Money Talk

Last night I came across a phrase that I haven't heard before. Nor have I thought about before. Money autobiography.

Basically it's a term that describes about how you think about money, feel about money, use money, etc throughout your life.

I was very fascinated by the hand out that was given to us; and while at the meeting I kept to myself (like I always do), the questions were very thought provoking.

Money is a very sensitive subject. I know I am very private about it. I don't discuss with anybody how much or how little I make. I remember my mother getting really furious (exaggeration I know) one time when she inquired exactly how much I'm making. I think the question was brought about by me lecturing her how to save money. I know, my fault. How dare me to lecture her on budgeting and using money the right way. This is a woman who managed to feed her family and send all her children to college and not get buried in debts with what little she has to go on.

And so during this outburst, my mom said that she cannot understand how her children turned out to be tightfisted with money and how we don't share with her how much money we make. (She has money of her own, she was nosey about how much we make.)

It shocked me to the core that I wasn't willing to share how much money I exactly make. My husband knows how much I make and I know how much we make during tax time. Only then that we look at our finances that closely.

During the rest of the year, I believe that we live within our means. I do feel that most of the time we even live below our means. I am thankful that he is very disciplined with our spending. If I'm in charge, we'd be in credit card debts by now. I don't go to the malls, stores very often, because I don't like too much crowded places and the HVAC in dep't stores give me congestion and headaches so I stay away. BUT on those rare times I go in there, I am very prone to impulse shopping. My past has shown that I have many purchases that were donated to Salvation Army that were not used. Many still were hardly used, they were brand new.

So with this new awareness of money talks, I am going to reflect on how I feel about money, how I use it, how I feel about sharing it and how generous I can be without feeling the pinch.

Are You Ready For Fall?

Three more days and we're officially in Fall Season. Well, when kids returned to the classrooms and the freeways got jammed again, it felt like Fall Season, but our weather here has been more summer like, very typical of our Indian summer.

Anyway, I'm trying to digest this fact. I'm not ready yet. All summer long I have been telling myself to pull out the box in the garage where the fall (halloween and thanksgiving) decorations are stored so that I can decorate on time.

But it's only three days and I haven't located the box yet. I know I am disorganized like crazy.

But I am ready for fall.

With Fall, comes cooler weather, boots, jackets, sweaters, scarves. Hot chocolate drink before bedtime. Soothing jasmine tea. Piping hot coffee.

Likewise, my fall shows are coming back. Person of Interest, Revenge, Once Upon a Time, The Good Wife, Castle, Haven, Big Bang Theory.

I'm also very ready to move on from summer. Summer has been a heartbreaker for me and I'd like very much to just leave all the aches and pains of summer with summer.

What are you looking forward to this fall?

My Kind of Day

My kind of Sunday really. The weather is 79F. There is a little breeze. The washing machine is running. I've done the ironing. May do a bit of vacuuming later tonite. Presently watching the Giants while tinkering with Flick'r. And most importantly I'm in the same room with my cats, who are making the most of Sunday sleeping. Buster is by my foot, while Emma is comfortably in dreamland at the bed.

So how are you spending your Sunday?

Oh Giants, My Giants

It is the second week of September. The baseball season is winding down and I've only blogged about the Giants 2013 season here once. And only two pathetic lines saying the Giants were opening their season at Chavez Ravine (LA Dodgers) and they lost their first game of the season. I even ended that paragraph with it's only one game. Meaning I was hopeful that despite a lost to begin their season that it was after all only game 1 of 162.

That was the full extent of my Giants coverage this season. Pathetic isn't it? Add remiss to that as well.

I remembered about the Giants last night while watching their 10th inning win over the who-the-heck-were-they-playing again? Anyway, because the game was quite exciting for a no-bearing game, I was reminded to check my Giants posts this year. That was when I found out that I made one mention of them on an April post this year. That was all I wrote.

Unfortunately for the Giants, after highest of highs last season, their 2013 was dismal. The Giants resigned 2012 heroes back to the fold in Marco Scutaro, Hunter Pence, and Angel Pagan. Of the three, only Hunter seemed to earn his paycheck. Marco Scutaro was on and off, in and out, was hurt and wasn't as effective. Angel Pagan was effective until he got hurt and needed to stay on disabled list for a long time.

The starting rotation that was unbelievably effective in last year's post-season seemed to completely forgot to pitch. Barry Zito, Ryan Vogelsong, Tim Lincecum - they showed no sign of the brilliance of the past post-season. I'm not 100% sure about Vogie, but I believe all 3 have contracts expiring at the end of this year.

