Costa Rica Days 1 and 2: We Made It

I'm writing this from the covered pool deck, sipping a margarita, looking at the Pacific Ocean, while James naps on the outdoor couch, and the kids play in the pool in front of me.

current view action shot

Pura Vida, indeed.

We left Fort Worth at 9:45 a.m. on Friday morning. Five carry-on suitcases, four backpacks, and one purse in tow, but with a 12:45 flight, it was a low stress morning. DFW now has pre-paid parking for a big discount and even less driving around like normal. Security was a breeze (everyone had a quart-size bag with a different category of liquid; when it comes to family travel zip-locs are right up there with my packing cubes for top billing in my heart), we all filled up our water bottles once past security, and then ate our packed lunches in the international terminal.

We were ready. I was even wearing the beautiful earrings my sister gave me from her trip to Costa Rica 4 years ago (basically when I started planning this one).

The girls insisted on sitting together, so I sat with Landon, and our nervous flyer who no one in the family is allowed to talk to during takeoff or landing sat behind us and slept the whole way.

We had a 3 hour layover in Mexico City, which saves you about $500/ticket but requires you to go through customs and then back through security. It's really not too big of a hassle and we still had forever to roam the airport and get some dinner.

We had a night flight in to San Jose. It left at 7:15 and landed at 10:45 p.m., but this time it was on a much bigger plane with the personal TV's and in-flight entertainment and the kids were THRILLED. The line at customs in Costa Rica was long, but it moved and the kids were troopers. We got outside to the tropical air and a 20 minute wait for our free shuttle to a nearby hotel. The shuttle was great, the check-in was smooth (Courtyard Inn & Suites by Radisson, booked through Expedia), and our 2-story, 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom hotel room ($85/night) was gorgeous. We did not really appreciate this as we walked in at 12:05 a.m., 14 hours after leaving Fort Worth.

But we did in the morning.

The included breakfast was fantastic and Cora was delighted to discover that rice and beans are part of every meal, including breakfast. Our other two international trips with the kids have been to very Americanized resorts, so it's been awesome to be a little more immersed in the local culture. I mean it was a Radisson, so obviously it's not full immersion, but everyone tried something at the breakfast buffet they'd never had before, so I'll take is a win.

Our rental car (booked through the discounted link on this blog post) was delivered promptly to our hotel at 8:30 a.m. (a quick call to the Costco Citi card confirmed our rental car insurance coverage for the very kind agent (though there is still one part of the insurance you must in Costa Rica)), and we were off. Google maps enabled, and 125 miles to go.

There were quite a few toll booths along the way, but they took US dollars (the first toll was the equivalent of $0.20) and we got change in Costa Rican colones to use on the next few. The kids were fascinated by the different money, and even more fascinated by the vendors on foot weaving through the cars in the toll lines. We were relieved to find one selling water and flagged him down immediately for a few bottles.

After about an hour of driving, in which no electronics were allowed ("look around you! we're in another country! it's beautiful!"), we had traversed a few mountains, turned left, and bam-- there was the Pacific Ocean. The kids had never seen it before, so we pulled over immediately so they could touch it.

So beautiful.

And so warm! After feeling the Pacific off the California coast, we were shocked by how warm the water was.

We piled back in the car, only to pull over again when we spotted some brightly colored letters in Jaco and two (real) parrots flying behind them.

LagLiv family on the Pacific!

We drove some more, planning to stop somewhere for lunch. The map told me Playa Hermosa was on the water, Trip Advisor told me lots of places were good, and we ended up at Bowie's Point, a super cute place right on the beach with beautiful driftwood tables, great food, a pig you couldn't feed (per the very serious signs the kids found hilarious), and lots of local dogs hanging out looking for pats.

there's a dog in there

Mama also had her first grown-up drink of the trip and it was excellent. And it had my new favorite fruit- a local lime that is green on the outside, orange on the inside, very juicy, and a tiny bit sweet to go with the sour. I would like a crate delivered to Texas immediately.

