Good bye Jaco

Jaco Sunset

Sunset with Flag

Jazz On The Beach

Last night a bunch of folks we have met here at the condos walked down the beach to another condo complex that was having a "Jazz On The Beach" evening.   This is the beginning of a movement to "upgrade" the image of Jaco. 

Club Del Mar

It was a very nice setting out in the yard.

Crowd Gathering

There ended up being well over a hundred people there.

All Good Seats

The Outdoor Bar

Our dentist showed up--he is the guy in blue.

Alonso

Our table was having a good time.

Part of Our Group

It was right at sunset which turned out to be very pretty---again.

Sunset

The band was called the Scott Quintet.

Scott Quintet

I guess "Scott" made the fifth member of he quintet. He was the singer but just the band played most of the time.
I think everyone had a good time.  I know Gail and I did. 

A Good Time

And afterwards we walked home on the beach with just the lights of the moon and the stars--and maybe a condo here and there.

Miscellaneous 2

Here are a few more pictures that did not fit into any blog topic.

The entire town of Jaco is centered on the beach.  They have only a small area that has a life guard on duty.  However, there is a roaming rescue unit that is present a lot of the time.

Beach Rescue

There are some real artisans down here.  This wood carver had some exquisite pieces.  There were all sizes and many of them were painted in bright colors.

Wood Carver

Philodendron grow wild here and the leaves are as big as your head.

Philodendron

I am not sure what this plant is--Agave, Aloe Vera, or just a cactus--but it sure is healthy.

Healthy

The other night we went to a little restaurant just down the street.  It is called Rancho Santanna.  They have really good food.  Here is a page from their menu.

As you can see, the first item on the menu is "Rice with Octopus" for 3900 colones.  You can also get rice with squid for the same price.  The most expensive items on the menu are the 12oz Ribeye and the 12oz Strip Loin(?).   To convert colones to dollars, you just multiply by 2.  The ribeye would cost $18 but the rice with octopus would only be $7.80.

There is a very exclusive and expensive hotel at the top of this mountain called Villa Collitas.  It has a fabulous panoramic view.

You can see the bay to the north.

And Jaco to the south.

There is a fabulous infinity pool.

Although we haven't made it yet in the evening, people go there just to watch the sunset.

Surfers are everywhere here.  One of the activities is Yoga on a surfboard.

Yoga Boarding

I am sure it is very relaxing.

The trash around town, in many places, is put in containers that are above ground.  This keeps animals from getting into it.

Trash

Although predominately Catholic, there are many other religions represented here also.  This is the Jewish Synagogue here.

Synagogue

There is a fruit here called Guanabana.  It is 10,000 times stronger than chemotherapy in killing cancer cells.  If you Google it, you will be amazed at what all this fruit does.   Here is a link to read all about it (you will have to cut and paste this into your browser URL)--

http://www.assatashakur.org/forum/afrikan-wholistic-health/43184-cancer-healing-tree-guanabana-sour-sop.html

Since we found out about it, Gail and I have been adding it to our daily smoothie.  It is sweet and tastes a little like a combination of peach and pineapple.  The fruit is pretty big, about the size of a watermelon, and costs between $10 to $16 for just one.  The white containers in the cooler in the picture are full of the Guanabana fruit.  They cost $2 each.

Guanabana

I measure my blood pressure daily and was taking medicine to keep it lower.  I have not taken any blood pressure medicine since coming here and it is lower than any time since I began measuring it. 
I am not saying this is the reason but it really is worth checking out.

Miscellaneous 1

I was looking through the files on the computer and found a number of pictures from Jaco that just did not fit into any of the blogs.  I thought about creating blogs about birds, and flowers, etc., but decided to just put some of these pictures into a couple miscellaneous blogs.   So here goes...

There are large bunches of bamboo all over the place.  This is one right beside the tennis courts. They are quite large and can be as high as 30 or 40 or more feet tall.

Bamboo

 There are a lot of different kinds of birds.  These little blue ones come to the trees right outside our balcony every morning.

Blue Bird of Costa Rica

And these look like red doves.

Red Dove

And these yellow guys are the songsters.

Yellow Bird

Gail and I go boogie boarding almost every day.  I have a lot of pictures of us playing in the waves.  However, I thought some of the guys would enjoy this picture more.

Go Girl

As you can see from this picture, Gail is in heaven when she is eating Ceviche.

Shrimp Ceviche

Sunglasses

Hats

Down here everyone needs sunglasses and hats.
But sometimes there are things for sale along the street that you are not quite sure what it is.

Not Sure

Much of our day is spent enjoying the pool.  We have learned that being in the shade is a good thing.  This is how Gail spends many hours.  Note the very unusual, and beautiful, flower behind her.

Gail Relaxing

This is a grave site.  Cory passed away but was obviously a surfer who enjoyed his beer.  There must be some significance in the Mother-In-Law Tongues at the foot of the site.

Here Lies Cory

This is our office.

Our Office

The chains on our bicycles have rusted already and we have had them only a few weeks.  I have "bathed" the entire bicycles in WD40 which seems to help, but they still rust.  This is the gate leading out to the ocean side of our complex.  It has rusted so badly they can no longer use the lock but have to use a chain instead.  

Rusty Gate

 So if you ever decide to add more iron to your diet, make sure you cut back on the salt a the same time.  If you don't, your gate could permanently loose it's swing! 

Tennis

Gail and I try to play tennis at least three times a week.  There is only one court so you have to reserve it in advance but it only costs $5 an hour.  It is in town but has a small creek running across the back and a large stand of bamboo on one side.

Tennis Court

The one end has trees that over hang the court and sometimes Iguanas and the Macaws from the restaurant across the street come to watch us play.

Watching Us Play Tennis

 This does create a problem that we have to play around.

Poop On The Court

Gail is tenacious.

Gail 1

Gail 2

Gail 3

Gail 4

 Me--I'm just there to give her target practice and try to, once in a while, hit it back to her.

Larry 1

Larry 2

Larry 3

Larry 4

We always play early in the morning (8:00 am) but it does get hot by the time we finish so we take a lot of water breaks.

Water Break

It really is good exercise, burns a lot of calories, and it does so much to build Gail's ego.