If I were the Giants, I'd resign none of them. Barry Zito already has made money off the Giants with that incredulous contract he signed years ago. Vogelsong on the other hand has his peak and I don't think he'd be able to go back that high again. Tim Lincecum is a tough problem. He had 2 lackluster seasons, but he's once the face of the franchise and this year had shown glimmer of his old brilliance with that no-hitter against San Diego. But if I were the Giants, I would beg off resigning him.

As a fan, I would like the Giants to resign Tim Lincecum. While his stuff as a starter is no longer there, he is a great reliever. He still has nasty stuff in middle relief. Plus, it would really be weird if he dons a different jersey.

As a Giants fan, I would have no problem releasing Barry Zito. While his work in the community is unparallel and noteworthy, he simply doesn't have the stuff to be competetive in the field.

For Vogelsong, as a fan my loyalty remains, but as a fan I also would like my team to field a strong crew that will be able to compete for 162 games and beyond. This is after all a business as well. The fans come when the product is effective.

It's sad to see them go, but it's time to shake up the team.

Other players that need to go Gregor Blanco is one. While his defensive skills are without doubt, his offense is lacking and dismal. And if the Giants resign Hunter Pence (please do) then they only need one outfield post for next season. Are there any in the farm system that can come up and patrol the left field?

I am very pleased with the recent development of Brandon Belt as an offensive punch he's been expected to be since his arrival in the majors. It took him long enough but he's finally showing what the management was excited about. I would like to see more offense from the other Brandon - Crawford. I would like him to be a double barrel threat. I am expecting him to get Golden Gloves very soon, if not this season.

I hope that the adorable Panda would take his physical conditioning seriously. He lost time this season with injury and while that has nothing to do with his weight (or maybe it does) he needs to be in fighting/playing form. Please Panda do something.

It's really hard to complain about Buster. In fact I have nothing to say against him. I just hope that with a longer time off this season he can stay rested longer and return next season fresh and healthy and ready to take home more accolades and awards.

The heat, the bridge and a little wine tasting.

In short, a little update.

Last week was all hot and humid, and by the end of the week it was still hot and no longer humid. Thank heavens for little mercies.

It was too hot to do anything on Saturday, so after driving mom to her errands I watched some movies on tv. There was a weekend marathon of Harry Potter, which ABC Family channel has periodically throughout the year. Each time, I find myself rewatching the movies over and over.

On Saturday afternoon they were showing the Sorcerer's Stone, the first one, my fave of all. When ABC does a marathon, they usually skip the first movie, for reasons I don't understand. As a fan of the movies, it gives me a kick to see the characters again when they were very young and cute.

Even the hubby who dislikes staying home on the weekends sat and read newspapers and whatnot. I didn't realize that he had plans later in the day.

We drove off at quarter to 5. Unbeknownst to me we were meeting up with his carpool buddy and his wife and we'd have a walk to the new bridge date.

When we got there, the hubby called him and he was already walking on the trail about 10 minutes ahead of us. We encountered heavy traffic, that's why it was 5:30 by the time we were starting our walk.

The path/trail starts just outside of Ikea in Emeryville and winds under freeway and beside freeway lanes. The path was well paved and very popular. We had many companions walking that afternoon; many more pedalling ahead.

Then we reached a point where we could see where the path would curve and apparently that's where the beginning of the bridge path is, but it was already closed. The sign that says dusk to dawn at the beginning of the trail meant something. At 6:00 pm for now the trail is closed for pedestrian. Bikers have no restrictions. We heard that later on they would make the trail accessible 24/7.

Sigh! From Ikea to the bridge is 2 miles, very doable. Not difficult at all. We'll try again someday.

When we got back to the parking lot, we both decided to browse at Ikea, while the other couple decided to grab a yogurt and go. We stayed and I was most tempted to buy something, but since hubby was with me (and the thought of long lines for paying) it was easier to resist the urge to spend.

Spend we did however for food as we were quite hungry. We split a meal of chicken tenders and fries. All I want is fries anyway, been craving for them lately.

By the time we finished eating, we were hoping the traffic to the city would ease up a bit so we could do our mandatory first drive over the new span thing. Thankfully despite all the traffic, we were able to cross the beautiful span in less time than what I feared. After all, it's past 7 PM.

Since we crossed the bridge anyway, we might as well go to Embarcadero and take photos. We found parking easily and snapped a few shots. Afterwards we took a short detour to Treasure Island for more shooting. Hubby did the shooting. I was using my smart phone, he brought his camera.

We got home nearly 10 pm, and the house was still hot.

