Getting To Costa Rica

For our one-year wedding anniversary, we promised that we would travel again.  We also knew we had to surf again.  Then I decided I needed to be with the monkeys.  So it seemed only natural that we head to Costa Rica. They have world class surfing spots and monkeys running around like whoa.  It also happened to be green season so there were good deals to be dealt.

I had a couple of concerns.  Like for one, neither of us speak even the slightest amount of Spanish.  Also, the green season thing made me a little weary.  I read conflicting things about the weather at this time of year (Labor Day time).  Some hotels and restaurants even close down for the season right at the week we wanted to go.  If Costa Rican's didn't want to be in Costa Rica then, did we?  But then I thought, we were going to a RAIN forest and surfing so we would be getting wet most of the time anyway! We're going!

I didn't know how I was going to narrow it down because I like to see everything.  I researched the heck out of the place and based on several other opinions of friends and family that had been there, we opted to go to the jungle/volcano area for half the time and then the beach. David said the only thing he requested was that there was air conditioning at our hotels because he thought it was going to be very hot.  That helped narrow it down quite a bit because Costa Rica is known for their eco-friendly approach and unless you are staying in newer, and I'd say more than a 3-star spot, you are not going to find that.  C'est la vie for a budget-friendly trip!  (That said, this is a very easy place to travel on a budget if you wanted.)

We found direct flights from Newark to Liberia on United at a very reasonable price.  The flight was only 4 1/2 hours and it flew by!  (Haha, get it?!)  We took the Supershuttle and it took an hour and a half from the Upper East Side.  Travel Tip: Don't forget to factor in time for possibly picking up about 12 other people!  Luckily, we still had left early enough that it was alright but I was starting to freak out a bit.  Also a tip, just because you have two travelers does not mean if you share a suitcase, you can go over 50 pounds.  Logically this makes NO sense but there is no getting around this.  Either pack separate bags or make sure you pack a foldable bag so you have extra room to stuff as much as possible into it when you go over the limit.

We landed in the new and small Liberia airport and a short line at customs and a passport stamp later, we were off to Avis in their shuttle. We had been warned about the extra insurance they make you add on so we were expecting it but the woman next to us was furious and making such a scene.  The cars are cheap to rent but then they make you get these insurance packages that jack up the price and there is not too much you can do about it.  Just expect it and it doesn't sting so much.  (The employee had the best response to the lady screaming that she used her American Express.  He said, "Ma'am, there are many credit cards in this world and I do not know all of their policies but if you want to drive away with this car, you will need to pay for insurance.")  We also opted to get a 4x4 which we were grateful for and the navigation which was somewhat helpful.  I think we could have been OK with just our maps.  Our Avis guy was the first real (limited) conversation we had with a local and he was so nice, a trait we consistently found in people we met there.

Begin road trip #1.  Tamarindo -> Arenal.  Let me start by saying we knew this trip was going to have some surprises.  We prepared for this but at the same time, its hard to truly prepare for unknown.  I packed extra snacks and made sure we had water.  Little things like that which I normally wouldn't have been too concerned with made a world of a difference.

The infrastructure is minimal in general and they are expanding the highway we were on but at least this road was paved to get us started.  Otherwise its a dirt road here and there.  There are not really shortcuts in this country.  So to get to our hotel, Tabacon, you have to drive AROUND Lake Arenal.  It doesn't seem that large, until you have to drive around it!  It was reminiscent of the Road to Hana in Maui.  You weave in and out of the shoreline through this mountainside on a tiny road.  We had no idea it would be like this and we just laughed at how absurd this three hour portion of the trip was.

Map from Arenal.net, a great resource.  

It was bright and sunny and we turned one of the hundred bends and saw this.  

At some point, these signs started to appear for Toad Hall.  They were really funny and I'd estimate they started about an hour before you actually reach the place.  I found a very small sentence about it in an older Fodor's guidebook and when we reached it, it was like the greatest feeling ever after that ride.

One of the hundreds of signs from Toad Hall.  

We got some food (nachos were yummy!) and took in the amazing view; a green jungle valley is literally the backdrop.  We found out they are also a hotel, huge gift shop AND a bird sanctuary!  There was a five month old toucan named Sam, and a couple of parrots that spoke Spanish.  The owner was sweet and from Long Island.  I knew something felt familiar!  I was going to get my good camera (excuse for the shotty photos that dont do this place justice) but thunder was rolling in the distance and it started to drizzle and get dark so we had to go but I could have stayed there the rest of the trip!  Oh also when we were leaving a giant cow decided to escort us to our car.  That was nice.

Our lunch seats. 

The view from the seats above. 

