The Heel of January

Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013--Cartago to San Jose

The loud music from the downstairs bar was bit of a hassle last night, but it ended at 23:30.  I used my earplugs, and Wes somehow managed to sleep with the noise.

The owner of the hotel made us a nice breakfast of eggs, ham, fresh bread, butter, jam, coffee and juice this morning.  It was our first time to meet her.  When we checked in, the owner of the bar (her son?) took us up and showed us the room and told us to pay the woman.   So we slept all night without filling out any paperwork or paying anything.  It's nice to encounter such a loosey-goosey operation where people are just trusted.

We took the bus into San Jose and walked to the Hotel Aranjuez which we had decided was the best place to stay.  The man at the desk was friendly.  When asked about a room for two nights, he said he could only give us one for one night so far, but we would be first on the waiting list.  Then we discussed whether anything special was happening in town today.  His reply was that this is "the heel of January."  Explaining, he said that the holidays have ended, people have spent too much money and need to be cautious, and that they must return to work and school tomorrow.  Therefore, this weekend is the quiet weekend where people stay at home, don't spend money, and rest--called the heel of January.

We left our luggage and explored the city.  As usual, I could recall and find locations Arne and I had visited 25 years ago when we were here.  We passed the Parque Nationale, the National Museum,  Plaza Espana, and the National Theater on our way to Parque la Sabana where many people congregate on Sundays.  At the park, we toured the Museo de Arte Costarricense which had an exhibit of works (mostly very nice wooden sculptures) by Néstor Zeledón.  What's most interesting about the museum, however, is that it is the former terminal building for the original airport in San Jose.  It's a beautiful structure!  And the park is on the land where the landing strip and the rest of the airport existed.  

Wes was having a craving for fast food, so we stopped at KFC on our way back to the room.  We ordered a couple of sandwiches each and a drink each.  With unlimited refills, we drank our fill of diet sodas after eating the sandwiches.  

As of tonight, the hotel is still booked solid for tomorrow.  We planned to make a day trip to Heredia.  I did research on the computer to find hotels there in case we have to check out and leave this hotel tomorrow morning.