And that's a wrap!
It's been a rather amazing two weeks. Hard to beleive the time has passed so very quickly. It seems like just the other day I walked into my room here at Villas, and thought, "I'm really in a totally foreign country. It's gonna be a LONG two weeks!" But the time positively flew by. Now I'm packed, ready to head out tomorrow. The driver is supposed to meet us at 4:30, to head to the airport. This morning, we all staggered to breakfast slowly, after a late night with people from work. It was rather bittersweet for Michelle and I, as it was the last time we'd enjoy fresh pineapple, mango, etc, at least on this trip. We all piled into the van for the last ride to the office.
At the office, we sat with people for a final eval/answer session. It felt really odd, realizing tomorrow we'll be on the plane headed home, and Monday, we'll be back in the Denver office. Michelle and I had completed our proposal for the office yesterday, so it needed only to be printed out for the meeting.
We decided to order McDonalds for lunch, because everyone kept telling us how much better McDonalds is down here. Um, no. They do deliver McD down here, so we asked the office assistant to order for us. She ordered around 11:30... Looking at the clock, it got to be 12... 12:30... 1... At that point, we mentioned something to Julianna, the office assistant, who told us Victor had actually driven to the local McD to pick up the food, since they were so slow! I've never seen anyone fall on McDonald's hamburgers like starving wolves before! Pretty amazing stuff. We were so hungry by the time the food got there, we had utter silence for about 5 minutes while we inhaled everything. Food wasn't noticeably different from any cheeseburger I've ever had in the States.
Because lunch got there so late, sitting with anyone in the afternoon was severely curtailed. We got stuff together for the meeting, and then wandered around the office, taking pictures of people. It was funny, most everyone accepted having their pictures taken, once we assured them we'd let them see the picture, so we could do re-takes, if necessary. :) We got some great shots, and had a great time laughing with people in the process. We also got smiles from people who don't usually smile, which felt like a huge accomplishment!
We had the conference call with the director of the Costa Rican office, with Victor and Hazel. We gave Danna (the director) a run-down of the people we'd sat with since she'd left last week. We found out the person we'd had such difficulty with isn't going to be with APL much longer; that person will be replaced with one of the new hires that will start training next week. It was rather an uncomfortable situation, to realize what we'd said directly impacted this person's continued employment. That was leavened, however, knowing the management in Costa Rica was aware of the problems with this person, and the individual was already riding the ragged edge. I think getting someone new is a good decision for the team; everyone else on the team is fabulous!
At the tail end of the call, Danna asked for suggestions; that was our cue for our "memo" style list of suggestions. The suggestions all seemed to be accepted well by the management staff; some of the things they already do, some they're going to implement. It was a HUGE relief to know it was over and done with, and it felt good to have our judgement and suggestions seriously considered.
After that, it was a quick slide into the end of the day. The NAM Customer Service team, the ones we've sat with, with Victor as spokesperson, presented Michelle and I with certificates of recognitions. Victor read them out loud to everyone, and then handed them to us. It was really neat, everyone signed them, most with little notes. It was a most excellent warm fuzzy feeling.
After work, we headed up above the city, to a restaurant famous for its view of the city. We had traditional Costa Rican food for our last night here; seems fitting, as we started our trip with Costa Rican food. The restaurant also has "typical" or traditional Costa Rican dance. It shares a lot with Mexican folk dancing, and was really neat to watch; however the whooping and whistling and shrilling that accompanies it is rather disconcerting! I didn't feel any lack of howler monkeys on this trip, after hearing the sounds coming from the dancers!!! They also do an "audience participation" dance, where they drag audience members into dancing, for what is essentially a kind of musical chairs. One guy doesn't have a partner, but a broom. Everyone else waltzes, then circles, around him, until he manages to pass it off to another guy. It was pretty funny. Victor didn't warn us at all, so we had NO idea. They pulled Michelle, Monique and I in. We laughed, and had a good time. No, there are no pictures, because Michelle and I were the only two with cameras, and no one thought to grab them when we got pulled in to dance.