Sunday was going to be in the 90s here; but we weren't going to be home all day. Our friends invited us to a wine tasting in Napa; and we told them we're taking them for early dinner once the wine tasting was over.

Napa was hot, but it was beautiful, as always.

Our first order of business was light lunch so that we won't be tasting in empty stomach. Our friend found this Mexican grocery store with a little taqueria at the back. Their specialty is carne asada so the hubs and I split a super carne asada quesadilla, while our friends split a carne asada burito. It was a good spot for these dishes. Affordable too. We ate at a picnic table behind the store with views of the vineyard. So very Napa valley!

We went to 2 different wineries for wine tasting. On the first one, where we have reservations, we took our time and sampled about 6 wines. I like only 2 of them. We sat in the garden underneath the umbrella and have fans on us; it was a hot day, but the garden seating was inviting. I didn't melt, although I was sweating like a pig.

The second winery was all spur of the moment. We finished tasting at the first winery and found that we had so much time to kill before the restaurant would open. Our friends like this second winery and they have been tasting here for years. The good thing about it also is that the tastings are free. So few of the wineries nowadays offer free tastings. I begged off this time, but when it was time to taste the port, hubby just had to make me sip. Glad he did, because it was a good port. It's the best wine I've tasted that day (not including the wine we brought for dinner).

Another stop we made was at Dean and Deluca, a gourmet food store. I really like browsing here and tasting. We left empty handed.

We arrive at the downtown area with plenty of time to go before the restaurant opens for dinner service, so we walked around the riverfront, giving tour to our friends who often visit Napa but don't come to this side of the city. We browsed at stores, enjoyed the gardens, photographed the tile mural and then it was time to eat.

Zuzu was our choice. We wanted to have them taste and see what they think. Overall we had about 11 or 12 small plates including the desserts. Rioja was the bottle that hubby brought with our dinner, and it's one of my favorites. The meal was satisfying. You know what they say, good food good friends good life. It was a good day to spend in Napa Valley with friends.

Oh, I think the temperature is going south starting Tuesday. Hey Autumn, aren't you coming in yet?

A Weird Few Days

I've experienced something I don't recall having experienced before as a resident of this wonderful region. We have had a string of humid days. Humidity! It's here. In the Bay Area.

Humidity and I we don't get along well. I'm Miss Cranky Pants when humidity makes an appearance. And while I'm really brave vacationing at locations where heat and humidity is the norm, I can be assured that when the vacation ends I could go back to my drylandia.

But these past few days were crazy. So humid. My house was too hot and humid and it's not even that hot outside.

Anyway, because there is so much water in the air, our skies were so pretty, something like this. This picture was taken a few months back, but this cloudscape reminded me so much of what we had this weekend.

Changing topic here. I finally got a taste of Indonesian cuisine courtesy of PADI in Berkeley. Our dining group (for lack of better term) met up at the College Avenue location, the website said they have another one in San Lorenzo, and partake of the 12-course group meal. I really enjoyed a few of the dishes, but there is nothing that I would brag about here. My hubs on the other hand was really impressed.

Good food and good friends was a great way to end the holiday weekend. But that's not all.

After dinner we decided we wanted some ice cream for dessert, even though our 12-course meal included a delicious dessert.

So we bravely queued up at ICI, which against my better judgement turned out to be a good idea. I don't like lining up for anything, much less ice cream. But the ice cream was made in Berkeley, I don't know exactly if it's in this location, but it's artisanal and quite good.

They have different flavors everyday and from a list of about 6 on the chalkboard, I had a scoop of burnt caramel, which was quite subtle. I wanted a bit bolder caramel taste. The hubs had a scoop of ginger creme brulee; hardly brulee taste and very strong ginger taste, which overpowers the flavor. However, it was good.

So after 20 minutes in line our group of 9 including 2 kids had our scoops and ate them standing on the sidewalk chatting the night away.

It was about 9 pm and we thought we'd be able to go from Berkeley to cross the new span that night, but the bridge didn't open until after 10 pm so we just went home and got ready for another week of work.

It looks like our dining group is indeed going to do it monthly this time around. S reminded us that the last time we met up for dinner was some 6 weeks ago at Dixie; however, there were only 4 of us that were able to make it that time.

Now with all these eating (we didn't even bbq for Labor Day) I must do something about losing all these weight.

A Page From My Journal

Sept 14-15, 2011

Picture this. Staying in a cottage/lodge steps from the jungle and the great canal, being woken up to the sounds of toucans and other birds and the howling of the monkeys. This was my experience in Pachira Lodge in Tortuguero.

