Tag: Costa Rica

Costa Rica Part 2 – First Times

After a very busy lead-up where there were times when it looked like we just weren’t going to make it, all 12 of us, grandma, three daughters, their partners, and five grandkids ages 2-12 years, did manage to get away to Coco, Costa Rica for 8 days of sun and fun between March 31 – April 7, 2025.

This trip turned out to be very special for our family. It was exciting, full of adventure, great food, good times, and the wonderful experience of getting to know each other more intimately.

There were many “first times” for all of us. Especially the five grandchildren.

It was the first time in Costa Rica for most of the family. Only Dave (Brittany’s boyfriend) and I, had ever been there and never in this area. It was the first time to swim in the Pacific Ocean and watch the sun set over the rolling waves each night. It was our first time to experience a small active rip-tide. We were very careful!

It was the first time to ride a catamaran, snorkel in the ocean, see high-leaping manta rays fly out of the sea, and watch frisky dolphins play beside our boat. The kids and adults had fun jumping off the high deck of the ship into the ocean for their first time.

It was the children’s first time to see an iguana (more than one) and pick fresh mangoes and coconuts off a tree. The first time to see a small gecko and hear it’s funny chirps every night. First time to see toucans, jaguars, sloths, and crocodiles, and to hear and see wild howler monkeys just after dawn each morning. First time to play with saucy white-faced capuchin monkeys who leap right up to the glass at the conservatory and try to touch our faces and hands. They made us laugh! For the first time, we were surrounded by 100 or more beautiful iridescent blue butterflies. Some of them landed on our fingers and ankles.

It was the first time to hike down jungle paths, walk carefully over a suspension bridge hung in a deep gully, and leap off a cliff into the water at the base of a tall 100-metre waterfall. First time to ride on the back of an ox, eat Costa Rican casado, and hear live traditional Costa Rican musicians.

It was our first time to sit in thermal pools in the jungle, heated by underground streams leading from active volcanoes, and our first time to cover ourselves in warm, soothing mud which left our skin smooth and soft. First time to lie in a river of purity, letting the streams of rushing waters cleanse and refresh our bodies.

First time to ride a golf cart, right downtown, and do your shopping for unique souvenirs.  First time to eat delicious Costa Rican food. First time to drink a kid’s version Pina Colada. Yum! First time to eat fresh tropical fruit for breakfast every day; mangoes, papaya, guava, cantaloupe, star fruit, passion fruit, watermelon, pineapples and coconuts, bought at the local fruit stands or picked off the trees in our complex.

First time to celebrate a birthday in Costa Rica. Happy 8th birthday, Wolf! First time to lose a tooth, have Uncle Bill find it, and have the Tooth Fairy visit in Costa Rica. We spent hours in our private pool inventing first-time games of torpedo, whirlpool, I can lift Grandma on my shoulders, challenging races, How long can I hold my breath, and learning how to swim.

And best of all, for the first time, all 12 of us spent 8 wonderful days together from morning to night. We had so much fun! I want to do it again!

After our trip – Liam’s first drawing of a Toucan that he drew in response to his Gr. 7 teacher saying, “Draw me a picture of an animal you saw in Costa Rica.”

Costa Rica Part 1 – We Thought We Were Leaving

After a very busy lead-up where there were times when it looked like we just weren’t going to make it, all 12 of us, grandma, three daughters, their partners, and five grandkids ages 2-12 years, did manage to get away to Coco, Costa Rica for 8 days of sun and fun between March 31 – April 7, 2025.

We Thought We Were Leaving

This trip was to be so special. With Maegan and her family’s busy hockey schedule, and everyone working full-time at demanding jobs, it was difficult to find a period of one week that we all could get away together. All 12 of us. I decided we would go to Costa Rica and Lara and I planned the trip in the month before our chosen date.