Then it was back to the hotel, where we made a mad dash to the pool, and on to the hot tub. We had a good time, hanging out together for one last time, 'though the hot tub wasn't really hot, more a warm tub, so we all eventually headed in quickly, with no lingering goodbyes, to warm up.
Now I'm showered, and packed, and ready to go. Tomorrow morning is going to be horribly, painfully early, but it'll end with being home! I'll post pictures in the next few days; not sure it'll happen tomorrow!
Uno Mas!
Okay, so this is my next to last night here in Costa Rica. It's hard to believe it's already been almost 2 weeks. Everyone in the office has been wonderful; Michelle and Will have become great friends. Most of all, the country is beautiful. I'll admit, I won't miss the muy loco drivers, or the air pollution. But I'll miss the people. And the food! I don't think I'll be able to eat for a month, once I get back, as I work off what I ate here!I was awake before the alarm this morning, and hopped out of bed alert, which is unheard of for me ANY morning! We met the fourth APL person, Monique, who's with our Transportation group, and based out of Atlanta. She'd actually come in the night before, but we hadn't gotten a chance to talk to her. Our usual driver took us to work, and traffic wasn't too bad, by Costa Rican standards.At work, I sat with the people I've been with for the last 2 weeks; I can sit in a spot where 4 people can ask me questions. It's a nice, central location. Tomorrow I'll be sitting with the person who drives me nuts, but it's only one more day. I can make it... I think! :) We also warned everyone in the center that we're planning on taking pictures tomorrow. We'd been advised that if we didn't give people 24-hours lead time, we'd "make lots of enemies"! So, we warned them.The reefer team, in Denver, as a singing pig, dubbed Stewie, sent by a customer as a gift. We've taken him all over the world; I took him to Ireland with me, he's been to Hawai'i, on a cruise in the Pacific, on camping trips. I brought him with me to Costa Rica. I'd taken pictures of him with the volcano behind him. That's all I planned to do. But one of the girls in the office has a little, pink stuffed pig. I'd told her about Stewie, and she asked me to bring him in. So, today I did. We got a picture of her pig, and Stewie. Then I turned him on, so they could hear him sing. Stewie was a hit! However, after the 3rd time hearing "My Girl", as sung by a pink pig, I'd had enough!After work, we went out for dinner and drinks with people from the center. We've gone out with managers, but tonight was CSRs. A few months ago, a number of people from Costa Rica came to Denver for training. We went out tonight with some of them. So, after work, we piled into a pair of taxis, and headed out into a part of the San Jose area I'd never been to, Heredia. It's actually in another state, but is only about 20 minutes from work. We sat in the bar, on the patio, for a long time, talking and laughing. It was a lot of fun, and really nice to get to know them better, as we haven't been sitting with them.Tomorrow, we're going out to dinner at a restaurant up the mountain from San Jose. San Jose actually sits in a valley, ringed by mountains. This restaurant is famous for its views and live music. So, we'll head there after work. Then, back to the hotel, to pack.
Only 2 Days Left!
Okay, so as of this evening, we only have 2 more days in Costa Rica left. It doesn't feel possible it could be almost over so quickly. Just the other day, I was walking into my bathroom, and realizing I was really in another country. For those who don't know, the Costa Rican sewage system isn't equipped to handle as much as US sewage systems; for this reason, you can't flush toilet paper. In the nearly 2 weeks we've been here, I've seen one toilet that you were allowed to flush toilet paper in. All other toilets have little trash cans next to them for the paper.
This morning, I did NOT want to get up. Under no uncertain terms did I want to crawl out of bed; I had the alarm set for 6:30. I tried to reset the alarm, and managed to hit the button to turn the radio on. Then, I couldn't get it turned off, so had to turn the light on. I did manage to turn the radio off, and reset the alarm for 6:40. I know, I know, 10 minutes. Big deal. But it sure felt like a big deal this morning!