About a half hour down the road was Tabacon.  I don't know what exactly I was expecting but it was not what it was.  It was way better.  We were greeted with the full treatment: towelettes, welcome drinks and a golf carted escort to our room that had a lovely welcome note and a chocolate "happy anniversary" cake.

Welcome to Tabacon! 

The layout of the hotel is very spread out.  I still cant decide if I liked it or not.  The main area (front desk, bar, computers, etc.) is at the entrance area and then there are separate buildings with other rooms, like condo style.  The main restaurant is up a small hill to the back and the spa and thermal pools (included when you stay there and a big reason we did) are actually down the road.  It's a five minute walk across the street and they have a shuttle van.  The buffet dinner is over there too.

We took one look at our suitcases, one look at ourselves, and put on bathing suits as fast as we could to head to the hot springs.  It was pretty much dark at about 5PM when we got to the most magical place in the world.  It was raining a bit, as it does in the evenings in the rain forest, but it didn't matter. The steam was rising from all the natural springs and it was just a gorgeous maze of hot pools awaiting people to dip in them.  I've never seen anything like it.

Tabacon: steam rising from the pools.  The volcano naturally heats the water to about 100 degrees. 

We didn't want to leave but we were starving and exhausted so we went to dinner at the hotel restaurant because it was easy.  Also an unexpected and therefore funny experience because the place is kinda fancy (like amuse bouche style) but it was nice because it was quiet, except for the frogs.

Blog Design

For whatever reason, I am loyal to Blogger.  I contemplated switching to another platform or hiring someone (probably will eventually) to just fix this one but thought, "I got this!".  Well, in my journey into trying to figure out how to better my blog, I came across a couple of other blogs worth noting.

There is definitely a certain style I am going for and I'm going to refer to it as the "Lifestyle Format".  Lifestyle blogs are all the rage and I want in.  There is uber-popular sites like Cupcakes & Cashmere (who just relaunched her entire site) and the lovely Ramshackleglam.

On Blogger specifically, I found The Londoner.  She was actually one of the first ones to pop into my search and even had an entry about how she figured it all out on her own and included a couple of blogging tips.  I was motivated by this and respect her lots for successfully doing it solo.  That said, her blog is pretty freaking fab and you should start reading it...now!

Two other super cute sites with similar designs include:

Urban Flip Flops (credits design to Danielle Moss)

Chic Sprinkles

So my loyal readers, this is still a process and I appreciate you sticking with me during this eyesore.  One day I vow, it will be better.  Once again, if anyone has any tips, tricks or referrals, send them my way!  Til then, thanks for reading!  

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

As of now, I am trying to clean this space up a bit so please be patient as I figure it out.  However, if you want to HELP me, I'd happily discuss.

Mo & Jo

Pinterest Fail

That time I tried to make my favorite "flourless chocolate cookies" that Whole Foods stopped making, and I not only almost mysteriously somehow burnt the apartment down but the goo just stuck to the paper and I couldn't even eat it in pieces.

On the left is what it should look like and on the right is what mine looked like.  

Washington D.C. Wedding Weekend

A very good friend of ours was getting married in Washington D.C. so we took the train down there on Friday afternoon.  It was actually really easy to take the train, I would definitely do that again.  We smuggled the dog for the ride (shhh, don't tell) and arrived at our dog-friendly hotel, The Fairmont; also where the wedding was going to be (so convenient!).

We went out to dinner at Farmers, Fishers, Bakers and then we went to right next door to The Sequoia, a beautiful room where we had drinks and dessert with the out-of-towners.  It was a really cute spot right on the water.  There was an ice-skating rink and pretty lights.  Apparently this is where the couple had gotten engaged and I could see why.  

On Saturday we went to brunch at the newly re-opened Art and Soul.  I got the BLT Benedict which was great but even greater was the scones before the meal.  O.M.G. !!!!    

After that meal, we thought it would be best to walk it off a bit.  It really sucked that it was so cold so after we made it to the Capitol, we beelined for the first place we could find which happened to be the National Gallery of Art.  Then we decided to head a little further down the Mall to the Smithsonian American History Museum.  I wanted to stick around but my college roommate C. picked me up as soon as we got there so I'll have to return to see Dorothy's Ruby Red slippers!  

We went and got Gabriel and attempted to go to the dog park right outside her house in Adams Morgan but it was too cold and we only stayed 10 minutes.  I found that D.C. is a pretty dog-friendly city.  All along Rock Creek Park (which runs from the Potomic River, 12 miles to Maryland - even the National Zoo is along the path!) there are cool trails and dog parks.  I'd love to go back in warmer weather to really explore - it's very neat to see this thing run all along the middle of the city.  C. did however get a great shot of Gabriel which later ran in a local blog!  Check him out on popville.com!  

