Lapazul Boutique Hotel -- Dominical, Costa Rica

It has, naturally, be a long while since we've written on this travel blog.  There isn't much to a travel blog when the whole world is shut down and there is no travel.

It is, therefore, a real joy to return to these pages and also a real joy to be able to tell you about a wonderful place we visited this weekend -- the Lapazul Boutique Hotel (https://www.lapazul.com/) just outside of Dominical on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica.  Beginning this month, the government here permitted some hotels to open up, mostly for internal tourism, at 50% capacity.  We took the opportunity to go to Lapazul, a retreat that was recommend by a friend of ours, George, who had gone in November when they opened (talk about bad timing for an opening).

First things first -- in this time of Covid-19, we felt safe. The hotel has only 10 rooms and only 3 were occupied.  Everything was deeply and frequently cleaned, the staff wore masks all the time, and the guests were all practicing social distancing.  Nothing is, of course, guaranteed -- but we felt as though we were safe and sound.

The venue itself is magnificent.    It sits in the hills about 500 meters up and about 2 kilometers from the coast.  To get there you have to climb a rough road, but the trip is worth it and the views are all stunning, as are the west facing sunsets.

The hotel itself is very modern in style with fine wood furnishings, an infinity pool and all of the amenities  you would expect -- lush beach towels, comfy lounges and "fancy" soaps.  

But what we liked best about the venue was that it was hidden away in the rain forest so we were close to nature. Birds galore (including toucans and eagles) as well as tree frogs serenading you into the evening.

The staff (and most notably the manager Esteban) were a joy to meet and talk to and tended to our every need.  Since our need was mostly to be left alone and sit and escape, they were happy to do that for us.

The visit came with breakfast and dinner included -- and the food was truly special.  Some of the best we've had in Costa Rica for sure.  We are told the chef used to work at a hotel in San Jose and it shows.  In particular, we would call out -- at breakfast, the home made granola and the gallo pinto; at dinner the ceviche appetizer and the medallion of beef which was probably the most tender we've ever had in Costa Rica.

We didn't explore the area that much, because we didn't want to, but the next time we'll head down to the beach in Dominical and watch the surfers for sure.  Or maybe plan a day hike.  This time around it was pure relaxation, and we got what we wanted.

The best way to put it is this -- we'll be going back.  Once the virus restrictions are finally removed, our hope would be to return with visiting friends to show them this special gem of a place.  5 stars for sure.

A Joyful Evening

We had so much fun last night.   It was simple fun, but it was pure and life is good.

Here in Atenas, we have a restaurant called La Terraza.  It's run by two local guys, Wilber and Omer.  They are nice enough and trying really hard to be a part of the community.  And we've been there often enough that they know us by name.  [Katy is a hard name to say in Spanish -- and the only Katy that these guys know is the singer Katy Perry -- so every time we come in they shout out "hola Katy Perry."]  So far, they haven't quite been making a go of it, but they are working at it. 

Another thing we have here in Atenas is a local band called Flashback.  These are all retired musicians who've moved here from the States (or in one case Holland) where they were very good.  The drummer played on a couple of Michael Jackson's albums.  The keyboardist was a session musician in Nashville.  And so on. 

Their audience is the local Atenas retired Gringo crowd.  They play oldies, like "Peacful Easy Feeling" and more recent stuff like "All About the Bass."  And they play really well.  The crowd is filled with people of a certain age who still like to dance -- but also prefer their concert to start at 5 PM on a Saturday (like it did last night) so that they can be home and in bed by 9 PM.

And that's the joy of it.  Last night Flashback played at La Terraza.  The owners had a great night and made a mint.  The band played and we danced and danced and danced.  Drank wine and had pizza.  Ran into a half-dozen of our neighbors and said "hi" to those we hadn't seen in a while and ... just listened to great rock and roll, with the entire crowd signing along. 

Was it great art?  Nah.  Was it the best food we've ever had?  Totally not.  But in truth it was one of the most enjoyable evenings we've had in a long while.  Music, dancing, drinking, food, and friends.  What more can you ask for.  Life is good.

