Sunday, 6 January
At breakfast, Zetdi told Meleidy about the prostitute from the bar. Meleidy asked Leo if he got one too and something along the lines of being with her for an hour. Zetdi then chimed in saying that I was only with mine for 10 minutes. Thanks. I was too stunned to come back with a comment like 10 minutes would have been a new record for me, so instead I just sat there and laughed. Today, the students were heading off to do a canopy tour. Zetdi was going to go to the park after she rested a little bit and I was thinking about going to try and find a different beach that I had heard of. I changed my mind and ended up going with Zetdi to the park. We went to the grocery store to get some snacks and items for lunch and then took the bus to the beach. Zetdi told a student last night that she would look for her so we did a quick search and did not find her so we headed into the park.
While walking to the second beach we saw a lot of people leaving and we were wondering why for it was only about 11am and there was still a lot of daylight left. When we got to the second beach, we took a quick break to snack and then looked for a place to setup shop. We went in the water and Zetdi was so happy to not be pounded by waves. I went out a little ways to were I could not stand and did some exercises in the water. Zetdi and I talked a little while and then she headed up to lay down. I went for a swim and then headed back. When I got back I sat in the sand and stared off while thinking about life again. I took this as a sign that I needed to read my Tao book some more so I pulled it out and started to read. Today’s lesson was about simplifying life – less possessions, more productive communication, etc. Well timed.
While I was reading, monkeys snuck up and took a bag of doritos from the group next to us. Luckily they grabbed it by the back and when they went into a tree, the chips spilled out. I helped pick up most of the chips and then spent the next 20 minutes or so watching the monkeys take quick trips to places where the chips fell to try and find anything that was left. Zetdi and I found this ironic for when I came back to sit down, the lady told me to be careful and watch your stuff.
The day was great for it was mostly cloudy and the sun was hidden most of the time we were on the beach. So it was not too hot and we did not feel like we were frying in the sun. Zetdi started to read her book and I was getting tired of reading mine so I decided to lay down and take a little nap. I did not feel like laying on my towel so I just laid in the sand and used my bag as a head prop. I do not remember what was going through my mind or how long I was out but I just felt so relaxed listening to the water hit the beach, the sound of the wind in the trees, and the heat of the sand below me. It was getting close to closing so we packed up and left. On the way out I felt totally recharged and felt like I was viewing the park with new amazing eyes. It was a very cool feeling.
We walked by all of the stalls on the road that were selling misc arts and crafts. Zetdi was looking for a little dress and she found one that we both thought would be good on her, but she did not want to pay the price. We got to the bus stop as a bus was loading and we could tell that it was going to be a standing room only ride, so we decided to walk up the hill a ways to a shop that had swim suits for her to look at. I knew that the place also had books so I looking forward to going there and finding some light reading. I ended up getting a very early Ludlum book called The Holcroft Covenant. The store was two stories and the upstairs was all books – claimed to have about 6000 on hand. Zetdi did not find a swimsuit but she said there was almost a winner except for the bum part did not fit right. I talked to the owner while I was waiting and she moved from california to Quepos 33 years ago. I asked her what it was like then and she said it was a nice little fishing village that had not power, running water or phone lines. She said that she has seen all of the hotels be built and was a little sad to see all of it change.
After we got home, I started to read my book while waiting for my turn for the shower. For some reason I just could not get all of the sand off of me in the shower. I guess that is why you do not lie on the sand directly. After reading some more on the balcony, I went in my room and laid on the floor in the dark. I am not sure why, it just felt like the right thing to do. I seemed to help recharge me so it was worthwhile. At dinner the students told us about their canopy trip. Their tarzan swing was a requirement for they had to swing from one side to another to continue the trip – it was not like monteverde where you just did it for fun. After dinner, Leo, Zetdi and I took some pictures of each other. Realized later that I forgot to take one of me and him. Oh well. Meleidy and Sharon were playing mario kart again and the students were watching. I didn’t want to so I went out to the hammock. I went back inside a little later and Meleidy was watching Spiderman 2 in espnaol. Zetdi and I ended up watching the rest of the movie. Afterwards I went upstairs and started to pack and then went to bed after reading for a little while.