They had fresh mango at breakfast, as well as kiwi fruit. No pineapple, but the mango made up for it. They know us there now, so they know to ask if I want hot chocolate, since I don't drink coffee. It was lovely. And our usual driver picked us up this morning; he doesn't speak English, we don't speak Spanish, but he's so nice, and we trust him. He drives the director of the center, when she's here, and the company pays him. He's really sweet; on Friday night, when he dropped us off at the hotel, he made sure he had his phone number, so that if we needed him, we could call him. I'm not sure how we could have communicated with him, but it was really sweet for him to offer.
Work was pretty good this morning, aside from trying to stay awake. It's hard to transition from being on the phones, and actually being the one responsible for getting things done, to observing someone else. Today, the person I sat with was very good. She's one of the CSRs who's been there the longest; it'll be a year in July for her. She knows her job, and is pretty good at it. Last week, she hadn't really been willing to talk to us until later in the week; today we had no such problems! She used to work for the national Tourism board in Costa Rica, so she gave me all kinds of places to go. It was good to sit with her, and talk with her.
After work, we decided that tonight we'd try Argentinian food. We found the restaurant in the phone book, and asked for a cab to be called. When the cab picked us up, 'though, the cab driver didn't know where he was taking us. So we ended up at the mall. We wandered about for a bit, and then decided to catch a cab across the highway to the Outback we could see. We got over there, and walked around the little shopping center, as there were so many restaurants available.
We actually decided to eat at the Cuban restaurant; I'd heard really good things about it from other people from work who'd come down. It was absolutely amazing. We had mango smoothies to drink; they brought us an appetizer of fried plantain slices, with a "salsa" that consisted of orange juice, onion and garlic. It was really good. For dinner, I had a shredded beef dish, with a fabulous tomato sauce. I had cassava/yuca, that the waiter poured garlic over. Mmmmm!!! I also had some really delicious black beans, and sweet plantains, that taste like a slightly less sweet banana. Oh bliss!
So, tomorrow we're supposed to going out after work with some of the people from work. I'm hoping it won't be too late, but I'm not holding my breath. If we can get back around 10, I'll be ok, I think. Much later than that, and I'll be in trouble!
Lazy Day!
Today, we took it easy. We agreed last night that everyone was going to sleep in. I took full advantage! After going to bed early last night, I slept until 7, went back to sleep, woke up around 8, then laid in bed until about 8:30, at which I point I decided I should at least check email. So, I read email, watched some CNN, and just rested. It's been such a busy trip, with something going on all the time. There really hasn't been any rest time. So it felt really good to just relax.
Around 9:15, Michelle called, and asked if I wanted to go to brunch. I agreed to meet her at 10. So, a little more lazing around, before rushing through a shower to be ready on time. We walked just down the road a little way, to a small cafe, Te con Te, or Tea with Tea. It was lovely. I had scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast, with a fresh fruit punch blended with ice. Michelle had Eggs Benedict, with smoked salmon, and a cappicino. Most of the way through breakfast, Will wandered over to tell us he was headed into San Jose to wander. We wished him well, and told him if he wasn't back by 7, we'd start to worry!
After brunch, we wandered through a couple of boutiques Michelle wanted to look at, and then headed over to the spa close to work. We finished up there around 2, and came back to the hotel for a bit. Bill, I have a picture of the habiscus flowers the size of my head for you! I'll upload them when I get home.
Michelle's dad had done research on San Jose before we left, and found mention of the Gold Museum, or Museo de Oro. So, after the spa, we took a cab downtown, and spent several hours wandering through the museum. They have a really neat exhibit on Pre-Colonial gold there, as well as info on life for the native tribes, both pre- and post-colonial rule. It was really interesting. I have pictures of that as well. They also had a numatist exhibit, with the history of the currency in Costa Rica. Grandpa, I have a picture or two of some of the currency I'll show you.
