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Costa Rica: day 9 - San José & Hotel Aranjuez

We met the taxi at the hotel and went to the Tamarindo airport ($10 for the taxi/ took about 15 minutes). The 50 minute afternoon flight to San José, Costa Rica's capital, was called the Loco, for some reason which we would soon find out.

It was through tons of rain. It seemed that this flight consisted mostly of locals, whereas the previous ones consisted mainly of tourists. One of the passengers had a palm in her hand. The ones blessed by the priest on Palm Sunday. You know, the ones you take out and burn when you're in DANGER. So, yes, she held this in her hand as she made the sign of the cross.

So that's why this flight was cheaper. And called Loco.

It wasn't that bumpy - considering all the rain we were flying through - just very tense and scary for me. There was no visibility. The plane did do those rollercoaster dips at times, that make you lose your stomach.

We had to land at the international airport because the Pavas/Tobias Bolaños airport (the airport that Nature Air flies out of) was closed due to bad weather. So after it cleared up in 5 or 10 minutes, we had another 3-5 minute flight to Pavas.

We got a "nonofficial" taxi (a non-orange one) to Hotel Aranjuez for 8000 colones. It took about 30 minutes. 30 minutes of looking down, not outside of the window, because these guys are as bad, if not worse than New York City taxi drivers.

* * *

The hotel was very cute, very charming. It's described as a Costa Rican home experience (of the 1930's). The woodwork inside our #3 Superior Standard room reminded me of my grandma's house. I like the clay color used in the bedroom and bathroom. The bedroom's window had a view of the little enclosed garden room.





For dinner, the guy at the front desk recommended Soda Isabel, which is just down the street. It's cheap and delicious! We both had casado con pescado, which we had come to enjoy saying. And eating! It was so much food! We could've easily split it. It was 2000-3000 colones per plate. Afterwards, we turned in for the night.

Hotel Aranjuez - if you are staying in San Jose, I would recommend this place for its charm (also it's quite a bargain!) If, however, you are traveling with children, I might recommend a different place. (I will say that the second time we stayed here during this trip, we had a different room that wasn't nearly as charming.)
$44 a night, including breakfast and taxes. They need a credit card to hold the reservation, but you must pay in cash when you get there.
Other notes: $7 for a load of laundry, no coffeemaker in room - coffee's in the tropical garden, phone and tv in room (only place we stayed that had a tv), in-room safe, no hairdryer.

next post > day 10 - Leaving San José
previous post > day 9 - Leaving Tamarindo
first post > day 1 - Adventure, Exploration and Relaxation

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