El Remanso -- Oso Wildlife

We just got back from El Remanso, a rainforest wildlife preserve down on the Oso peninsula.  We flew down on a 12-seat puddle jumper from San Jose to Puerto Jimenez.  PJ is a tiny airport with one runway, no tower and a tiny tiny little store that is the "terminal."   After that its an hour drive on dirt roads and across at least two rivers with no bridge to the resort.

The resort is like a magic castle inside a jungle.  Cut out of the forest, they have their own water, electricity and fine dining.  Throw in good accomodations (some of the newer buildings have their own plunge pool) and a decent wine list and it would be a nice place to stay just on the merits.  But the height of value, of course, is being in the rain forest.  We took three hikes -- a night time hike to see evening animals; an early morning birding exhibition and a mid-morning hunt for birds, insects and monkeys.  Pretty successful all around.  Here's a gallery of pictures:

 Sunset at the lodge, over the Pacific Ocean

The red-eyed tree frog -- national frog of Costa Rica.

Scorpion at night.  Turns out they shine under UV light and are easy to see.

 Scarlet Macaw

Keel billed Toucan

Horned (?) owl.  He was reluctant to be photographed.

The white-tailed plant hopper.  Believe it or not, this is a  bug.  The tail is grown so that it looks like it is infected with fungus.  And that, in turn, stops the birds from eating it.

 Spider monkey

 Red crested wood pecker -- Woody!

 Howler monkey.  Huge noise for a small animal.  Woke us up at 430 AM every day.

 Tiger heron.  So named because of the stripes.

Scarlet taniger

 Anteater (of course), hanging out by the side of the road for his portrait.  And below is the world's tiniest air terminal at Puerto Jimenez

Everything You Need To Know About Atenas

We live half the year in a small town in Costa Rica -- Atenas.

We love it.  It's tranquil and off the beaten path.  We have one good restaurant, one good pizzeria, a nice supermarket and a quiet town square where the kids hang out at night to "snog" because they can't do it at their parent's house.  And that's about it.  No movie theater, no haute cuisine -- just a small town, a lot like Costa Rica must have been like 50 years ago.

And the sunsets are to die for.  This one is not the one from two nights ago -- it was better.  I just didn't get a picture.

So, what's it like to live in small town Costa Rica?  Here's a story from today that pretty much captures the town in a nutshell.

Yesterday, we ran out of gas in the tank for our grill.  So I put the tank in the car and drove into town to the one, and only, gas supplier.  In the past, when I've gone, they've done an exchange for me -- take my tank and give me a different full one.  Not this time though -- they didn't have one to exchange.  So they told me that I could leave the tank and it would be back the next day.   To identify me, they asked me my name and I told them Pablo (since "Rosenzweig" is a mouthful even for native German speakers!).  They took my phone number and said they call when it was ready.

The next day (today) … no call.  I waited for a while and then went into town for other stuff.  On a whim, I stopped at the gas store.  As I walked in the woman behind the desk looked up, gave me a big smile and said "Hola Don Pablo" and told me that the tank was read.  I paid my $17 (9000 colones) and left.

And that captures the town.  It's a place where they know your name and they don't need a receipt or anything -- just a smile and a "hello" when you come in.  But it is also a town where they tell you that they'll call you when its ready and then …. just don't.  Life here is slow and easy and if you can get used to the way people operate it's delightful.  Pura Vida.

Ziplining in Costa Rica

Twice in the past couple of weeks we've gone up to Lands of Love -- oddly, an Israeli-run resort on the slopes of Arenal volcano.  Katy's gone ziplining twice (once with niece Olivia and once with Mike, Deb and Kyle Kunzer).  Paul only went once (he was a bit afraid the first time and took a pass).  Both days ended with truly excellent meals at the restaurant -- Israeli falafel, hummus, tahini, and pita.  Here are some photos to prove we really did it:

Living the Pura Vida

This winter is our first full winter in our new home in Atenas, Costa Rica.  The locals have a phrase for life in this part of paradise -- Pura Vida.  And that's what we have.  It's quiet here -- which is just what we need to get away from the chaos of Washington (especially this year).  But we've had plenty of visitors as well -- our friends Nancy and Rita and Jan and Sandra. Paul's brother Jim, and nephew Dustin.  Ahead are most of the Kunzer clan .... all of whom we get to share this slice of heaven with.

