Christmas Trip...

So...time is flying and it's been 2 months since I've written anything. A lot has happened since then and I thought I would just load some pics to share some of our trip over Christmas!

Below are  a few pics from the Festival of Lights in San Jose with our friends Eddie, Deanna and Jaden (their little boy) before we visited them in Tuis. They are our friends from church in NC and decided to go to the Christian Spanish Immersion Academy for 6 months. We were able to attend church with them and go to a smaller festival in Turrialba the next night before we headed south.

We spent 2 days in Puerto Viejo (south caribbean side).  Here is another pic of me with a baby monkey and 3 friendly sloths at the Jaguar Animal Rescue Center.

Our pad in Puerto Viejo. John was super happy because he's always trying to get me to sleep with our doors open at night. And finally...his dream came true at this little family run hotel. We had our trusty mosquito net but sad to say that hasn't been an on-going tradition.

A Caribbean sunrise...We live on the pacific for all the nice sunsets...so this was a nice change. Even though for those that know me...I wasn't thrilled to wake up, but my honey was pretty happy with his early morning coffee on the beach.

Learning how to make real chocolate in a local cocoa demonstration. Close to Puerto Viejo lives a group of indigenous people called Bri Bri. Our tour guide was telling us how by their rituals, if a woman was having a baby then she would have to go out into the wilderness by herself, build her a little casita that she would later have her baby in. When she was having the baby nobody was allowed to touch her (so she is delivering the baby on her own) but somebody is able to hold up a long stick to her mouth to give her water to drink. This was all a part of the cleansing process. She then informed us that her grandmother had 6-7 kids like this. But then for the good news...missionaries came to their village and told them that Christ cleanses all sins, and so for those who have believed...they do not go through this purification process (this girl was a believer). What a story and thank you to all those sharing the Good News.

On to Panama we go. This bridge was pretty scary. I ended up getting dizzy while we were walking over trying to avoid all the holes/cracks. John had to carry my stuff the rest of the way...ok so I may be somewhat of a wimp...but I was thinking of all the families with kids that cross it every day. Once we crossed we stood in line for about 1.5 hours in addition to the 1 hour we stood in line before we crossed.

Bocos del Torro was our first destination in Panama. It is literally hundreds of little islands where you can only get there by taxi boats. We stayed on the main Bocas island and visited Red Frog Beach (softest sand I've ever touched).  I  also went on a tour of a beautiful deserted island, snorkeled on a reef, and saw dolphins playing in Dolphin Bay. Overall a great trip...however it did rain quite a bit (see the pic below of me going off to the tour solo with my rain coat on - because pobrecito John had to work!). It's crazy how the Pacific coast was in Dry Season and you drive a few hours east and you are back in the rainy season!

After leaving Bocas, we took a shuttle over to Boquete, Panama. Here is a pic while we were crossing the continental divide. We visited an organic coffee plantation, Dos Fincas, where the owner gave us a tour of his farm and talked to us for hours about the coffee business in Panama and across the world. I even got to roast our very own batch...very technical stuff I tell you...

Not sure why I added this unflattering pic, but I wanted you to see how excited I was to roast  my own coffee :)

We were able to go to a candle light church service in english/spanish. A family even invited us over the Christmas dinner with their family the next day. We had already made detailed plans with taxi drivers and a restaurant for brunch (since pretty much everything was going to be closed on Christmas...which should be normal except when you are a tourist) ...so we weren't able to go, but they were such a kind and welcoming group.

Christmas Dinner...Yum!

Lastly, we head back home. This is John's most dreaded moment of the whole trip. Sad to say but the next flight was much much smaller...only a 12 passenger plane. But he's a trooper!  While we were on our connection at San Jose I got to see where I did my internship with Amerijet working at Coopesa.

Flying over the beaches close to our home...que bonita!

More to come....