The plane finally landed at 4 a.m. and we got to the hotel at 5:15 (4:15 CR time).  We saw the local IR office on the way, and since we were in a minivan that stopped at 4 other hotels we got a little tour of downtown San Jose.  That will be our only tour of San Jose.  We drove through Hookerville and saw about 12 prostitutes within a couple of blocks.  Our hotel isn’t near downtown and it’s very nice.  We each have our own bedroom so I don’t have to listen to Sherry snore.  We have to be up in less than 4 hours because our car is being delivered, so nightie-night!
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Remember that old ad? Yes, I’m dating myself.

I guess I spoke too soon and jinxed us. We left Atlanta at 7 p.m. for a 4-hour flight to San Jose. About an hour out of Atlanta, the captain announced that the plane had a mechanical problem, so we had to go back to Atlanta. Given the extreme turbulence and the mysterious mechanical problem, it was a VERY long hour. The poor Korean guy across the aisle from me doesn’t speak much English so when we landed he was shocked to find out that we were back in Atlanta.

After a bumpy landing they gave us food vouchers and got us a new plane, which was much preferred over the original plan to try to fix the problem. On the way out I said to the captain, “Please tell me it was just a clogged toilet,” and he said, “It was nothing serious, just something that couldn’t be fixed in San Jose.” They could have shared that extra bit of information during the flight and saved us a some worry.

We boarded the new plane around 10:30, but a bunch of the runways were closed for maintenance so we had to wait until midnight to take off. We’ll be arriving in San Jose at 3:30 a.m. (only 2:30 local time), which is a little late even for me. Then we have to get our bags, go through immigration/customs, and get a cab to the hotel. Our rental car is being dropped off at 9 a.m. so somebody has to be awake to do the paperwork. Then it’s about a 3-hour drive and hopefully a nap before our volcano hike.

For all of my friends who know about my fear of flying, I decided to fly without taking my medicine today and I’ve been fine. I think if I can survive these flights without my meds, I’m doing ok. I did use the Rescue Remedy spray even though Karen said it doesn’t work because she used it when she was mad, and she was still mad.  🙂  I think the anger-management spray is the one in the red bottle.
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It has apparently been a really long time since I’ve flown.  Or at least a lot has happened to airport procedures since the last time.  Last night there was a brief moment of panic when I couldn’t find our tickets among our travel documents.  All I need is a NUMBER?  Who knew?!  Today was my first time attempting to check in at a kiosk, and for the most amazing part – IN-FLIGHT WI-FI!  So cool! 

We’re somewhere over the Carolinas right now, on our way to Atlanta.  So far, today has gone without a hitch.  It is so unbelievably easy to travel with another responsible adult.  I didn’t have to pack for her, ask her if she brought her toothbrush, tell her to put on her coat 200 times, and she hasn’t hit anyone, cried, or kicked the seat in front of her.  We walked out the door on time, left Logan Express on time, and got to the airport early enough to have a leisurely lunch before our flight.  Hopefully the rest of the day will go just as well.  We have 1 1/2 hours in Atlanta and then a 4-hour flight to San Jose.

Pura Vida!
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Tomorrow’s the big day…Sherry and I are finally heading off to Costa Rica for a week of Mommy-Time.  The preparations have been grueling, with daily lists that were single-spaced and double-columned.  Ben has a 2-page typed list of daily requirements (who needs sneakers for gym, who needs to bring lunch, etc.), and the components for several “projects” – 70+ valentines, sorting instructions for 89 boxes of Girl Scout cookies, and Adlani’s undecorated 100th-day-of-school paper bag vest that needs to have 100 of something attached to it.

Ben was home this morning because he had a dentist appointment, so he took a shot at the Morning Mayhem. He did a pretty good job, although he did try to slip Adlani some Pringles in his snack bag, and packed Norah’s lunch in her snack bag which would have confused the hell out of her. They would have survived, so I’m jetting off with a clear conscience. The kids are sad that I’ll be gone, especially since I’ll miss the weekend performance of the play (I’ll be back for the school performance), but I think it’s important for kids to see that moms should have a life too. I don’t want my girls growing up and thinking that they have to stop taking time for themselves once they have a family.
I hope to post some pics from the road, but our basic itinerary is:

Day 1 – Fly into San Jose.
Day 2 – Drive to the (active) Arenal Volcano and HOT SPRINGS – volcano hike and dinner at The Springs that night.
Day 3 – Trip to Caño Negro during the day, dinner at Tabacon hot springs that night. We hope to see Coach Roger and Mrs. Coach Roger there!
Day 4 – Drive to Monteverde, night hike that night.
Day 5 – Monteverde Cloud Forest in the a.m., afternoon open with plenty to choose from.
Day 6 – Morning open, drive back to San Jose.
Day 7 – Fly home.

Adios, amigos!!

When your little petri dishes come home with the 12-hour bug that’s going around, give them a little extra sympathy and TLC because IT SUCKS!!!  I woke up Saturday morning all ready to go to Zumba and before I was even vertical I got that not-so-fresh feeling and spent the next hour “indisposed.”  After the initial purge I was walking around the house yakking into a bowl which Ben found completely disgusting.

Unfortunately, Ben had to drop his car off to be cleaned so I sucked it up and drove the 2 miles to pick him up.  As soon as we got to Scrub-A-Dub, Adlani turned green and needed to borrow my bowl.  Not good. 

Aliya had it two weeks ago and was sick during the night and fine the next day.  Norah had it on Thursday night and was good as new on Friday.  It didn’t slow Adlani down until he tried unsuccessfully to eat a donut and even then he was basically going about his regular activities except eating. He explained it to Ben as, “The food in your stomach starts coming up your neck and when you open your mouth to eat something, the food from your stomach falls out.”

I was knocked out for a full 12 hours, literally laying in bed with my head under the covers.  I appreciate a good clean-out once in a while, but this one was terrible!  I had stomach pains all day and couldn’t face food (could barely even choke water down) until 7 at night.  And then…good as new!  It was so strange how it knocked me out and then it was gone.     

When I finally got out of bed I felt like crawling right back in…or jumping out the window.  I don’t know what everyone else did all day but every single piece of everything owned by anyone was on the floor in every room.  Ugh. Where’s my vodka spray?