It was time to get ready for the wedding and I was really excited because I used Renttherunway.com and ordered a dress and earring combo.  I have never gotten so many compliments on a dress in my life!  Here I am in my Mark & James by Badgley Mischka Sapphire Star Dress and Dannijo Cecile earrings.  

I thought about making a separate blog entry for what a great experience I had with RTR.  It was so easy and saying I am impressed with the company as a whole is an understatement.  Really glad I rented!  

The wedding was absolutely beautiful.  The space at the Fairmont was unique with its elevated dance floor.  It was also really nice to be at a wedding and just be guests.  The last wedding we were at was our own and the past couple, either one of us were in the wedding.  And just a side note, it's heartwarming when you see how happy the couple is to be getting married.  Both the families were just awesome and we were really happy to see them all happy.  OK corny part over, :) 

Joanna V. Devorah

LA Weekend

I ran away to LA this past weekend.  Every winter I find that I need to take at least a weekend to just get away, but somewhere with sun.  I've started to call it my "Sanity Trip".  A little sun, some adventure, good people...ahhhh.  

Tickets happened to be super cheapo out to LA on Virgin and long story short, my best friend ended up joining me.  She's never been to LA so my other friend, our host, helped us with a little flash tourism.  Unfortunately, the sun was in no mood to come out but we made the best of it.  What did we do?  

Day 1: Arrive at LAX and cabbed it to Chateau Marmont.  After a relaxing lunch (burger was good, service excellent), a friend of a friend who works there showed us around.  It was cool to get to see the place.  I can see the appeal for celebs - it is very private, pretty, historic and secluded considering its location.  The hotel was packed for the SAG Awards and we could have just stayed there all day people watching.  We did have our first celeb sighting but that will be a secret now. :)

We were antsy to get out and about despite the weather, so we put on our ponchos and walked over to The Grove.  We took a route that passed through Melrose, where there are a bunch of shops.  The second we walked into The Grove we saw actress Emmy Rossum.  Such a gorgeous girl.  We walked over to the Farmers Market as well, got some coffee and headed back to get our bags.  We were run down.  Our friend picked us up and we had a quick dinner at Kitchen 24.  

Day 2: Drove around LA and made it up Mulholland Drive to the Hollywood Bowl Outlook. (Really great cuz you can just drive and see everything instead of hike, like by the Hollywood sign.)    

Then we headed down the hill into Hollywood to see the Walk of Fame & Grauman's Chinese Theater.  We also stopped into Roosevelt Hotel.  We drove through Beverly Hills, passed "the Witches House" and then on to Venice.  The sun had finally started to come out but once we got closer to the beach, the marine layer just never lifted and it was foggy and cold.  We walked through the Venice Canals,  

and onto the beach.  

We had a quick lunch at the Sidewalk Cafe and headed over to Santa Monica.  You could barely see anything with the fog.  After heading back and resting up, we set off to dinner at Tortilla Republic.  It was dineLA Restaurant Week - good timing on our part!  Next, we headed out to the gay bars.  We hit up The Abby and many others and had a blast.  

Day 3: Brunch at The Hudson, which was cool because it was literally built around these giant trees.  Then we headed over to LACMA, which is also next door to the La Brea Tar Pits.  We decided to take it easy and make tacos at home.  Even something like this was fun though because we got to go to a real supermarket, something I miss in NYC.  

After thanking my most amazing host, we headed home taking the Flyaway, which was very easy.  Can't wait to head back.   Everyone is so nice.  Even the bad weather days are nice.  I just love California.  

Could be...

...Kate Hudson.

Photography

  Call it a New Years resolution, or just a hobby I have been talking about pursuing and now just getting around to for serious.  For my wedding gift, my husband got me a fancypants Canon EOS Rebel T3i.  Photography has always interested me and I had been thinking about getting one myself for quite some time.  Ain't he thoughtful?!

   I was speaking with a friend the other day who also got the same camera recently and told her I still hadn't taken it off of automatic yet and she was horrified.  She said it was such a waste of the camera and it really made me want to finally devote some time to figuring this thing out.  So, here I go, on my journey to a new hobby.

   I am completely overwhelmed trying to not only find quality tutorials and tips but also remembering everything as I go.  I know this is not something you can just study and get overnight, and I am excited to practice and master this camera.  I'll be posting some trials to document my (hopeful) progress.

   So far, I have found this blog, iheartnaptime.com, and look forward to finding others.  If you know any - please feel free to share in the comments!

D met me at Central Park with a huge surprise.  He gave me my wedding gift, the camera, and this was the very first photo I took it!