It started out rough. It almost looked like it wasn’t going to happen. Passports were still coming in the last few days before we left for some members of the family. Wolf got very ill and was diagnosed with croup just the week before we left. Then one of his teeth chipped and there was an emergency visit to the dentist. He was informed all was okay because it was a baby tooth, very loose, and was about to fall out. To make it even more exciting, the worst ice storm since 1998 hit Saturday night, two days before we left, leaving the Fearmans cowering in their main bedroom as the world froze and crashed around them. The next morning, their yard and neighbourhood looked like a war zone. Maegan and Andrew’s area in Orillia declared a state of emergency and closed roads and highways. Trees and limbs were down everywhere and there was no hydro for many days. Andrew brewed over the idea of staying home one day to clean up the disaster. Grandma Fearman stepped in and oversaw the care of their home so they could catch the Monday flight.

The roads opened up Sunday night and we all made it to the Delta Inn near Toronto airport as we had an early morning flight Monday morning for a 9:30 a.m. departure.

In the boarding area, we were informed that our flight would be delayed by two hours due to bad weather over Florida. One and a half hours later, we were informed it had cleared and we were allowed to board the plane. With some confusion and manipulation of children and bags, we managed to get seated and buckled in.

The plane taxied into position and stopped. “Here we go!” Wilder exclaimed with anticipation. The engines revved, began their low whine, and built to a powerful roar. The plane began to accelerate down the runway and built to top speed, ready for lift-off, when suddenly BAM! the pilot locked the brakes and held the plane on the ground as we all were thrown forward. He fought to control the plane and keep it level. Quickly, too quickly, it came to a dead stop.

WHAT JUST HAPPENED?

With no explanation, we sat in nervous silence as the plane taxied back to the loading area. It was there, the pilot informed us that there had been a technical problem with one of the sensors, and we were now going to sit, refuel, and wait for engineers to come and do a mechanical check before he was going to consider trying another take-off. He had no idea how long that was going to take. We all sat patiently. Luckily, members of the family had brought food and snacks for eating on the plane as all the airline had for us was pretzels and cookies. They had warned us in the boarding area.

The technicians came, tested the plane at the dock by revving the engines once again to see the engine’s reaction, and gave us the go-ahead. They couldn’t find any problem at all. Once again, we refueled. (Who knew that planes hold a precise amount of fuel for a trip and any extra time apart from a strict flight path, burns precious fuel.) The pilot informed us, once again, that if there was a problem on take-off, we would be turning around, ending the flight, and disembarking.

We all crossed our fingers and held our breath, as the plane repeated its take-off taxi and engine rev, building to top speed once again. Once again, we were racing down the runway. With a noisy woosh, the wheels left the tarmac, the landing gear tucked into the belly of the plane, and we were airborne. The passengers burst into applause!

The rest of the flight was bumpy but uneventful. There was enough turbulence that the flight attendants wouldn’t serve hot drinks and, at times, no snacks or drinks at all, as we all stayed locked into our safety belts.

Five hours later, we arrived at Liberia Airport. Luckily, our shuttle driver was there, and took us to our villa complex after almost an hour’s drive through busy downtown Liberia. It was dark. Sunset happens early, by 6 p.m. in Costa Rica, as it sits so close to the equator. We were five hours late from our regularly scheduled arrival time of 1 p.m.

As our driver pulled up to a large steel gate, topped with barbed wire, we wondered what we were going into. Our host was there to unlock the bolted gate and welcomed us in to the courtyard and front parking area.

WE HAD ARRIVED!

As we stepped off the shuttle van, our mouths dropped open in disbelief. We were in the midst of the Garden of Eden, with palm trees, tropical mango and coconut trees, flowers, and two outdoor pools. The clay-tiled roofs of the quaint villas welcomed us. We had rented two homes in the small complex, one a 10-bed house, and the other a smaller 5-bed house. The families with children took the big house; Brittany, Dave, and I took the smaller house.

The rest of the night, we unpacked, got settled in, found a burger joint for some take-out supper, and enjoyed the pool in the hot, humid climate. The week leading up to our arrival was full of problems and troubling issues, but we were finally in Coco, Costa Rica, and we were ready to enjoy ourselves and each other.