After the museum, we wandered San Jose for just a little bit. We walked through a little plaza, walked past the National Theater. Michelle is Catholic, so we also visited the national cathedral, which was right there. When they started the Rosary service, we snuck out. We took a cab back to the hotel, and went up to Michelle's room to wait for Will. We watched a movie, and a couple of shows. By that point, it was 7, and we were getting worried. We called what we thought was Will's room, and no one answered. We wandered down, and checked the lobby, where they have email. No Will. We finally asked the front desk, and the lady told us, "Oh yes, he's in his room." As we started toward his room, Michelle saw him, headed towards us. Turns out, he'd only been in San Jose for a couple of hours; he probably got back before we returned from the salon. He'd gone for a jog, then came back, and was asked to move to another room by the hotel as "something was wrong with his shower". He said he hadn't noticed anything, but dutifully moved to room 310; he'd been in 311. We'd tried to call 311. So, mystery solved, and we didn't have to call the Embassy! :)
Michelle and I had snacked while we waited for Will, so weren't really hungry, but Will hadn't eaten dinner. So we strolled down to the local Chinese restaurant. Michelle and I ordered hot and sour soup. The waiter, concerned the small bowls wouldn't be enough for us, asked if we wanted the larger size. We agreed, thinking we'd get soup bowls. Um, no. We each ended up with a serving bowl, with enough soup for at least 3! I know our eyes just about popped out of our heads when we saw the size of the bowls! We didn't eat even half. Ah well, lesson learned!
Tomorrow starts our second week of work. Michelle and I only have 3 days this week, since we had today off, and fly home on Friday. I think we're going to do some follow-up. We have some suggestions for management, that percolated out this weekend while we discussed our thoughts on last week. Not sure how well it will go over, or if they'll listen, but since that's part of why they're paying us to come down here, I hope they'll listen.
I'll let you know how tomorrow goes!
Oh Baby It's Hot Outside!!!,
We got up this morning, of all reasons, because we could hear cows, and we weren't sure if they were in front of our cottage. So Michelle got up, and checked out the window. Turns out they weren't in front of our house, but behind us. It was quite an interesting way to wake up! Will had signed up for a zip-line tour last night, so he headed out this morning. Michelle and I got up much more leisurely. We took turns showering, and sat outside, enjoying the morning. The volcano was pretty clear, so we got good pictures of almost the whole volcano, including the caldera at the top. The guide yesterday said it was dormant until 1968, and then it erupted in a big way! It blew the top off the mountain, and then blew three more times, blowing out major craters each time.
We toddled up to breakfast, where they had an omelette bar. We were sitting, having a nice, quiet breakfast, when Will came over. He'd been the only one who should up for the zip-line tour, so it went much faster. He had a blast, but from his description, I have NO desire to do it! He was literally shaking with adrenelin, and wanted to DO something. Michelle and I had actually planned to spend the morning by the pool. Nope, we headed to town. We all remembered suntan lotion yesterday, but only Michelle remembered today. Will and I were both a little pink by the time we headed back to the hotel. Michelle and I headed up to the lobby to try and check email, while Will headed to the pool. No internet, but there was a lovely breeze, so we hung out there.
After checkout, we sat around the lobby until lunch, and then hopped on the bus for the ride home. Unfortunately, there was a family with three kids who got on too. There was a girl who looked like she was about 8 or 9; she mostly listened to her headphones really loud, and sang along. Irritating, but bearable. The two little boys, 3 and 5 most likely, weren't so polite. They yelled, they twitched, they yelled some more. It wasn't a restful ride back. We got back to our hotel about 5pm.
Overall, the trip was absolutely wonderful. Michelle thanked me this morning for finding this trip. We're all talking about wanting to come back. The website for the hot springs resort is:
www.tabacon.com I'll post pictures when I get home.
Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!
Fun in the Sun and Water...
