The Shubin family and the Strickler's headed down to Costa Rica for some sun and relaxation. We started our journey Thursday evening by driving to Seattle so we could grab a flight early Friday morning. I love the beginning of a trip - so much excitement, anticipation. The 4 hour drive to Seattle was delightful - everyone chatting it up in excitement for the journey ahead.
Balin showed up around 11:00pm that night and we all fell fast asleep as we had to catch a flight at 5am the following morning.
Getting up and being out the door by 3:30am was the start of a great day of flying and hanging out in Houston. We arrived in Liberia around 9pm Friday night, where we rented a car for 7 and headed down the road to Tamarindo.
Our condo was well appointed and suited all of us well. It was a 3 bedroom on the ground floor, right next to the pool. The best part of the condo was it was literally right across the street from the beach.
Our days started with Balin and I running/walking on the miles of beach with a fresh fruit smoothie following. After enjoying our alone time we headed back to the condo where we had breakfast with the rest of the peeps. From breakfast we made our way down to the beach where we rented a couple of beach chairs with umbrellas and enjoyed watching the kids boogey boarding and surfing. With the wind blowing and 95 degree weather, sitting in the shade, it was just about perfect. I love hot weather and the beach, just love it.
Around noon we would head out for lunch and then head back to the condo to play in the pool or take a nap. So the days went. Until Sam Shubin ran into the sliding glass door and cut his foot pretty bad. We decided to changed up the beach/pool plan and head out to a national park a couple of hours away, where we hoped to find some animals to look at.
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| A gorgeous evening playing in the surf. Balin was irritated that I took the camera into the surf, but I made it out without ruining the camera. |
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| My friend Colleen Shubin hanging out at sunset. |
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| Kids hiking at the El Rincon National Park in Costa Rica. |
It was the dry season in Costa Rica and it was sure dry. The national park had some rivers in it that were flowing, but nothing compared to what would be flowing in the rainy season. The trees were pretty bare also, which was unfortunate. I had told Colleen that Tamarindo was similar to San Diego, without irrigation, and to expect it to be really dry. It reminds me of when you tell people you're from Arizona and they make the assumption that it's all dry and cactus, which was not the entirety of Arizona. So it is with Costa Rica, it is not all rain forest with colorful tropical animals. Last time we were here we did make it to a cloud forest, but it was cool and somewhat rainy. I was not interested in vacationing somewhere cold and cloudy this time - I wanted hot and dry and that is what I got.
We were only in Costa Rica for a total of 5 nights, which though may seem short, was a great amount of time. When traveling and living with another family, I think it's best to keep things short and sweet. This trip was both. It was great to get some surfing in, walking on the beach, hanging at the pool, enjoying delicious meals out but it was also nice to come home and sleep in the comfort of our own bed.
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