Léah performed in the Atenas “Festival de Danza” last night. For a small town, we couldn’t believe how many people were in the audience. It is always a wonderful thing to see one’s child perform on stage; seeing them dance in front of a large audience in a different country with a different culture takes the experience to a whole new level. Léah loved the experience and is already wanting to be part of the next show!
Halloween is not celebrated in Costa Rica. We noticed this at least a month ago when the stores started stocking Christmas items and skipping over Halloween completely. There are many creepy Costa Rican legends meant to scare children and adults away from things like overindulgence of alcohol or infidelity which make the likes of Dracula and Frankenstein tame in comparison.
Our kids look forward to Halloween all year and Gabriel still wanted to dress up despite the fact that there is no place to go Trick-or-treating.
There is an iGoogle gadget called “Places to See” which features different places around the world; this week, Annapurna, Nepal was featured.
In October 1999 (already 10 years ago), Mélanie and I did a 12-day trek to the Annapurna Base Camp. This site provides a good summary of the trek.
For a short trek with few altitude problems, the Annapurna region provides you with unparalleled access to spectacular horizons of snowy peaks, so high that you'll find yourself looking twice before you believe that they are not clouds. As well as providing the views for which the trek is famous, the trail takes you through an ever-changing landscape of rice fields, misty forests and tiny local villages.
On October 10, 1999, just before we reached the British Expedition Annapurna South Face Base Camp (4234m.), I proposed to Mélanie. I could swear that the rock on which I had her sit when I popped the question is the one pictured below. With the thin air and lack of oxygen, I figured I had a better chance of her saying “yes” to my proposal. :)
For the 3-day long weekend, we headed to Manuel Antonio National Park. The park was created in November 1972 to protect it from development as the area's tourist industry began to boom. Manuel Antonio is Costa Rica's second most visited park behind the Poás Volcano National Park.
October is a great time to travel in Costa Rica since it is the low season which translates into less crowds and prices. We stayed at Hotel Mono Azul for a mere $45 per night. (Prices start at $25 a night but for 5 people, we needed a bigger room.)
Some of the highlights:
A short hike to a magnificent beach in the National Park
The White-headed Capuchin monkeys who come to see the tourists at the beach (and stole our first-aid kit from our bag).
Swimming with giant turtles
Eating at “El Avion”: an Iran-Contra-Cargo plane converted into a restaurant and bar.
Remember one of the biggest scandals in the mid 1980s that involved the Reagan Administration? This very cargo plane was shot down on October 5, 1986, while delivering supplies to the Nicaraguan Contras.
Boogie boarding
Here is a slideshow with more pictures (clicking on any of the pictures will open our album).
Videos of the monkeys on the beach:
As mentioned before, it is technically the “green season” right now in Costa Rica which means that we get more rain especially in the afternoon. But, so far, nearly every day has had at least some sun (unlike the year that I spent in Lancaster, England) and it hasn’t yet rained all day (unlike some days during winter in British Columbia). In general, the weather has been fairly constant – hot with sun nearly every single day.
The majority of people that I know don’t live in tropical climates but rather live in places with clearly delimited seasons. Atenas, Costa Rica (where we live) was voted as the best climate in the world because of its consistently hot days and comfortably cooler nights.
Having grown up in Quebec, the one time of year that I always miss is now – Fall - when the leaves on the trees change to vibrant colors. My sister-in-law sent us the picture below which she took in her backyard close to Joliette, Quebec.
I am loving the heat and the sun… don’t get me wrong. And, I realize that this post is a bit out of the Costa Rican context. I am just taking a moment to reflect on the fact that travelling doesn’t only allow a person to enjoy experiencing other parts of the world, it also allows one to appreciate where they have been.
It is Mélanie’s birthday today and Léah drew a card for her; notice that Léah has included Manchas as a member of our family.
On the subject of Manchas, he decided to join me for my morning run today. I don’t recall inviting him but when I came out of the house in my running gear, there he was waiting. There aren’t any leash or pooper-scooper laws in Costa Rica (at least none that I know of) so he tagged along beside me the entire way (except when he had to stop to do his business and then he would easily catch up). His endurance was pretty remarkable and in this sun, heat, and humidity, he could easily outpace me. Maybe I should outfit him with a huge tank of water so that he can rescue me when I am ready to pass out from heat exhaustion?
Canadians don’t need a tourist visa for Costa Rica. An excerpt from CostaRica.com:
If you hold a valid passport from your home country, you may enter Costa Rica without a tourist visa and can stay up to 90 days.
You only need the following documents to enter Costa Rica:
* a valid passport with at least one blank visa page. The expiration date of your passport must be greater than 30 days from your date of entry to Costa Rica.
* a pre-paid airline ticket to exit Costa Rica or proof of financial resources ($400.00 US - $1,000.00 US in cash or traveler checks, and/or a ticket to either return to your home country or to go to another country)
When we arrived in Costa Rica in July, all of our passports were stamped with a 90-day visa.
As a tourist you have two choices to extend your stay in Costa Rica:
1. File for an extension of stay at the Department of Temporary Permits & Extension of Stays at the Immigration Department in Costa Rica.2. Cross the border to one of Costa Rica's neighboring countries - ensuring that the port of exit official stamps your passport with the exit seal; and then come back in to the country 72 hours later. When you re-enter Costa Rica you will be granted another 30, 60, or 90 days to stay as a tourist.
To renew our visas, we opted for #2 above.
We had decided to take a one-week vacation and researched heading to a nearby country like
We had wrongfully assumed that upon reentering Costa Rica, we would be granted another 90-day visa. When we checked our passports, we discovered that the immigration officer had given us only a 60-day visa. I spoke to the Costa Rican consulate in Ottawa and the representative from Costa Rica explained the wording “up to 90 days” – a 90-day visa is the maximum that the immigration officer will grant but it is at their discretion whether they will grant you a 2-week visa or a 90-day visa or somewhere in-between.
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