Here are a few pictures -- from Poas volcano, from La Paz waterfall park, from Jaco beach, our new cats, Luke & Leia, and a panorama of our home.  Enjoy:

 

Dinner at The Retreat

 We went to dinner last night with our good friends Jeanne & Bob who are down here in Atenas from Ohio on their annual winter visit (in case you can't guess, that's them in the middle photo).   Together we went last night to a place called "The Retreat" which is a spa, hotel, yoga retreat and restaurant all rolled into one.  It's been under new management for the past 11 months and this is the first time we've gone -- why we waited so long is a mystery!

The view, obviously, was magnificent.  That's the sunset over the Pacific Ocean in the top, with the

 sun reflection in the pool creating a fascinating vista.  At the bottom is the same view about 20 minutes later after they had thrown 3 glowing, floating balls into the pool to create more wah.  We have GOT to get us some of those for the house!

Dinner lived up to the vista.  The food is all organic and all "healthy," though not aggressively so.  No dairy; no real fat; etc.  We started with some bocas (which is Costa Rican for tapas) that included a great lentil ceviche. After that, we went on to the soups -- Paul had

a tomato & rosemary (!) soup, while Katy had a pureed broccoli.   The main course was sea bass with a great coconut sauce accompanied by freshly cooked chard.  Desert was a very small chocolate mousse that just was perfect -- all of it accompanied by a nice Argentine malbec.

To eat well in Costa Rica we usually have to go down to San Jose or Escazu.  Atenas, where we live, is not renowned for "fine dining" but the Retreat is different and special -- a very good restaurant less than 15 minutes from the house.  We'll be back (and Katy plans to try the spa for a facial soon too!).

Living the Pura Vida -- Update from Costa Rica

 We came down to Costa Rica on January 5 to escape DC and live the "pura vida" -- the pure life, as the Costa Ricans say.  It's part of our plan to start spending the winters down here away from the cold.

It's still an experiment.  Everything is a bit of a challenge and there is always something new happening.  To take just one example, as I write this the power supply to the pump that drives our water well has failed -- so whenever the cistern empties we will be without water in our community ... at least until someone comes along to fix the problem.

We aren't terribly worried, of course, but its a small example of the challenge of living in Costa Rica.  On the other hand the benefits are immense!

The first photo, above is of the completed road to our land.  If you've been following along you know that we had to build the road before we could build the house.   Well ... the road is done now.  And late last December we got the final national approval for construction.  The municipality checked in with its own approval on January 14, and the plans for the house are now with the Collegio of Architects for final approval.

We met with the folks who are going to bid on the house earlier this month.  Their bids are due in on February 3.  On February 4, after we recover from the heart attack we can begin the process of selecting a builder.  Best case scenario is that they break ground by the end of February!  If that happens and if the 10 month construction schedule goes as planned we will have a completed house by the end of 2015.  Of course it may bleed over to 2016, but that's worth waiting for.  The picture of us is on our land.  The view behind us is what we will see every morning.

Meanwhile, appearances to the contrary, we are actually spending time working and relaxing.  Paul has been able to really dig into work for his clients and start on his next Teaching Company  course.   Katy is happy watching the birds every morning -- we have a couple of local Toucans, somer Oropendula and other species.  We are also doing some of the necessary leg work -- bank accounts and residency permits, for example -- to move things along.

But mostly we are just enjoying the peace of the place -- sunrise each morning; coffee; work at the "office" by the pool; exercise; and sharing this wonder with friends.  Two of them, Gail and Don, were down for 5 days earlier this month and two more, Lin and Gene, arrive today.  Meanwhile, our friends from Ohio, Bob and Jeanne, who we met last year here in Atenas, are back.  We've had a chance to get to share dinner with them, and of course they got to meet NatsGnome as well.

