This morning we had a taxi pick us up at 8:15 to take us to the Musoc Bus Station. We were planning on purchasing tickets to leave for San Jose at 9:30, however, when we arrived at the bus station there were no tickets left so we purchased tickets (about $5.50 each) for a 10:00 departure. This was even better since we now had time to eat breakfast at a nearby restaurant and spend more time with our friend Monic who met us at the station to say goodbye.
The ride to San Jose took about 3 hours (with a short stop 1/2 way) and before we flagged down a taxi to take us to the Coca Cola Bus Station to catch a bus to Atenas, Randie got a picture of the people waiting to catch a Musoc Bus.
When we arrived at the Coca Cola Station, the Atenas bus was already there and it had started to rain. Since the buses in the station were so close together, the driver was not able to open the luggage compartment under the bus for Randie to put our suitcases underneath. He had to back the bus out of the parking spot and by the time he was able to open the luggage compartment, it was pouring rain and Randie got soaked putting the suitcases in place.
I, on the other hand, got on the bus (before he started backing up) juggling 2 laptops and 2 backpacks. When I got on the bus, I saw that there were no seats left and several people were already standing in the aisles. I struggled to keep my balance as I lifted our laptops and bags in the overhead compartment as the driver was backing up. We ended up standing for about two thirds of the one hour trip before enough people got off and we were able to get a seat. Randie was soaked from the rain and I was soaked from perspiration since everyone had the windows closed to keep out the rain. We both decided that in the future when we were handling so much luggage, we would take a taxi rather than public transit. A taxi would have cost about $35 or $40 rather than the $3.00 we spent for two bus tickets and in this case, it would have been worth it.
When we arrived in Atenas, Randie called Dennis (from Pure Life Development) as planned and Dennis and his partner Gerardo came to pick us up. They took us to the first rental (an apartment attached to a main house) and although it was very nice and had a pool and a beautiful view, we did not like that the bed was in the same room as the kitchen and there was only a mini refrigerator and 2 hotplates for cooking. Since we would be spending just over a month in Atenas we wanted a full fridge and stove with an oven for cooking.
Here are some photos of the first available rental that we were shown:
We were then taken to the second house owned by a Tica (female Costa Rican) who spent some time in the United States. The house was located among other homes that belonged to other family members. It was a 2 bedroom detached home and had a fully equipped kitchen with a full sized fridge and stove with an oven. Although it did not have the views we would have liked, we decided that for one month this house would work out fine. It had been a long day and was now around 5pm and we were ready to get settled.
Dennis took us to his office so that he could prepare a short term contract and while we were there he received a call from the sister of the owner of the house telling him that the owner no longer wanted to rent her house for just one month. She wanted a longer term rental. Since we only had one month left in Costa Rica before our flight was booked to leave, this was not going to work.
Needless to say, Dennis was not very happy about this since he had received approval from the owner a week earlier to accept a one month rental. Not only that, he had another appointment in less than an hour and was leaving in the morning with his staff for a 4 day trip to climb Mount Chirripo which is located near San Isidro de El General (the place we just left). Here we were in his office with our luggage in his truck with no place to stay.
I told Randie that I believed everything happens for a reason and I started feeling excited. This house was not what I had envisioned and I just knew deep in my heart and soul that this was happening because an even better option was going to be available to us.
Dennis went outside with his cell phone after telling us he had a place that he thought would be perfect although the owner also wanted a longer term rental. He said he would see if she would do him a favour and allow us to rent it for one month if we liked it.
As it turned out the owner agreed and we loved the place. It was perfect! It had a local telephone line with no telephone and Dennis said he would bring us a phone in the morning so we could make local calls. Since we had no phone and very little food, Dennis was also kind enough to order a pizza for us and have it delivered by taxi.
We felt so grateful for how everything turned out. It was dark when we arrived and we could hardly wait until morning to see the view.
Dennis In His Office
