Day 4: A new plan and Jaco

On Day 1 we were culturally shocked and uncomfortable but OK. Each minute of Day 2 pushed us further and further from OK. And on Day 3 we unsuccessfully tried to plan our escape. Today is Day 4. We’re still here and have some real wheels that can get us out of isolation in about 10 minutes. And the rest of Costa Rica is waiting for us so here we come. First stop, Jaco Beach.

Jaco is home to tourists from all over the world by the sounds of the languages in the streets and we understood plenty of conversations so we were automatically feeling more comfortable. We also found one of the many internet cafes and relaxed with a delish iced latte caramelo. It was the first moment I think we were able to really exhale. We’ve been overwhelmed, stressed, embarrassed, isolated, tired and confused for about 72 hours straight. It was nice to be there even though it was overpopulated with tourists and vendors. Typically we like to see areas that aren’t touristy. We don’t travel to eat KFC and get Billabong bathing suits. But this time, we welcomed the familiarity.

Being able to think a little more clearly, we realized that we would be taking a pretty big financial hit if we left our place now. And for a couple that quit their jobs for this trip, financial hits are what we’re trying to avoid. We would not get our deposit back because we are not fulfilling our contract and our first month’s rent, which we already paid, most likely won’t be reimbursed. For Ticos, the things that bug us (ha…get it?) are very normal conditions for them. Cold water showers, insects and crabs, little to no furniture, hard beds, no TV or internet, no transportation…is basically their way of living. It’s minimal, it’s uncomplicated, it’s natural, and it’s comfortable to them. I’m pretty sure some spoiled Americans whining about bugs and missing their cars doesn’t qualify as a valid reason to let us out of the rest of our contract with a reward. You take that chunk of change and then add in the amount of a new place…which most likely would be a hotel at this point since all houses seem to be just like ours…which means we no longer have a kitchen and fridge to save costs on eating every meal out…and the total is beyond what we budgeted for.

So we’ve decided to continue camping indoors for a month. We’re liberated until next Sunday when we return our rental car so our itinerary for the week is pretty full of tourist hotspots. We were able to navigate the bus system today if we want to escape again (doesn’t change the fact that we still have to walk forever to get to it or ride our bikes and not be able to sit for days at a time). And we stocked up on bug traps and bug spray. Mike has successfully relocated our crab and one palmetto bug to the beach (it was so big neither of us wanted to try and kill it out of fear we’d miss and it would seek revenge). And so far, the bug spray has proven to be a success when it poisoned the second palmetto in all of 2 seconds. So we’ll survive.

We’ve informed our landlord that we will not be renting past October 16th. From there, we’re going to decompress at some type of luxury spa or hotel resort (or really just a bug-free one with air conditioning, a soft real bed, and hot water) for about a week and enjoy some much missed comfort before we’re off to our next place. Where that is, we haven’t figured out yet (come on now, we’ve barely figured out tomorrow), but we definitely know the questions to ask before committing to anything. Lessons learned. That’s all for now, until the next internet café…