All, in all, the pura vida is the joy of life.  We are happy.

A Great Week in Costa Rica

As most of the readers of this blog know, we bought land in Costa Rica earlier this year and we are, slowly but surely, moving forward toward building a house there.  Our long term plan is to live there in the winters and maybe a bit of an escape in DC summer as well.  In the short-term, however, we need to get stuff done to start making the house a reality ... and so we've been going down to Costa Rica every other month or so to move the ball along.

This one was a really good trip.  To start with, the weather was pretty good.  The rainy season in Costa Rica is from June to November, with the really bad times in September and October.  And we did see a bit of that, including one deluge that was pretty immense.  But on the whole, the rain was mild, and only in the afternoons.  On the last day, the sun came out and we had a magical day -- some of the weather that was part of the reason we chose Costa Rica in the first place.  Add to that that we had another great visit at Casa Laurin, the B&B where we stay when we are on these working trips -- we can't say enough good about the owner Ginette Laurin -- she's just a gem to find.

But the real value of the trip was in how successful it was.  We made a lot of progress towards our dream.

To start with, we managed to finally organize a bank account.  Katy had opened an account in her own name earlier in the year.  But we never had any real way of working with it.  It took a couple of visits to the bank, but by the end of the week we had a bank ATM card, some checks, and, best of all, access to the banking system via the internet.   [An aside for Paul's cyber friends they have an interesting two-factor authentication system -- when you register on line you get a card with 20 random digits/letters/symbols and when you login they ask you, for example, to give them the third, seventeenth and eighth, in that order ...].  So, now, we have a working bank account -- and our next step is to make sure we can use their inter-bank transfer system ...

The second success was a small one but it made us feel pretty good -- we found a store we were looking for on our own.   That doesn't sound that special, does it?  But the addressing system in Costa Rica is totally wack and so learning it and managing to use it is a real achievement.  Here's the address we found:  200 m este y 75 m norte de la Iglesia de San Martin.  In other words you have to know where the Church of San Martin is and then go 200 meters east and 75 meters north ... no street address; no street name.  Just a relative direction -- so you ask where the church is and then chase it.  And so we did ... and found it!


The store we got to was a Claro -- one of the local telecom companies.   So success #3 was the simple one of buying two new cell phones and getting two Costa Rican cell phone numbers for people to call.  Small step -- but essential to getting information and staying connected.  [Paul even managed to set up his Skype account so that it forwards to his Costa Rican cell number.]

Then on to the next step (and this is all still Monday). In the afternoon we went car shopping.  We found a really great dealer, Purdy Motors, and bought ourselves a used 2012 Toyota Rav 4 -- we will probably call him Edgar.   Of course, nothing is quite that easy in Costa Rica.  We had to arrange to for the funds to be transferred via bank transfer from our bank in the US.  It took a couple of days for the transaction to go through.  And meanwhile, of course, we had to find an insurance agent and insure the car.  One interesting aspect of that was the decision we had to make --- how much insurance?  At least in part so that we would be immune from the legal system we got full insurance with no deductible -- a bit expensive but seemed like a decent plan in the end.

And then on to Tuesday ... deep breath.  Katy spent all Tuesday morning the architect making some of the very final decisions about the house.  We are down to the level of what sinks we might want and things like that.  After several hours of effort we are now essentially in the place we need to be -- we can finalize the plan and start taking bids to build the house .....  About the only disappointment in this process (and indeed in the whole week) was the realization that we were going to have to do without the windmill we wanted.  It's just too expensive -- our best guess is that even with Costa Rica's high energy costs the payback period was going to be on the order of 40 years or so.  We wanted to be green -- but green is really not worth it yet.

Tuesday afternoon we went to visit our lawyer.  We started the discussion with him about taking out residence papers.  Because Katy is retired, its easy as pie for her and Paul will become a resident as Katy's dependent -- or, as she says, "my boy toy."  When we go back in January we'll have all the paperwork together to start the filing process.  Again -- it's all details.  Notarized and sealed birth certificates and marriage certificate, plus a "police letter" from DC saying we have clean records.

