San Jose Costa Rica – My Shot of the Day – December 1, 2013

December 1, 2013
Caribbean/Central America, My Shot of the Day

I arrived in the afternoon, hungry and a bit dazed from lack of sleep. I put my stuff at the hotel Tryp Sabana and walked for several hours, following my rule of getting lost in a new city as the best way to find yourself in the new city.

I wrote this about my first experience of the capital of Costa Rica:

San Jose Costa Rica smells like exhaust, KFC, cilantro and sugar all mixed up. The sidewalks are so crowded people are spilling onto the streets. There is a choir in La Iglesia de la Soledad and the singing pours put of the doors where it hits a wall of flamenco firing from a shoe shop. On the corners are men with piles of avocados and everyone is shouting and walking by with giant cakes.

After enjoying the crowds (I saw more people in 1/4 kilometer of walking than I ever see on a whole day in Taos) I dropped in at the Rincon Tico Restaurante for a caldo de pollo with beans and rice. Quite perfect. After I walked back to the hotel I talked to the manager about getting my butt up on the roof for some night photos of the city. She was hesitant, telling me that someone had jumped from up there just a few weeks before.

I assured her I wouldn’t jump and so she relented. These are the results.