We took the bus to San Ramon Friday to pick up a package from our mail forwarding service. While there, we figured we would check out the Friday afternoon feria, which we were told is better than the one in Palmares.
Clearly we did not think our timing through well and arrived at a little before 10 a.m. The feria didn't open until about 1:30. So what to do for 3 1/2 hours? For starters we visited a series of pharmacies, picked up one of hubby's meds and discovered that my lipid medication (Pravachol) can't be bought here. Oh dear... Another problem to be solved on another day.
Around noon we stopped at a tiny little soda (Mom & Pop cafe, except in this instance is was Mom and Two Daughters cafe.) It was a little hole in the wall place that gave me a moment's pause before entering, but turned out to be the perfect choice. When I asked if there was a menu, an English-speaking patron said there was none. She said they have fried chicken (okay, something we don't get often), rice, beans... the usual. So, hubby ordered that. In the meantime, Mom produced a laminated menu. Perfect! Especially since I really didn't want a whole big meal. I chose the "sandwich jamon & queso" (ham & cheese sandwich). Sorry, they don't have it. So I tried un hamberguesa. Nope. No sandwiches. By now I was getting the picture, so I ordered the chicken plate, but pequino (small).
No more chicken... okay, carne (meat) would be fine. I haven't had real good experience with Costa Rican beef, but by now I was willing to take the path of least resistance. My pequino plate turned out to be every bit as big as hubby's. And my carne turned out to be a beautifully fried (sorry arteries) pork chop. On the side we were served rice, black beans, mashed potatoes, plantains, a delicious diced vegetable that I think might have been choyote & a beet salad.
The ladies were cheerful, joking with us about our meager language skills, and they were clearly proud of the fine food they served - as well they should be. We paid the bill on our way out - 2000 colones, or about $4 - and left feeling good about our choice. On our way to the feria we passed numerous other restaurants, some small sodas and some "nicer" places, and were agreed that none of them would have been as satisfying as Mom's place.
The feria turned out to be a bust for us, as few of the vendors displayed their prices. One thing we've learned during our time in Costa Rica is that a gringo without espanol language skills is a sitting duck for being charged the "gringo tax" - an inflated price reserved just for people like us. So we looked around, bought some clearly priced Roma tomatoes (the first we've found!) from a little old lady with just a tiny display and decided to come back with our Tico friends and give it another try on another day.
After nearly 3 hours of walking we had just one more stop: the mail forwarding service. "Sorry," we were told. "The package won't be in until Saturday." (sigh & shrug) We have a wedding to attend on Saturday so we'll be back sometime next week -- after we call first to confirm that our package has indeed arrived!
In retrospect, this is pretty much the way our life here goes. A few successes intermixed with a few challenges that give us something to do on another day after we rest our tired legs and feet.
Pura Vida
