pescador

i´ve been neglecting the blog... sorry.
to catch up:

my internship ended about a week ago, and i´ve been having a blast enjoying electricity and fresh warm bread and coffee (yes. i´m drinking coffee now. sighhh, pura vida, i guess. haha)

last week, caitlin and i spent some amazing days visiting beaches nearby, some of which are the most beautiful i´ve ever seen in my life.

picture perfect: playa carrillo, just south of samara. a long crescent shape bordered by gorgeous self-manicured palm trees in white smooth sand. the water is perfectly blue and clear. it actually reminds me of samara, but here there are no houses, no restaurants, no buildings or people or parking lots or trash... just the sand and the silver sun on calm water.

best waves: camaronal. hands down. with the strong offshore wind from nicaragua, these waves represent some of the best of costa rica, swelling high and tubing in an unbelievable arc. to watch these guys disappear inside that tube and live to pop out the other side is mindblowing. downside: the strong current makes it impossible to paddle out and get in the pocket. takes forever, man. even trying to swim is taking your life in your own hands.

i was planning to go to san jose over the weekend and begin traveling around costa rica, determined to see as much as i could and try all the flavors of each region. however... plans changed pretty quick:

we´ve been hanging out with a couple of local surfers from samara who came to the project a lot of help out. they´re awesome and funny, and let cat and i crash in one of their bungalows (which they rent out.) they´re the best tourguides in costa rica, and we´ve seen and eaten so many things that traveling like a tourist would never get you.
they work everywhere here; renting bungalows, giving tours of the beaches by kayak or boat, teaching surfing, fishing.
on friday they took us fishing. yes, that includes both fishing poles AND spearfishing. i´ve been snorkeling with sharks in hawaii, but never while trailing a bait bag with four dead fish inside.
i won´t lie. i was nervous. haha

it seems sort of silly to go traipsing around costa rica like a tourist, spending two days in each city, barely having time to look around before i buy some cheap trinket, get a cafe frio, and get back on the bus. i´ve had enough of buses.

there´s also something irresistable about living and working in a small surf town in costa rica. i can walk down the street, and say hi to all the shop owners, who i know by name. mauritzio comes down on his bike, and we stop and chat and make plans to have a barbeque later. i stop by alejandro and ricardo´s place, and we hop in the van with Marc, their fishing boss from California. awesome guy. we head to the other side of the beach, where all the fishing boats bob out in the water. out to sea we go, fishing and snorkeling from 7 am to one or two in the afternoon.
when we get back, we´re sunburnt and exhausted. time for coffee! and pan con queso! the rest of the day is spent lounging in chairs and calling out to all the locals who pass by, commenting on the offshore wind or the lack of waves in samara. (they are very small here.)
it´s so much fun living here, working the sun and the ocean. the water here is startlingly blue and clear. going spearfishing with alejandro is crazy...he can hold his breath for three minutes, and i have to work hard to keep up with him. it´s amazing what he pulls out of the water. yesterday, a four foot durado (mahi mahi). he dives down to get what he´s caught, and goes so far that i have to dive down a bit as well so i don´t lose sight of him.

later, we cook what we catch. he´s the best chef in costa rica, i think. possibly the best i´ve ever had. it´s awesome that i´m working for such amazing food. we have a barbeque around the bungalow, with music blasting and locals showing up from the woodwork. i think they can smell the durado from the other side of samara.

bad news...my camera is broken. the lens won´t work. so i have no pictures of my fishing adventures. too bad, considering. but makes it more priceless, i guess. anyway...i should go ... gotta pick up some queso and agua for the guys. it´s a give and take :)

miss everyone...i´ll be home soon!