since February 2013.

While there have been many significant changes and events:

Babies were born.
Babies grew into children.
First Communions were celebrated.
A new corner store opened at the bottom of the hill.
The streets downtown were changed from two-way to one-way (don't get the old-timer started on this one).
A new house was built right across the street.
The neighbour fell off his motorcycle and broke his leg and ankle trying to avoid a small dog chasing him.
The neighbour is recovering, and the small dog is still chasing people who dare to walk, cycle or drive by his crib.

Some things remain relatively constant:

Despite my slow improvement in understanding and using Spanish, my lack of proficiency still rears its head causing me far too many humbling moments.
Not too long ago, one of the neighbours dropped by and told me she would like a little present, some eggs, to be more precise (at least that's what I understood). I was a tad perplexed as it seemed a rather odd request; however, being a good vecino, I opened the fridge to discover I had four eggs. Since I really wanted at least one of them for breakfast, I pulled out three of them and gallantly offered them to her.
She looked at me, looked at the eggs, looked back at me and started giggling, a giggle that soon became a loud laugh.
Questions flashed through my brain: Are the eggs too small? Did she notice I kept one? Was she offended because I did not gift wrap them?
Answers were forthcoming. Huevos are Spanish for eggs; Jueves is Spanish for Thursday. It turns out she came to tell me that her child was making me a present in school and would give it to me on Thursday. At least I comprehended that a gift was somehow involved!

Being a visual learner, I attached a picture to my fridge to remind myself that things are not always as they sound, to think before I act, and to question before I respond.

It was a nice present, and the neighbour took the eggs.