Aurola
12:09AM and back at the Aurola Holiday Inn in beautiful downtown San Jose. Up to the casino again for a Coke in two plastic glasses and I just threw a thousand down on the bar and walked out. Guy got on the elevator with me just in from Salt Lake, "I'm just going to see what kinda' whores are up there." Hmm. A little cultural tourism, eh? I told him I had just seen a he/she all dolled up getting out of a taxi in front of the joint if that was his cuppa' tea. He swayed as he considered a snappy comeback but only said he wasn't thinking of buying.
He asked me if it was my first time in country, said he's been here three times already, and Costa Rica is an interesting place. This much I have gathered. I'm not often out late these days and I forget about the revelry that happens after hours. Back down to the ground floor to go up to my room on the fifth, and an American sounding girl with a group of fella's was slurring as she walked past me to the express, "I was here two hours ago and I know that elevator went all the way up." Ah to be young and confused, instead of just confused.
Tomorrow at 10:AM I have a meeting with Marisol, who for unknown reasons did not attend dinner tonight. Dinner was pasta and salad, and it was perfect. Two additional guests came by, Madame is from Canada, and Monsieur is from Belgium, the Belgian Congo, and points around the globe too numerous to mention. Anabela was there also, a lovely ebony creature local to Costa Rica that learned French in Los Angeles, California. We met earlier today at the house and is in visiting from Limon. She also speaks perfect English and the conversation ranged from French to Spanish to English fluidly with only the occasional stop for clarification.
John and Cleo's scrumptious mocha girls Kristina and Natalie were there too and there was the excitement of the big spider and cas, a native Costa Rican fruit juice that I can only describe as sweet-with the bite of a grapefruit. It may well become a favorite. We looked at photos and I took some snapshots and emailed them to John using his internet connection. For 40 bucks a month he's getting 119 down and 71 up; not blazing fast but certainly fast enough for email and blog posting. I'll be looking into that.
As I'm supposed to get across town by 10AM tomorrow, it’s time for lights out.
Break
Woke up late anyway. It's 10:45. It looks like there's a lovely breeze blowing outside and I wish the window would open. I'm going to try for some steamed milk downstairs for the coffee.
That was much easier than yesterday, as the same guy was there to help the hostess along in her 'wtf do you want gringo?' predicament. Plus, I interrupted a muy importante conversation she was having Espaniol with the female companion of another gringo guest. Anyway, it looks like a tip is in store for the milkman.
Speaking of tips, John has encouraged me not to tip too much, as it makes the local gringos look chintzy. I don't agree, though I may not tell him this right away. I think that if someone goes a step above the other guy/gal, they should be rewarded in some fashion. B.F. Skinner was a little crazy, but he had a lot right about shaping behavior.
Traffico outside the window looks light compared to the last couple of days, which should mean an easier ride across town. It being Sabato and all I'm guessing the city folks have exited the mean streets for greener pastures. I can't wait to come back next month so I can go hunt the eco tourists out in the jungle. If I have time later I'll post the 'I'm sorry' letter from the Tico Times and my response to it. As for now I should suck down the rest of my coffee and get over to Pavas.
Break