Today was the hot springs trip. We got up, and were all ready for breakfast, when the lady at the front desk told us it was a little delayed this morning, “Due to technical difficulties”. It wasn’t so bad, we had plenty of time for breakfast before the bus got to the hotel. We were the second stop for the bus, so we were able to pick our seats. We did end up with a full bus.
The scenery was spectacular; all green and lush. So many plants, so many flowers. The tour guide told us everything grows so fast, instead of building fences, most people plant trees. It’s much cheaper. They cut off a branch, plant it, and it grows into a tree. He said the space between trees is based upon how well you like your neighbors; if you like your neighbors, you put more space between the trees; if you don’t, you plant them close together. J We did see lots of “fences” of trees on the way. They grow into an impenetrable wall of green. It’s much nicer than the razor wire and concrete that surround all the houses in San Jose.
We saw a waterfall on the way to Arenal today; I have pictures I can upload when I get home. We also saw orchids, baby orchids, bananas, mangoes, cassava, papaya, and pineapple. Oh, and avocadoes being sold at a roadside stand. The road was an experience; it’s a typical mountain road, in a more narrow bus, and little, narrow roads.
The resort was fabulous; the hot springs absolutely amazing. They even had waterfalls with the hot water. We have pictures of us under them. Mom, it was like Niagara, except it was warm, and we were wearing swimsuits! So we sat, and had our own personal Shiatsu massages, courtesy of Nature. I highly, highly recommend it! After we finished with the springs, (and getting lost in the gardens the hot springs run through), we got back on the bus, and headed out to try and see the volcano erupt. We headed to one of the closest spots to see the volcano. One the way, we stopped and took pictures on the bridge of the lagoon. It's a man-made lake that runs a huge part of the country's hydro-electric. They said only 2% of Costa Rica's power, nationally, comes from diesel. Everything is either hydro-electric, geothermal, etc. After the lagoon, we got to see monkeys!!!! That was what I really wanted on this trip, tourist-wise. So I have pictures of monkeys. Then we loaded back into the bus, and headed up a road I'd hesitate to go up in my truck. And we went up in a tourist bus!! Now, it wasn't one of the big coaches, but it was still much bigger than I've have taken up. We got a "Costa Rican" back massage, courtsey of the hideous road. By the time we got to the spot, the volcano was once again covered by clouds. So, no eruption.
We got back on the bus, continued along the hideous road, and back to the resort with the hot springs, for dinner. It was wonderful! It was Mexican buffet night, so we had Mexican themed food, and then fabulous desserts. It was fun to sit and talk with people on the tour; there was a mother and son from Miami, originally from Cuba. There was also a woman from Northern New Jersey; we all sat and talked over dinner.
Once dinner was over, we were dropped off at our hotel, the Arenal Volcano Inn. As cheesy as the name sounds, it was really nice. We had our own little cottage, at the very back of the resort. It had 2 double beds, and the bathroom. It's wasn't huge, but it was plenty big enough to us. Once we got our stuff into the room, we sat outside, and watched the volcano clear up enough for us to see more of it. We listened to the frogs chirp, and feel the wind blow. It was a long, but really wonderful day!
Dieu Merci, C'est Vendredi!!!
