San José, Tuesday

Tue 4th 0825 On terrace with coffee and biscuits. Slept pretty well, woke up in night needing piss and maybe felt slightly drunk-ish but nothing major, finally woke up 0730ish and was kind of awake in bed. Think got up 0805ish.

Not optimistic about buying a mug but it's a harmless little back-of-mind thought.

Train horns going like crazy in distance now and last night, didn't keep me awake though.

Black (dark grey) trousers are perhaps a bit worse for wear, they seem to have dirty looking stains round knees which may be actual wear, and the material looks vaguely fuzzy (hard to describe - a bit like wet tissue paper rubbed on it) in places. I think they have had a machine wash recently but hard to be certain. It's fine, they should last out the trip and have now been used twice and (like the light grey pair) are probably a smidge big round the waist anyway.

1649 Back on terrace with coffee.

Went over to MC and had gallo pinto at Dos Gemelos. Also spoke to one stallholder about a "leyendas de costa rica" cup, she may have recognised what I meant but didn't have any. You really need someone selling second hand stuff for this I think. I am sure they're not rare as such.

Then decided I'd walk up and down the calles to just see the city instead of going to jade museum because I "ought" to. I'm sure it's decent enough but done a lot of museums lately.

One or two places felt slightly sketchy or maybe I got jumpy but on the whole not too bad. Found Soda La Bendicion by chance and they advertised olla de carne at 2k so had that (made it 2.2k with tip) and it was very decent and filling (I was a bit full anyway with the biscuits then the gallo pinto, and I had to stop myself indulging in misc snacky things as walked streets as I was trying to "save up" to be hungry again). Did sort of go into Barrio Amon, only up IIRC calle 3 as far as the ornate house at corner with avenida 13, didn't feel sketchy but I felt a bit alone after the business of the more central areas and I wasn't sure I wasn't going to wander into an iffy area.

Had a bit of a sit in Plaza de la Cultura. Think I then got a couple of beers (couldn't find decent mini supermarket, had to go to Cuesta Mora tho fortunately queues not huge) and had one back on terrace at hostel and watched a YT video on speaker before I went back out for a bit of a walk (feeling just slightly muzzy), sat in PdlC again (it felt safe, there also seem to be guards) and then went to MC and had a decent ceviche (mediano) at Marisqueria El Malecon - shame no choice to have prawns, but it was good, also got a little bowl of sliced banana/plantain stuff with it - and got 300g of maní garapiñado at a stall (CRC500 for 100g) and brought that home. Felt quite late as sky was getting dark but just cloud cover; it was only 16something ish.

Had shower and shave back at hostel - only me in dorm, cat sleeping on someone else's bed - and now out here. Plan is to eat some mani garapinado and just read etc and maybe have my other beer a bit later. I suspect the meal people (there's a "commualish cooking for 2k" thing every day, I have been invited but politely declined) will be out here at 7 but I can always go elsewhere.

1808 Gorged on MG, very nice and yes what I remember from mix in San Isidro. Bit chilly out. Feel very slightly down etc etc. Probably go get my other beer and a glass now and if I just end up lying on bed watching bit more YT later that's fine. Not checked train time tomorrow but won't be insane. Forced myself to save bit of MG for later/tomorrow and shared bit with hostel staff guy.

Feels like it "should" be warm and sunny and beer-watching-sunset at the end of the trip, but it's fine. It isn't super cold and remembering how sweaty things could be elsewhere I am not really complaining.

OK, only trains to Alajuela in morning are 0640 and 0730. Bit crappy but will aim for 730 and if it goes tits up I'll get train to Heredia and assume I can get a bus on to Alajuela from there.

Olla de carne was very similar to something I'd had in Guatemala, probably with same name, as I expected.

There prob is a bus from Heredia to Alajuela but it probably starts in San Jose. Given I could prob come back into hostel in the event it goes tits up to check where from, *maybe* I would do that instead of landing in Heredia and not knowing where to go. OTOH it will be daytime and Heredia is probably smaller, safer and easier to navigate than San Jose. We'll see what happens, if (touch wood) I just get the train OK we're laughing.

1829 Trying to "muse" but a bit artificial. This does remind me a bit of being in Buenos Aires sitting outside a bar in slightly cold weather at end of another trip, though would have to check blog to see when - possibly 2019 and if not maybe 2014. Maybe happened multiple times of course. :-) (Either would prob be late March/early April-ish, which I guess is vaguely autumn in BA and quite plausible it's on chilly side late-ish at night.)

Not a bad day really, while there's been an element of "trying to experience things while still here" forcing it, it was quite nice wandering round, I finally tried olla de carne and I did eat/buy a bit in MC and I had ceviche again and it was quite warm and sunny and somewhat pleasantly relaxed sitting in Plaza de la Culture. Also while I will probably go if/when I come back, I am glad I didn't force myself to go to the jade museum "just because I was here" .

Of course I do still have tomorrow and I think that BA memory might have been very last evening, but whatever.

1841 Some guy just said I look like a film director, presumably baseball cap+sitting back a bit in chair with legs crossed. :-)

Half thinking I would have been better staying here tomorrow night and going to airport for my really pretty late flight direct from SJ Thu morning. But of course I didn't know I'd find SJ so OKish. Also to be honest the prospect of trogging over (by foot or taxi) to wherever I'd get the bus with my backpack doesn't appeal even with my relative comfort with SJ now. And it's not as if there's anything I desperately want to do here in SJ or as if I've met a group of great people as in Quepos etc etc, so really it's fine.

Not exactly milking this, it's OK sitting out here mostly solo in garden/terrace, and I'm trying not to rush the beer, but at the same time it's not exactly super pleasant etc. Under other circumstances I might have had two beers or more tonight and maybe that would have made me more "meditative" , but given the early start tomorrow I feel that wouldn't have been smart.

It is really way too early to go to bed but I think I will go up and pack and clean teeth maybe watch some YT in bed once I have finished this beer, which I don't plan to rush but isn't a huge amount left and not deliberately going to massively spin it out.

It's all fine, and of course it's usual to feel a little bit like this at end of a trip, and it's good I don't feel pleased to be leaving etc.

1850 Couple of cockroaches on terrace, one investigating a mani garapinado (not sure what English translation is) I dropped earlier - at least something's getting the benefit of it. :-)

There's a pretty cool pencil drawing inside I noticed other day of a sloth "partying" with the caption "live slow... die whenever" which amused me. I snapped a couple of photos of it earlier.

1912 Sort of "ran away" (beer had nearly finished) as the tables outside being rearranged for the meal people (*slightly* surprised they have it outside) and although I think I'd have been reasonably welcome I wasn't really in the mood etc and did kind of want to come to bed. Have cleaned teeth and semi-packed so going to get into bed but watch some YT etc. Have set alarm for 630.

Just noticed Clea still on bed (near mine) she was on earlier. :-)

1921 Just listened to Dance Monkey, which I think I heard for first time ever in Tamarindo and had the searched lyrics sticking around on a tab on phone browser til now. I understand it's a couple of years old. Anyway, not that I loved Tamarindo, but I can still visualise the supermarket I was queueing in when it was being played. :-)

One other non-dining woman up here on bed with headphones, ie doing roughly same as me.

2051 Been watching YT but starting to feel tired so going to start reading and be ready to fall asleep as mood takes me.