For 2009, I decided to head to Central America. I must start by thanking a kind gentleman in the Denver airport for saving my sanity. I left San Diego, on the red-eye, with a cold that should have kept me in bed. Thinking that my hot pink beanie pillow was a security risk, the San Diego airport security separated my secuirty blanket from my personal belongings and failed to return it to me once it had been cleared as non-explosive (yes, I have been traveling with a hot pink bag which holds a hot pink neck pillow that is one of the most comfortable traveling creations of all time). Being sick on a red-eye made it particularily critical to my sanity. By the time I realized what had happened, it was too late, I was on the plane. When I got to Denver and discovered that Frontier Airlines does not have pillows or blankets on overnight flights anymore (can they really be that heavy or expensive?), and all the stores in the Denver airport were closed and locked up such that stealing a pillow was impossible, I began stalking the people mover. I was looking for someone who had a pillow and was headed towards baggage claim. I found my target and offered to purchase his pillow. He gave it to me. This was my excitement for the trip.....slow start I guess.
The flight was great. After landing in San Jose, I got on a bus and headed to La Cruz. La Cruz is a small town just south of the Nicaragua border. I am the only white person I have seen since I left San Jose and am quickly realizing I need to get going on spanish lessons sooner rather than later. It´s very relaxed here and nice to be back in a place where they carry slabs of meat along the sidewalk.
