Reese is here!

Again, another big update in this blog entry! Since I last blogged, I left Nicaragua and was reunited with Reese in Costa Rica! 

To take it back to the rest of my time in Nicaragua, I had a really good end to my three weeks there. Before I left Granada, the town that I did my Spanish school in, I had to go to the doctor because I was having ear pain. I went to the pharmacy on Thursday and talked to a medical consultant there. I told her that I thought it was an ear infection, but she told me that I actually just had a ton of ear wax that was super impacted in my ears. So, I had to make an appointment with a specialist and go on Saturday morning before my shuttle to San Juan del Sur. It was honestly a bit rough because the medical person (not entirely sure if she was a doctor) filled up a syringe with saline solution and then blasted it into my ears. At the end of the syringe was a needle that ended up poking into my ear and causing quite a bit of pain in the moment. Thankfully, two large chunks of ear wax came out (one from each ear) and I have not experienced any pain since the appointment. There has still been some discomfort, and my ears have felt blocked from time to time, so the problem is not completely solved but it is definitely better! I think the Little Ceaser's crazy bread also helped the pain. After the appointment I had to take some medication and do two rounds of ear drops every morning and night. Definitely a unique experience! 

Once I left Granada, I went to San Juan del Sur which was a beach town, and I had a good time there. I arrived on a Saturday and got to see some people that I had met in Leon. We all got dinner together and then I had an early night because my whole ear thing had happened earlier that day and because the next day, Sunday, was going to be crazy. In San Juan del Sur there is a pool/ bar crawl that happens every Sunday and it is called Sunday Funday. So, it starts around 1pm and then we went to four different places that all had pools. I spent the majority of the day with this girl from Scotland that I had met in Leon. I met so many new people though and some of them were not the vibe. I met Trump supporters from North Carolina which was not ideal and there was a weird German guy as well. BUT I got to see my other German guy who I spent a lot of time with in Ometepe. He was leaving the next day, so we chatted and agreed to let each other know if we are in the others' country. Sunday Funday was a good time, and I am glad that I participated. It was cool to meet new people and go to the different places. 

For the next couple of days after that, I mostly just chilled. My Scottish friend moved into my hostel, and we spent each day hanging out. I had to work a little bit on each day so I would go to a coffee shop that had a separate coworking space. We hiked to the top of this huge hill and got to watch the sunset on the city. We also ate some really good dumplings and hung out at the beach. It was a very relaxed couple of days and a nice way to end my time in Nicaragua. 

I left San Juan del Sur on Thursday, January 9th, because that is when Reese's flight was landing in Liberia, Costa Rica! I booked a shuttle that ended up actually being one of the crazier travel experiences that I have had to date. I thought that the shuttle would be one van to take me to the border and then another van on the other side of the border but that was not the case. I took a taxi with some other people from my shuttle to the border. Once we got to the border I waited about 45 minutes because this random woman who worked with a bus company told me to. Finally, she came up to me and said to follow her. Then we put my bag on a bus, and she told me to wait outside the bus. After 10 minutes I asked if I could get on and she said to wait. Then finally the bus driver started the bus, and I was like okay I am getting on and I just got on the bus. Then we drove about 5 minutes, and we all had to get off with all of our things to exit Nicaragua. It took a little under an hour of waiting in line and then I got stamped out of Nicaragua. After everyone from the bus had done that, we got back on the bus to drive over to the Costa Rica side. Then we got out with all of our things again and waited in another line to enter Costa Rica. While I was waiting in this line, Reese messaged and said that his flight had just landed. At this point I started to panic that I would not make it in time to Liberia to get on our 2:30pm shuttle. Reese's flight landed at 12:30pm and the original plan was for me to get dropped off at the airport and then we would take an Uber into the city to get lunch, and we would get picked up in the city. Spoiler alert: that did not work out. Anyway, I finally made it through the line and then before I put my bag on the bus, I double checked with the driver that he was going to stop at the Liberia Airport and the driver said yes. So, I loaded back onto the bus, and we started driving. I realized that we are not going to have enough time to make it to town for lunch, so I tried to call the hostel to contact the shuttle to change our pickup to the airport. My phone wasn't working so Reese had to call. Also, Reese had to wait 1.5 hours in line to do customs. So, once he was out of line he was just sitting down and then had to call the hostel. The hostel person told Reese that he will try to change it with the shuttle driver and then hung up. It gets to be around 2:10pm and I was panicking because I was still about 30 minutes from the airport. I was watching Google Maps, and the bus driver missed the turn to go to the airport. I walk up to him and ask if he's going to the Liberia Airport, and he said yes so, I imagine he has a different route, and I just sat back down. 1 minute later, the driver stopped the bus and walked back to me. He asked if I wanted to go to the Alajuela Airport. I said no, Liberia Airport. He motioned for me to follow him, so I took my things and then he opened the carriage under the bus, and we took my bag out. Then he pointed in the direction of town and told me that is where the airport is. I laughed in shock and then just started walking into town because apparently, he was not taking me to the airport. I called Reese and told him what happened and reassured him that everything was okay. So, I was walking down the side of the highway with a bag on my back and a bag on my front and then I made it into town. It is 2:20pm at this point and we were 20 minutes apart. I decided to get an Uber to take me to the airport because that was where we told the hostel owner that we wanted to be picked up. At this time, the hostel owner called Reese to tell him that the shuttle driver was at the airport. The hostel owner kept saying "coffee shop" over and over and Reese was eventually able to find the shuttle driver. I was still 15 minutes away, but the shuttle driver was really chill and nice about doing a few laps around the airport and then parking until I got there. Eventually, Reese and I were reunited!!! And safe and sound for the entire shuttle ride to Monteverde. Our shuttle driver also bought us coconuts to drink out of. When we make it to Monteverde we checked in to our hostel and it was really simple but did the trick. 

In Monteverde we went hiking in the Cloud Preserve and we also went to a place with a bunch of hanging bridges. We also walked around town and played cards! It was cold enough to wear a jacket which I was happy about, but warm enough to wear shorts which Reese was happy about. 

Now Reese and I are in Tamarindo and will be for the next couple of days. This is more beachy whereas Monteverde was more rainforesty. It is so nice having Reese here, I have missed him a lot! I cannot believe that I am typing this sentence but when Reese leaves on Thursday, I also leave Costa Rica to go to Argentina!!! I start my Patagonia experience on Saturday, and I cannot believe that at all. I am trying to stay present but crazy things are coming up! What a beautiful life I get to live.