Jackie was not just hung over in the morning, she was still blacked out. Her alarm went off but, as always, it didn't wake her. Instead, it scared me and all of the occupants in the hotel wide awake. She had crashed out in her dress and heels, just as we had gone out the previous night and for all intents and purposes, appeared ready to head out again. Somehow, she had also managed to throw the comforter over her body sometime during the night. I don't know if I woke her long enough to make her to turn the phone off or if I did it myself.
Since I was already awake, I got up to use the restroom. In my grogginess, I noticed we'd run out of toilet paper a little too late. I remembered seeing extra rolls in the cabinet outside so I screamed at Jackie. Once, twice, three times to no avail. I pulled up my pants, walked outside, grabbed the paper, and finished what I'd started. I was so mad that I decided not to wake her. If you don't know me, you might have thought, Aw, what a nice girl, letting her little sister sleep in. If you do, you should have figured out that I was executing an evil plan: leaving Jackie little prep time before our departure. Muah ha ha.
Meanwhile, I took my sweet time packing. I stepped outside onto the balcony to collect clothes I'd left out to dry. When I was done I relaxed, for once, on the patio chair. I checked my email as I basked in the sun and was shocked to see an email from Rico Suave so soon. After an irritating morning, he was the first one to put a smile on my face that day.
I replied a typical, flirtatious message, somewhere along the lines of, "I'm not easily attracted to someone but you managed to get my attention..." yadda yadda yadda. After I clicked Send, it was time to wake Jackie. There were ten minutes left before breakfast was served. She'd have to scarf her food down, if she could at all, before we were scheduled to load the bus. I called her name but she didn't even flinch. I was left no choice but to walk to her bed. I shook her but she was a rock. I placed my palms on the bed next to her body and made it bounce. That's when she finally stirred. She opened her eyes, looked at me, searched for the time, and yelled at me for allowing her to over sleep. I recounted everything from the alarm to the toilet paper to now, grabbed my bags, and left.
Jackie and I always made up on the shuttle. We never discussed the incidents that infuriated me and made her curse me out. We simply put the occurrences behind us and kept moving forward. That was my strategy from the beginning. My failed relationship taught me there was no point in staying mad if a) nothing was discussed or b) something wasn't learned. I had already spent too much time holding grudges or giving the silent treatment to my ex, moments full of potential happiness we could have used to make memories instead. I swore I would never again resent such people but rid of them completely. For goodness sake, I was in Costa Rica. I was with my sister. It was our first international trip together. Occasionally we drove each other crazy but as long as our views were understood, we would keep enjoying our journey together. (I hope I'll be able to move on that easily with my next mate...)
We hit the road and headed towards the place the girls had intended to vacation for the entire 12 days in the first place: the beach! We were bound for San Manuel Antonio and we were in love with it before we even arrived. We got a sneak peek of the warm, sunny, dry weather a few hours before we even saw water when we made a food and restroom pit stop. We thawed as soon as we descended the steps in the bus and broke a sweat while we waited for our group to buy ice cream and fruit drinks. We missed the warmth when we were back in the shuttle and were eager to arrive and stay put for the next three days.
Although cloudy, it was still humid in San Manuel Antonio. Jackie and I hauled our luggage to the second floor and fell in love with our room. It was covered in windows which let a lot of sunshine in. But our favorite part was the kitchenette. Jackie wanted to go to the convenience store right away to stock up and have a party. So we dropped our stuff and headed to the beach.
We literally walked two blocks to capture a different view of the Pacific than we were used to. The street was aligned with shops and eateries and those pesky American tourists our guide had warned us about.
Dinner was scheduled for the evening but we were ready to grab a bite. Jackie, who always craves ethnic food, wanted to try the local Thai place. A couple from our group was already dining there and bought us drinks. We took in the views of the ocean and the people before heading back to change for dinner.
Since I was already awake, I got up to use the restroom. In my grogginess, I noticed we'd run out of toilet paper a little too late. I remembered seeing extra rolls in the cabinet outside so I screamed at Jackie. Once, twice, three times to no avail. I pulled up my pants, walked outside, grabbed the paper, and finished what I'd started. I was so mad that I decided not to wake her. If you don't know me, you might have thought, Aw, what a nice girl, letting her little sister sleep in. If you do, you should have figured out that I was executing an evil plan: leaving Jackie little prep time before our departure. Muah ha ha.
Meanwhile, I took my sweet time packing. I stepped outside onto the balcony to collect clothes I'd left out to dry. When I was done I relaxed, for once, on the patio chair. I checked my email as I basked in the sun and was shocked to see an email from Rico Suave so soon. After an irritating morning, he was the first one to put a smile on my face that day.
I replied a typical, flirtatious message, somewhere along the lines of, "I'm not easily attracted to someone but you managed to get my attention..." yadda yadda yadda. After I clicked Send, it was time to wake Jackie. There were ten minutes left before breakfast was served. She'd have to scarf her food down, if she could at all, before we were scheduled to load the bus. I called her name but she didn't even flinch. I was left no choice but to walk to her bed. I shook her but she was a rock. I placed my palms on the bed next to her body and made it bounce. That's when she finally stirred. She opened her eyes, looked at me, searched for the time, and yelled at me for allowing her to over sleep. I recounted everything from the alarm to the toilet paper to now, grabbed my bags, and left.
Jackie and I always made up on the shuttle. We never discussed the incidents that infuriated me and made her curse me out. We simply put the occurrences behind us and kept moving forward. That was my strategy from the beginning. My failed relationship taught me there was no point in staying mad if a) nothing was discussed or b) something wasn't learned. I had already spent too much time holding grudges or giving the silent treatment to my ex, moments full of potential happiness we could have used to make memories instead. I swore I would never again resent such people but rid of them completely. For goodness sake, I was in Costa Rica. I was with my sister. It was our first international trip together. Occasionally we drove each other crazy but as long as our views were understood, we would keep enjoying our journey together. (I hope I'll be able to move on that easily with my next mate...)
We hit the road and headed towards the place the girls had intended to vacation for the entire 12 days in the first place: the beach! We were bound for San Manuel Antonio and we were in love with it before we even arrived. We got a sneak peek of the warm, sunny, dry weather a few hours before we even saw water when we made a food and restroom pit stop. We thawed as soon as we descended the steps in the bus and broke a sweat while we waited for our group to buy ice cream and fruit drinks. We missed the warmth when we were back in the shuttle and were eager to arrive and stay put for the next three days.
Although cloudy, it was still humid in San Manuel Antonio. Jackie and I hauled our luggage to the second floor and fell in love with our room. It was covered in windows which let a lot of sunshine in. But our favorite part was the kitchenette. Jackie wanted to go to the convenience store right away to stock up and have a party. So we dropped our stuff and headed to the beach.
We literally walked two blocks to capture a different view of the Pacific than we were used to. The street was aligned with shops and eateries and those pesky American tourists our guide had warned us about.
Dinner was scheduled for the evening but we were ready to grab a bite. Jackie, who always craves ethnic food, wanted to try the local Thai place. A couple from our group was already dining there and bought us drinks. We took in the views of the ocean and the people before heading back to change for dinner.
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| My favorite captured monkey moment from this trip. |
The couple we bumped into at the restaurant came knocking at our door before dinner. We gladly let them in. Since they already had drinks in their hands, it was only polite for Jackie and me to accompany them. We had just enough time to finish before we headed out to eat... and eat and eat and eat.
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| Gecko on our window. |
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