All too soon, we were dropping Steph off at the airport and continuing into San Jose. I'd heard lots of things about the capital city of Costa Rica, and not much of it complimentary. After arriving at the Hostel Urbano (highly recommended- clean, quiet, and the type of clientele that's friendly and likes to talk with other lone travelers!), I passed the time till my bunk was ready by finishing my latest Paulo Coelho read, "Once Minutos". If you have never read anything by him, do it- probably my single favorite author, if I was forced to pick.
After locking away my backpack, I got instructions from the hostel on taking the bus, and caught one heading downtown. I made friends with my seatmate, an older lady who was a compassionate care companion for the elderly. We talked about her job, my trip, and at the end of the ride, she walked me to my final stop, the Mercado Central (Central Market). The desk guy at the hostel had warned me that Mondays are not a happening day in the city (most museums are closed too, unfortunately) and I could see what he meant: the shops at the market were set up to accommodate a large crowd, but the day I visited, flower sellers and meat men alike had little to do but lean over the counters of their booths to chat with one another.
After that, I grabbed a "pan de mozzarella" from a Samuelito's bakery and decided to meander the downtown area.
I passed by the Central Market and the Metropolitan Cathedral, where lots of people were hanging out.
Walking back towards my hostel (the app Maps.me had allowed me to download a city map before leaving the hostel, and using GPS but no data allowed me to track myself in San Jose to make sure that I was really on the way home), I passed by the Teatro Nacional, the National History Museum, and the Plaza de Democracia.
I saw Chinatown as I headed up the hill.
I also got to see some of the amazing street art, as well as one of the biggest cemeteries in the city.
Back at the hostel, I spent some time reading, and fell into conversation with my new friend Matthias. We talked about some of our travel experiences for a bit, then he invited me to go see a movie- why not? We took the bus down to the theater about bought two tickets for 50 Shades of Grey. Neither of us had read the books, but he's a movie buff, and when prime time tickets are only $4, it seemed worth my while. The movie made me laugh more than anything, but we did manage to turn it into more of a philosophical discussion on the way home. We had a good time and hung out talking with some of the other hostel residents till bedtime.
On my last morning, I woke up to a delicious pancake and fruit breakfast (included in the $14/night lodging price!) and more conversation with Matthias and the others. All too soon it was time to head to the airport.
This is a trip I won't soon forget. It's been an interesting few months in my life, and this trip came at exactly the right time. I left feeling sad (as always) about having to go home, but also reinvigorated from the new experiences and new conversations.
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