We ate all the food. The kids had breakfast burritos (all of which had rice, beans, and plantains inside, along with the egg and bacon; they LOVED THEM), James had many things, and I had a mahi wrap that was fantastic. My love for French fries knows no language.

We wandered down by the water and splashed in the surf.

That is pure beach baby joy right there.

Then Claire fell in. She took it in stride, making a quick change in the restaurant bathroom (easily done since all our luggage was still in the car), and we pressed on to our final destination of Dominical where we would meet one of the management company employees in a restaurant parking lot to be shown to our rental house.

I had booked the house through VRBO (originally found by a friend who had gone to Costa Rica with her children two years ago ago and I stole her work and research) and I was bracing myself for reality to not live up to the promotional photos, while knowing the $235/night price tag would soften any hurt expectations.

Except that it smashed them. Pictures do not come close to doing this 5 acre estate justice. Words won't either, but it is more lush, more beautiful, and more perfect than any review, description, or picture could possibly capture.

It's the most beautiful place I've ever seen in real life.

We got a tour and learned all the codes and details we needed to know from the property agent and then piled back in the car (fairly unwillingly at this point) to go back to town to buy food for dinner. There's a small market the agent recommended and the kids were wide-eyed at the variety of food, most of which was very unfamiliar, stacked floor to ceiling, in tiny aisles, with a resident cat roaming in between them. I gathered the ingredients for tacos (guessing at much of it), breakfast, PBJs for our hike planned the next day, picked up some tequila and wine and fresh plantain chips, and hit checkout. Like everywhere else, they took US$ and we were on our way.

The drive up to our house is pretty intense. In the rental agreement it is noted that you must get a 4x4 car and our little 4x4 Tucson barely made it. But it's all worth it when you click open the huge gates around the property and find yourself gazing at the Pacific with acres of trees and flowers and garden paths that are all yours. A toucan just flew into the tree next to the pool as I type this. I can't really believe this is real.

other master balcony; outdoor shower

(A gigantic lizard just roamed across a walkway. Landon just ran off after it. This is so bizarre and wonderful.)

The kids swam, James did a whole swim practice and some planking, and I put on a bikini I had no intention of getting wet, made my first margarita (with my magical orange limes!), and settled in to one of the deck chairs and watched the sun set.

We made our tacos (the main room with the kitchen is not air conditioned, so it got a little hot in there), ate up, and then put everyone in bed. The kids are sharing one room upstairs with two twin beds and an air mattress. It has its own bathroom, a super cool walk-in shower that has doors that open to a balcony over the pool (what shower doesn't need a balcony?), and dressing area. And a/c. They were cozy and comfortable. We turned out their lights at 7:45 p.m. and never heard a sound. The day had been LONG, not to mention the travel day before it.

open hallway between our rooms

James and I retired to our room right next door (both rooms open out to an outdoor covered cat walk) which is huge, with three balconies, great views, and the most amazing shower. Also a/c. We were settled and in bed at 8:55, and turned to each other, clearly looking for permission to just go to sleep at this absurd time. And we did. And after 5.5 hours of sleep the night before, it was GLORIOUS.

View from our room

I woke up to the sound of monkeys, a soft rain, and those spectacular Pacific views. Our first morning in our new jungle beach house (Cora's name for it).

I made tea. We folded the laundry we'd done the night before. The kids and James had oatmeal, apples, and toast and we packed our things for our visit to Nauyaca Falls. The rain was still softly pattering, but we had our new rain jackets and a hopeful heart. And a plan to take the "ride in a truck" option to the Falls. As it turned out, the truck was not available, so we hiked 8 km, but that's a story for the next post.

(Author's note. I absolutely love other people's vacation blog posts and I searched the whole internet for some practical/real-life posts, particularly from people who traveled with kids, before we left. So for anyone thinking of going to Costa Rica in the future- and you should!- I'm trying to include as many details as possible! Also, I plan to relive this trip on many an insomnia-filled night in the future. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments and I'll try to answer them with all my 72-hours-in knowledge that I have so far!)