Wednesday was the day to visit Atenas -- the town where we will live.  Our first visit was to the property where the road is under construction.  You can see, on the left, the footing for the retaining wall.  The road to our property runs up and to the right, with the small triangular structure on our property.  All is well and the new "Calle Freddy" (Freddy is our construction contractor) should be done in another 3-4 weeks.

We then had an opportunity to meet with our property manager, Leticia.  She's a Swiss woman living in Atenas who will take care of all our management stuff -- pay the water bills, arrange for the gardener, etc.  We spent some time with her and now have a really good sense of how much the operational costs will be on an annual basis.  You'd be surprised at all the small items (for example, there is a car tax every December).  We also had a chance to chat with one of our neighbors-to-be and get a better feel for our community.

About the only fly in the ointment here is the issue of water availability.  To be honest we are still not sure -- we keep getting conflicting information. Either there is a problem and we might be delayed in getting our building permits because of water issues ... or there isn't.  When we last heard about it on Friday, it seemed that there was a way forward that would let us break ground in January ... crossed fingers.

Thursday was catch up day.  A quick trip to the bank to get our departure tax paid; and we picked up the car.  We've left it with Ivo, our wonderful realtor, who will take care of it for us until we go back in January.  [Our plan is two months in Atenas this winter -- Jan-Feb.].  [And, as an aside, more good news -- Southwest is opening up direct flights from BWI to San Jose, daily -- super cheap.  Less than $450/person round trip!]  The last bit of business was with Adriana, the landscape designer.  She showed us some great plans -- we're going to have an orange tree; a mango; and even a tamarind tree on the property, plus lots of flowering plants to bring the birds and butterflies.  It will be a few years before they really take root, but when they do, it should be paradise.

And that, in a nutshell, was our week -- several good steps toward paradise!  On to January and ground breaking (crossed fingers).

Our New Home (to be) in Costa Rica

We've taken the plunge and decided to buy some land in Atenas, Costa Rica.  Over then next 12-18 months we'll build a house on the property.  The land is on a mountain top that has been leveled off.  In the photo it is the plot to the left, higher than its neighbor (which also got sold this week).

Our plan is to build a one-story ranch type hows with an informal great room, a large patio (partially covered) and a master bedroom.  The plateau is very high up -- to the east you can see the Irazu volcano (thankfully extinct at this point).  To the west (which the great room will face) you can see the Pacific Ocean (about 30 miles away).  In fact, views are basically 360 degrees around.

We picked Atenas area for a couple of reasons.  First, the weather is perfect.  It's low 80s every day; low 60s every night -- all year round.  The rainy season does see afternoon thunderstorms but we can deal with that.  Atenas itself is a small town of 20,000 or so including all the surrounding area.  It has a few nice restaurants and a local farmer's market on Fridays.  It lacks some of the high end stuff we tend to enjoy (good wine, for example) but Escazu is about 30 minutes away -- and that place is almost like home.  Lots of malls, good places to eat, and even an jazz club.

We aren't planning on moving here full time -- but we do hope to spend much of each winter down here.  Of course, Paul will travel back to DC for work as needed.  And we probably will also come and escape the DC summer heat a bit too ....

Anyway, here is a video of our lot that shows the whole land.  It's taken from the southern end (the right hand end in the picture above).  Total area is about 7500 square meters.

Wish us luck on Paul & Katy's next excellent adventure ....

Market Day in Atenas

Every Friday is market day in Atenas, with our

 local farmers and produce.  Here are some photos including the fishmonger and some of the  fruits and veggies available. 

Prices are amazingly low -- on the order of $2 for bags of raspberries and less than 50 cents from avacados etc.  Tonight is corvina w/ grilled veggies.  Yum

 

A Typical Day in Paradise

We've been here in Costa Rica for 11 days now, and we are starting to settle in to a routine that will likely see us through to the end of the trip.  I thought I'd share a typical day (which we also share with two furry friends, the dog and the cat owned by the gardener, Jaime, who lives on the property -- they are frequent guests). 

