The Cure for Cabin Fever

The weather in Costa Rica is not too complicated – there is a wet season and a dry season. It is like turning a faucet on or off. There really isn’t an in-between. For all of you who have been imagining me basking in the sun down here in tropical paradise (my sister asked me the other day if I was super tan yet), well…I am just waiting for someone to turn the faucet off and turn the heat up. The weather in San Jose has been cold, wet, and windy, which significantly lowers my interest in figuring out the bus system at this point in time. I have also decided that umbrellas should have different grades, like a toothbrush (soft, medium, hard), based on the type of weather conditions you need the umbrella for. I would have bought a “Rainy Season” umbrella instead of the worthless “I can shield you from the sun and not much else” umbrella that I bought at Walgreens for ten bucks. It lasted about ten minutes before I had to toss it in a trashcan and run for cover. After spending the majority of last week indoors, I was definitely feeling more than a little stir-crazy. My goal for this weekend? To get out of the house and have some fun! Now that it is Sunday and I have no voice and my calves are so sore I can barely walk, I can proudly say (or whisper) – MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

On Friday night I was invited to a traditional Taiwanese Hot Pot (Olla de Fuego) dinner. It is a dish that typically eaten in the winter (i.e. Costa Rican Wet Season). There are two huge pots in the middle of the table, filled with a boiling soup base, which are surrounded by plates overflowing with all different types of meats, seafood, noodles, vegetables, sauces, you name it. It is like a million soups in one – you pick out what you want to eat, throw it in the pot for a few minutes, and serve it up. The next round you can try something totally different. I made an effort to try everything at least once, even the hot sauce (which turned my face bright red for over an hour). It was a lively dinner and afterwards we all headed downtown for a little (or 7 hours) of Karaoke. The group I was with come here quite often and know the owners, so we got the King of all Karaoke rooms all to ourselves. I am usually terrified of singing in front of a crowd, but since I was the only English speaker in the group, it didn’t seem to matter what I sounded like because no one knew the words or the tune anyway! Perfect! The first song I chose – “No Rain” by Blind Melon (seemed appropriate) was a smashing success. I even attempted a few songs in Spanish and one in Mandarin (it had the pronunciation above the characters). Unbeknownst to me, most clubs and bars stay open until 4 or 6 in the morning – so a little karaoke turned into a very long night, and I think I crawled into bed at about five in the morning, knowing full well that I was going to have a deeper, raspier voice when I woke up.

Saturday night I had made plans to go out dancing in the Center of San Jose. I almost canceled because I was so tired from the night before, but opted for a cold shower and a cup of coffee instead. I met up with the Megans (the two Rotarians) at Castro’s Bar, a hopping discoteca in the trendy part of downtown. I had heard a rumor that Salsa isn’t very popular in Costa Rica, and man was I excited to find out that isn’t true, at least not at this joint. I walked through the door and was in heaven – Salsa, Meringue, Cha Cha Cha, Cumbia Swing, and even a little Reggaeton. I pretty much danced until my feet were bleeding, and then danced some more, until I couldn’t feel my legs, and danced some more. The whole staying out late thing is going to take some getting used to (I have been in bed by 9 and up at 6 since I got here) and I didn’t know what to say when our friend Jaime asked me I was going to join them for breakfast. Breakfast???? Apparently, the custom here is to dance until dawn and then everyone goes to the Soda Tapia for breakfast around five or six. Dios Mio. Crawling in to bed when the sun is coming up….it seems to be the trend around here.

Needless to say, although I have been pretty fed up with the rain as of late, I was pretty relieved to hear the rain start falling this afternoon. Yes. Rain. Turn the faucet on please. Because then I can curl up on the couch, pop in a movie, and do absolutely nothing, without feeling the slightest bit guilty about it.