Alright, Part 2 of the Trip....

So Sunday morning Holly and I woke up bright and early and grabbed some breakfast at the restaurant in Vela Bar. An omlete was a delicious alternative to rice and beans, or cereal and warm milk! After breakfast we threw on our beach stuff and headed down the beach. It was still fairly early, so we were able to score two beach chairs with an umbrella. And I bargained with the guy to give us half price, since we weren't planning on being there all day. The sun was HOT right away, so I slathered on some sunscreen and kept my head under the shade. I tried reading my Cosmo in Spanish, which was a tad difficult. I could understand quite a bit of it, by reading the words I knew and filling in the blanks. But at one point I wasn't sure if I was reading an article on "Celebrity-Style Sex" or "Celibacy-Styles" so I was getting quite a few mixed messages. I decided it was time to put the Cosmo down and brave the Pacific. The waves were massive, and I almost lost my bikini bottoms a few times. It was really fun jumping the waves like I used to when I was younger, but I did feel a little un-cool laughing and jumping by myself. Oh well. So after I decided I was getting burnt I headed back up the hill to Vela Bar. I had a nice shower and a small nap under real sheets and a real ceiling fan!

Holly and I then decided to take the bus into Quepos to do some shopping. We got onto the bus, which was surprisingly empty. Holly was trying to find the correct change, so I sat down in a seat next to a window, with a seat next to me for Holly. Two large Tico men came onto the bus, sporting tattoos and some massive tans. They paid, and then decided to come sit right down next to me, and one in front of me. Did I mention the bus was empty? They immediately starting speaking if very fast Spanish to each other, and ignored me. Holly looked back at me and made eye contact, and then for the rest of the bus ride I watched her trying her hardest not to start laughing out loud on the bus. I guess I looked pretty funny squished inbetween these two large men on a very empty bus. Anyway, they got off, and we arrived in Quepos to find that everything was closed. I realized that it was a Sunday, and in Costa Rica most retail stores close on Sundays. I really lose track of the days while I'm here! Anyway, the trip wasn't a total loss because Holly managed to find her Diving School, and signed up to take her PADI course in a few weeks. We found a really great little Mexican restaurant, and had delicious Nachos and chimichangas for lunch. It was probably the best nachos I've ever had. Then we ran into Jess, Lise, Imogen, Sarah and the other girls at a restaurant, so we stopped and had some Ice Cream. We hopped back on the bus very satisfied, and I did not have to sit squished between any more Tico men.

On the main drag in Manuel Antonio there are small booths set up all along the sidewalk of jewellry, masks, pipes, sarongs, hats, and other touristy type stuff. So we spent about an hour walking along the road and buying some things (well I guess I was really the one doing the buying). When my wallet was feeling significantly lighter, we headed back up the hill to Vela Bar, grabbed our luggage and waited for the bus to take us to Si Como No, the resort we were heading to. The bus was absolutely crowded and disgusting. Everyone possible on the beach wanted to get on, so needless to say I was being touched by about 8 different people at the same time. Ironically, while we were driving up the 7 km windy road between Manuel Antonio and Quepos, Holly and I spotted a nice, uncrowded shuttle van that said "Si Como No" on the side. Greaaat. Anyway, we arrived at the resort and immediately felt out of place. Instead of feeling too princess-y, as I did when I arrived in Costa Rica, now I was not princess-y enough. Don't you worry, I still had my flowered duffle with me, but Holly and I looked like we had been through hell, and were perfusely dripping with sweat. Delish. But we checked in, and we were absolutely thrilled! The resort was gorgeous, and as we were following the bell-boy (bell-man?) to our room, we couldn't help but comment on absolutely everything. The hotel is a group of 20 buildings set up in the rainforest, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, so we had to go on quite a long journey of stairs to reach our room. But we were in shock when we got to our private room, with a balcony overlooking the jungle and the ocean, with a perfect view. The room was large, with AIR CONDITIONING, a glass shower, shampoo dispenser, hair-dryer...all of the things I used to take for granted but now had been without for 4 weeks! We were sooo amazed and greatful that the bell-man was laughing at us and how shocked we were. We assume that most rich American/Canadian tourists that come here are used to this kind of treatment, but like I said, we had been away for quite a while. And I would have been impressed anyway, it was gorgeous. So we spent the first 15 minutes bouncing on the bed and testing out the A/C and the warm water. Then we quickly changed out of our sweaty clothing and into our bathing suits, and made our way up to the adult pool.

The adult pool would be where we would be spending most of the rest of our stay. More importantly, the swim-up bar! The pool was large and turquoise coloured, with a small waterfall running into it, a jacuzzi above the pool, and yes, the more important large swim-up bar! Holly and I wasted no time getting ourselves there, and I once again took advantage of the generous happy hour to help myself to a Margarita. Or two. Or three..and maybe some Ceasers. Whatever, we were on vacation! And we ordered some Guacamole and chips, and just sat there in the nice, warm, clean, pool water, watching the sunset over the Pacific and just completely content with the world being in Paradise. We met some new friends, a man named Jeff and his 16 year old daughter, Ashleigh. They were from Cali, and had just arrived as well. They were really nice, and Jeff bought us a round of drinks. We made plans to meet for dinner later, and then Holly and I eventually dragged ourselves away from the pool bar to head back down to our room. Apparently stairs are a bit more difficult after a few cocktails, who knew?

Back at the room we were able to have HOT showers.. amazing. I thought that I had died and gone to heaven, as I had not had a hot shower in over a month! After wards, we went and met Jeff and Ashleigh in their room, because Ashleigh had brought her hair straightener and generously offered that Holly and I could use it. Really, I couldn't have been happier. Straight hair..hot shower..swim-up bar..happy hour!! It was great. I ran off and quickly found the internet for a while, and then we met them for dinner. Everyone was exhausted, so we had a quick dinner, which Jeff nicely bought for us, then we headed off to bed. I fell instantly asleep as soon as I hit the pillow, and had a ridiculously nice sleep, in an air conditioned room, dreaming of great things.

That's all I have time for now! I'll try and update the rest as soon as possible!! Lots of Love...

Natalie xoxo