No entiendo español

I think I may be the only person here that doesn’t speak even a little bit of Spanish. Many people do speak English but even the Americans here know Spanish. I am almost regretting taking French instead of Spanish in high school and college. I tried to download Rosetta Stone but it didn’t work so now I am learning 1 or 2 words a day and maybe before I leave ill be able to say more than Hablas inglés? and Dónde está el baño?. Olman did teach me how to say estoy poniendo mi pie abajo, which means i'm putting my foot down. I get the feeling he thinks I’m bossy. I have absolutely no idea why he would get that impression. 

I am getting eaten alive by bugs. I recently read an article in the newspaper that said Dengue Fever cases have increased by 400% in Guanacaste. If you know me at all I’m sure you can figure out how I reacted when I read this. I now apply bug spray to every inch of my body 12 times a day. I smell fantastic. 

Solo Bueno

I just arrived back in Nosara to my hostel called Solo Bueno, which translates to only good. The name stands true to the hostel. This place is great. There is no TV, no ac, no Internet. BUT there are 2 hammocks, about 15 beds, around 30 surfboards, a kitchen and a bad ass dog named Machete who has taken a liking to my bed (see below). I met some people here that are pretty cool too. There are monkeys that hang out on the tree right outside the hostel. Aside from the incredibly loud noises that they make in the wee hours of the morning, they are really cute.  Oh ya and I rented a bike to get around because like I said before, everything is very spread out. 

Mel

I’m in the middle of the rainforest and I still I cant escape the need to stock random celebrities. Even the crazy ones like Mel Gibson. This is Mel Gibson's house.  It’s at the top of a mountain  far from everything. The locals say he comes quite a bit. I asked our local friend Olmen why he thinks Mel hid his house up in the trees (thinking people in costa rica would give him enough privacy) and he said it is because of weirdo’s like me who would want to take pictures of a house when there is so many other things I could be doing. Amen Olmen.  

My First Days in Costa Rica

Danielle and I went to Mal Pais this weekend. Since the towns are so spread apart here it took us almost 5 hours to get there from Nosara. I absolutely fell in love with Mal Pais. Mal Pais borders Playa del Carmen, Santa Teresa and Montezuma so it is a very lively area to be in. We spent much of our time with a local friend named Olman. He was great. Not only did he let stay with him for free but he showed us all around the three towns and made our time so memorable.  Olman took us to Montezuma to see the waterfall, which was incredible. The hike into the falls is through the jungle in mud and sometimes 4 feet of flowing water. Luckily there is a tico that waits at the beginning of the hike to help tourists and girly girls like me get find our way safely. Everyone seems so nice here and it was no surprise that he does this 5 or 6 days a week (not expecting anything in return).