¿Hablas español? ...muy poco

We are now once again back in San Jose after two nights on the Caribbean coast. After a relatively smooth drive from San Jose we made it to Puerto Viejo, a very chill, hippie, laid back beach. Even though it had its far share of gringos, Puerto Viejo (and the whole Caribean coast in general) had a very different vibe from the other places in Costa Rica we had visited thus far.

After much looking we decided to stay at a place called ¨Rocking J´s.¨ However, Rocking J´s is not your typical hotel...upon arrival you have two ¨room¨ choices...either a tent or a hammock. If Rocking J´s were to be summed up in one word it would probably be hippie...or maybe trippy. Either way simply staying there was an experience in and of itself, but at $5 per night it was impossible to pass up.

After our ¨adventure¨ at Rocking J´s we were ready to get back to San Jose. Unfortunately, we were a little too ready, and our speed was not appreciated by the Costa Rican police. Being pulled over in Costa Rica is much like being pulled over in the states, expect the police officer does not speak English. Because we are incredibly smart, we thought it would be a good idea to pretend that none of us spoke Spanish...that way the officer could not give us a ticket because we would not understand what was going on. While in theory this was a good idea, it did not actually work. However, it did provide much amusement when Shawn responded when asked by the officer ¨hablas español?¨ with ¨muy poco¨ and then continued to simply look confused as the officer explained why we had been pulled over, while Javier sat crouched in the backseat behind a towel. In the end, we still got a speeding ticket, but the laughter that insued after the officer drove away may just have been worth it.

Here are some pictures from Rocking J´s and our stay with my (Kerri´s) host family in San Jose!

Rocking J´s Entrance

Is Shawn really learning Spanish from Julie?

Kari and OlgaKerri and her host mom