Estamos aqui!

First of all, thanks again to Mayf, Pam. and their son Mike for the hospitality in Ft. Worth. We really like the Nature Center, with its cottonwood and oak lined river, and air filled with butterflies and dragonflies of all colors! We are in Allejuela, a relatively small town outside of San Jose, the capital. We first came here in December 1001, shortly after 9-11, our hearts shredded by the madness of terrorism and the corresponding madness of war drums. It was great to get away. It was ChristmastimeÑ santas danced on the streets, houses were decorated, people were in fiesta mood. It{s still an interesting town. It feels more congested. We don{t remember the barbed wire on walls around houses, there are more beggars on the streets than then. It seems the world wide recession hasn{t missed Costa Rica surprise, surprise! Still, this is the same town in many ways. We found people gathering in the central park. A clown made an egg appear in a kerchief held by a delighted girl, while other children cheered. A group of people played traditional music on a glockenspiel while others danced. We had a Chinese dinner last night. The walls had pictures of traditional Chinese art, a poster of the rock band AAerosmith, and a poster for the old Oliver Stone film, [The Doors. Note... there is a problem with some of the punctuation keys on this computer. Allajuela is a town of narrow streets, many practical, day to day shops. There is a nice cathedral in the town square, I will post pictures if I get a chance. Birds call from all trees... I want to see who is talking but they stay hidden. People are as friendly as ever, and sppreciate that we try, sometimes successfully, to communicate in Spanish. Today we found a bilingual bookstore run by an expat. It had Costa Rican literature in Spanish, books like WHAT{S WRONG WITH KANSAS, and books from the U.S and Central America. The background music was a collection of Joni Mitchell{s hits. The highlands are in the distance, covered with clouds. We are getting ready for wild places, still considering where tomorrow will take us. I will let you know.