A lot of exciting and beautiful experiences

The week started again with a lovely church service and shared coffee drinking and conversation on the terrace. Always a highlight. And there was the request if we could come to Panama for the 2nd or 3rd Advent, where there is also a small congregation. How exciting! We are feeling more at home here.

Monday was choir rehearsal again, which is truly enjoyable. However, I always feel exhausted afterwards. We, especially I, really have to manage our energy levels. Since we have been here, I have been dealing with headaches and tension. That’s not so pleasant.

On Tuesday, there was a café meeting at the congregation; for lunch, we were invited by a very interesting woman who traveled a lot as a child because her father was a diplomat. She speaks several languages fluently. In the evening, we received an invitation for wine and cheese from a teacher sent from Germany, who has been teaching here at Humboldt School for 5 years.

On Wednesday, we intended to drive to the Pacific for the second time, this time to a different beach. What is certainly unreliable here in Costa Rica is the weather app and the estimated travel time to a destination. We had planned for two hours of travel for the nearly 90 km distance. In total, we spent 7 hours on the road round trip. The way there was very winding through the mountains, a beautiful ride but exhausting. On the way back, the highway was anything but fast due to numerous traffic jams. But the beach Playa Mantas was a dream. We were warned about monkeys. However, as I briefly set my bag with drinks and banana chips down on the beach, out of nowhere a monkey snatched my chips and disappeared into the tree. We were then even more cautious with our personal belongings, especially phones and money. We found a spot under the palm trees, simply beautiful. It was noticeably hotter than in San José. Swimming was also fantastic; we have never experienced the Pacific so warm. We only stayed for 2.5 hours because we didn’t want to drive in the dark, and it gets dark here shortly after 5:00 PM.

On Thursday, we visited a woman from Bremen who has lived here since her architecture studies and has built incredible things. She lives on a mountain, like in a small jungle, which she also planted herself with her husband. Decades ago, she developed a large plot of land (just green meadow) and built an entire condominium, meaning many villas surrounded by magnificent gardens. She has really made a name for herself here in San José. The entire area is secured, and entry is only allowed if you are registered and leave your passport number. It was only 14 km to get there, but the travel time round trip took over two hours. Especially on the return trip, unfortunately also in the dark, there was a huge traffic jam. Nevertheless, we do not want to miss this encounter.

On Friday, we visited a coffee plantation that belongs to an 88-year-old German, who also came here at a young age. The last kilometers were quite adventurous but exhilarating through the tropical landscape. The plantation is located at an altitude of 1600 meters, so it was noticeably cooler. We were received very kindly and given a tour. It’s sad that coffee cultivation is no longer profitable and has even become a loss-making business. Since his wife passed away two years ago, his employee Rosasalva has become very important to him, as he is now reliant on a lot of help. The return journey was – how could it be otherwise – again very slow and tiring.