Otherwise know as, Thank God, it's Friday!! It's been a long week, even if it feels like it's flown by. Last night we signed up for the volcano tour; Will was going to do something else, and they didn't have enough people, so he's coming with us. That's really nice, it drops the price from $200 for a single, to $153 for a triple. I think it's one queen bed (might be 2 twins pushed together), and a twin. We're all really excited for the trip, and to see an active volcano. Add one more new experience to the trip!Today was a good day at the office. The person I sat with is very good; she's been with the company for 2 months, and just graduated from university last December. She's in International Relations major! It was interesting to get her perspective on a number of issues; we talked about the Middle East, about work, about how things are in Costa Rica. I really felt like I helped her, which is a good feeling. It was also nice to realize that we seem to have been able to break down the reserve of the people we've sat with this week. They're much more willing to approach us, or call us over, to ask questions. That was the biggest thing the managers asked us to help with; none of the people on the floor are willing to go to their managers until issues get really bad. Michelle and I talked on the way home, and we came to the conclusion that the managers need to make more of an effort to make overtures to the floor folks. At this point, they don't really interact with those they supervise, and I think the front line people feel intimidated. Even the reps who are very shy laughed and joked with us today. Huge breakthrough!One of the people who came out to Denver in February for training wanted to take us out tonight. I really wasn't sure I wanted to go; I'm tired! He and Michelle figured out when we'd meet, and where. It was set up for later in the evening, around 9 or so. So, we came home, took a few minutes for everyone to freshen up. Michelle really wanted to go shopping; Will wanted to check out a men's clothing store, fairly high-end, to see if it was cheaper here than in the U.S. So, we walked over, only to discover there's no difference in price. Already being out and about, we walked up to the T.G.I. Friday that probably 2 miles away. Had a lovely dinner, 'though it was a little surreal to see all the menu items listed in English, with entirely Spanish descriptions! The wait staff didn't speak English, but with pointing and miming, we figured it out. We walked back to the hotel after dinner, and had what was the scariest, and funniest, experience of the trip so far. We were walked past a building that had security gates around it; looks like it might have a house on one half, and a store on the other. As we walked by the half that looks like it might be a house, someone on the other side, right up against the fence, said very loudly, "Booga-booga", or something like that, in a sing-song kind of voice. Scared us all! We jumped, walked very quickly away, and managed to laugh about it once we were well past. I felt a little safer, because Will was between the building and me! Not sure what the heck the person was trying to do, but they sure scared us!Once we got back to the hotel, we freshened up again (it's warm, it's REALLY humid...), and waited for Esteban to call. He had a longer trip than we did, and he was taking the bus, so he called when he got close to our meeting point. We asked the hotel to call us a cab, and met at the meeting point arranged at work. Esteban hopped in the cab with us, and took us to a really cool Lebanese restaurant/bar. It was very authentic, down to the hooka pipes (no, we didn't even try one), and goat skins on the tree trunks they used as bar stools. Oh, and the waiters wore fezs. Not sure how they kepth them on, couldn't see any strings, and neither of them had enough hair for bobby pins! We decided it must be super glue. :) We all chatted about all sorts of things, and enjoyed the music. When we all started drooping, Esteban got us a cab, and we came home. I'm taking the laptop with me, so hopefully I'll find wireless access so I can post tomorrow, and tell you about the hot springs!
Bad Reviews and the Taj Mahal
This morning I actually managed to get up in time to drink a glass of Coke before going to breakfast. This was very important, as otherwise, I get a really bad caffeine withdrawl headache by around lunch time. However, the downside of this was I had time for the Coke because I was frantically searching the room for my keycard! Found it, and still had time for breakfast, before the driver got here.
Work was more side-by-sides today, 'though the person I sat with was much better. He really knew his stuff. It was a pleasure to sit with him; I didn't feel like I needed to try to keep him on task. I heard, via email, from Mom, that Grandma reported 2 inches of snow fell last night in Evergreen. Made me even more glad I'm here, and not there!! This afternoon, we met with the managers, and went over the evaluations we've done so far. It was a little uncomfortable, because the person I sat with yesterday just isn't where he needs to be. The managers said what we told them about this person wasn't anything new, and that he'd almost been fired a couple of months ago. We'll see where it leads. I felt better being able to give really good reviews about the other 2 people I sat with.
After work, we headed to the Indian restaurant in town, the Taj Mahal. It was very good. We went with the two managers we've had the most to do with, Victor and Hazel. It was the first really spicy food I've had since getting here, which was really nice. We had a really good time at dinner, laughed and enjoying ourselves.
Once we got back to the hotel, we met for our (now) customary after-work soak in the hot tub/swim in the pool. By the time we were ready to call it a night, the clouds were starting to drift off, and we could actually see the sky.