We wake each morning more or less with the sunrise -- around 6 AM.  First step for the day is to start the pot of excellent Costa Rican coffee and sit in a chair overlooking the valley, reading the newspaper on our Ipad/Nexus.   After a bit of that, its time for breakfast al fresco (lots of great fruit around -- strawberries and pineapple in particular) and then a walk.

The walks are quite vigorous as we live in very hilly neighborhood that is at altitude.  Probably up and down

roughly 1000 feet each day in total.  Pretty strenuous.  Then Paul typically follows up with an exercise work out before settling in to work.

Working from Costa Rica is turning out to be pretty easy.  With Skype we can stay connected by phone or video and Paul's work usually doesn't require more than internet access.  About the only think that gets lost is his ability to be physically present for some meetings -- which is a cost but more in the nature of "out of sight; out of mind" than in actually missing any critical events.

Meanwhile Katy is spending the days reading, or learning Spanish.  She plans to do some painting too -- though she hasn't started that yet.

We break for lunch and then again for cocktails as the sun sets around 545 PM.  Dinner is either out at a local Tican restaurant or cooking in.  Fridays is market day for the farmers, so tomorrow we plan a nice meal at home with whatever we get fresh in the morning.

In the evening it gets dark -- very dark.  One of the few flaws we've found is the lack of bright lighting in Costa Rica.  So we read a bit, or watch a video on the computer and then its early to bed -- usually by 10 AM -- and start it all over the next day.

Of course, we vary the routine.  This Saturday we are going to go and look at some houses -- just on speculation -- to see what's available.  Yesterday we went down to the shopping mall in Escazu.  But by and large, its a nice, quiet existence.

NatsGnome in the Jungle and at the Beach

 NatsGnome went with us the other day to Carara National Park and Playa Hermosa.  Here he is with Mike Kunzer; living in the jungle; and enjoying a relaxing moment with Katy.

The Beauty of Costa Rica (and a bit of the Beast)

 Over the last few days, while Mike and Debbie have been here in Costa Rica with us, we've explored two of the national parks -- Poas and Carara.

Poas is a volcano park.  The volcano is "quiet" right now, but as you can see, it isn't really that quiet -- the fumarole's are letting off substantial amounts of  sulfur.  We were told that the circumference of the crater is the largest in the world and it certainly looks that way to me.  It has been a long while since we'd seen anything quite this impressive -- it lets you know the power of Mother Nature.

Then, yesterday, we drove down to Carara.  Carara means "crocodile" in Spanish, I gather.  The park is a small one -- we probably walked 5 miles in and out.  But the wild life was just stunning.  We saw macaws; toucans; lizards; blue morpho butterflies; spider monkeys and a half dozen other types of animals and insects.  We, wisely, chose to hire a guide (Armando) who was truly excellent at spotting the animals -- mostly by sound.   The photo with

the rim is one we took through his telescope.  Neat huh?

We finished the day at Playa Hermosa.  It's a beautiful beach of black volcanic sand.  But the highlight of that visit (sorry, no pictures) was the whale we saw.  Katy spotted the blowhole fountain of water and air first, but as we watched, the whale took a dive and lifted his big back fluke into the air to more or less wave goodbye.

So .... all that beauty has to have a bit of a beast in it.  We found two pieces yesterday.  The first was minor -- we had a flat tire.  All that required was a change (thank you Mike!) and then, today, a quick trip to the auto repair shop to fix the flat tire and remount it instead of the spare.  [And, I should add, the price was amazing -- $4 to fix and repair in under 10 minutes.]

The other "beast" was a bit more challenging -- while we were on the beach at Playa Hermosa our car was robbed.  Oddly, they took only some of the clothing -- which was no big deal.  But in Paul's shorts he had put the keys to the house we are renting and the "clicker" to open the gate to our little community.  So we are spending today fixing the damage -- we have the spare clicker and a new one will be coming Monday.  Meanwhile the locksmith is here pulling the locks to remake the keys.  Overall a real annoyance -- but more than that a bit of a disappointment.

Still and all, we can't complain.  The vistas at Poas and the fauna and flora a Carara were worth the trouble!  Just look at this handsome couple and the tree.