Costa Rica 38

We got smart on the way back to town. We decided that we did not need to stop off at the hotel first to drop off ponchos and umbrellas. We just stuffed them into our day backpack and had the driver deliver us all the way down the last hill to town. Our object now was lunch!

The sun had come out while driving back and it was now a hot, steamy afternoon. There are no restaurants in Monteverde with outdoor seating. Probably because the sidewalks are so narrow and about two steps up from the main road. You don’t want to accidentally step off them or you could end up getting hurt. Or run over!

We found a friendly looking little café and settled in at the only table left. It was right in front by the window so we had a good view of passersby. And, of course, the sun was beating in and roasting us. I forget what B and L had but this was the day that I discovered Salchipapa. The name is a combined form of salchicha (hot dog) and papas fritas (French fries). They cut up a hot dog into 2” pieces and slice them almost all the way through in the form of an X. Then they deep fry them. They open up and look just like a hot dog flower! These are then served mixed in with a plate of homemade French fries. Yum! Covered in ketchup and salt and eaten with a toothpick. I was in trailer trash heaven! B and L just rolled their eyes, as usual.

Lunch over, we decided it was time to do some souvenir/gift shopping. Monteverde was our last stop before returning to San Jose and then back to Mexico. Nothing like last ditch shopping! We managed to find a few presents for people and even a few things for ourselves! Nothing too big or grand though. Space in a backpack is at a premium. Plus we knew we wanted to bring home as many bottles of Flor de Cana as possible since it is so much cheaper in Costa Rica. And space for that took priority!

Totally exhausted from our morning adventure and power shopping the three stores in town, we next had to stop at the tour agency and book our last adventure of the trip. The one that I was looking forward to the most and that was on my list of top 10 things to do in life. A cloud forest canopy walk. That done, we trudged back up the hill to our hotel. For some reason, we didn’t take a taxi this time. My legs were burning by the time we got to the top of the hill and I desperately needed the siesta we then took!

Awake, feeling refreshed and freshly showered, we headed down the hill for drinks and dinner. I ended up getting totally drunk on the great Costa Rican beer and had a very enjoyable evening. I don’t know if B and L did since they had to listen to my drunken ramblings and bits of wisdom that come from a bottle. But I think they did and were probably just as tipsy as I was! We were back to the hotel and in bed by 11:30 PM but it sure was a long and eventful day.