We spent 3 days 2 nights in this jungle paradise. Upon arrival, we were immediately handed a cocktail to quench our thirst after an almost 2-hour boat ride to reach this place. That little treat scored big points for me. Before we even finished our drink, our room assignment was being given to us, right there in the pool area, by the bar. Our little group of 7 – the Friendly Planet group – was housed in one lodge/cottage. Each lodge is divided into 4 rooms – with double queen size beds. We were on room 2 and our lodge is closest to the dining area, bar, pool – everything. The monkeys and toucans also hang around the trees around our lodge.

Upon receipt of our room keys, we dragged our luggage to the room and was more interested in checking out what’s around the lodge than resting. The gardens are splendid. Total tropical paradise feel, and just yards away from the actual jungle.

We dumped our luggage, didn’t even bother to unpack. Two nights/3 days wasn’t that long to unload everything from the luggage. I just pulled out the t-shirts and the shorts/pants that I would be using while I was here and pulled out the toiletries, even though there were some provided.

Lunch time was calling. We were given our timetable, and lunch buffet is open for about 1.5-2 hours. Buffet is not the same as what we are used to in the states where there are endless choices of proteins and carbs and desserts. Here they have a spread of tropical fruits, 1 or 2 meat dish, a veggie dish, rice, and another carb choice, and 1 or 2 dessert choices. The juice is free flowing. They have wonderful selections like one day they had blackberry juice, which I never had before.

Plenty of time between lunch and 3 pm which was the time when our jungle walk/hike would commence. We walked around the perimeter of our lodge and I took the time to wash up a bit. I feel the need to always wash up here – sweat, bug spray and sunblock.

At the bar was where the group would meet for the jungle walk. Just off the pool area is a trail that leads to the jungle. Although we didn’t go far enough – ask anyone from the group and they’d tell you we wanted to go deeper into the mysterious forest – I had a good time. Immediately as we arrived at the foot of the trail, we were asked to look up the tree and see what’s there. I didn’t see it at first but suddenly I did, a three-toed sloth – I would trust my guide for I cannot see that far how many toes the sloth had. It was exciting. Julio our guide – with Mariano who handles mostly the Spanish speaking group – was very knowledgeable. Very likeable too and friendly, but keeps a tight rein with following the schedule.

He showed us different flora – some of which are not foreign to my eyes having been raised in a tropical country as well. I learned to be careful of where I step, be vigilant of other creatures that are sharing the space with me. We saw spiders – some scary looking and others cute – and mostly bugs. Learning about the trees and their symbiotic relationship with each other was very fascinating. It was tough to focus on Julio and what he was saying when the whole time all I could think about is how to compose the image that I was about to take. The blogger in me takes over sometimes.

Midway through the tour, my husband and I and another couple were lagging behind because hubby was taking photos when all of a sudden he saw a sloth on the ground. Sloths come down on the ground once every 9 days or so to defecate. Excitedly we alerted the group who were a few yards away from us to come back and see what we found. Julio in all his years of guiding tours has never seen a sloth on the ground before. The slow movement of the sloth should have given me ample time to take great shot, except that under the canopy where light is scarce there was only so much I can do. It was an amazing experience. Everyone was thanking the hubby for his keen eye.

It was dark inside the forest, but still light outside when we emerged from it. We had nothing to do – the time until dinner is ours to do as we please. This is a place where there are no phones, no tv, no internet. Across the canal, via a water taxi is the main village. They have a bar and some shopping and restaurants. But no one went. We all ran up to our room changed into our swimming gears and jumped into the pool. Since the pool is next to the bar, we had a few drinks while engaging in tittle tattle with our fellow travelers. I’ve never been in a pool this much time as I’ve had here in Pachira – there is nothing else to do. Plus, we found out soon enough mosquitoes cannot get us when we’re in the pool. So we spent time in the pool and gotten the cooling off we needed.

The next day our itinerary is full. After breakfast we took a boat ride across the canal to Tortuguero village. Mariano was in charge of the English speaking group this time. We walked around, watched the fire ants collect blades of grass and spotted some very tiny wren. We proceeded to go to the beach, which is a part of the sanctuary for turtles. Limited access to general public here because it’s part of the national park system. They want to preserve the sanctuary for these turtles.

The sun was high and unbearable. We were walking down the beach of the Carribean sea, but the seabreeze offered no relief to the heat. As we were walking along we spotted a baby turtle that died on the nest. When they hatch, they need to be able to leave the nest and get into the water before the sun is high. This one must have been caught in the heat, didn’t have a chance. Apparently the baby turtle has to hurdle many challenges for its survival. Predators like birds and dogs and other animals, people who still didn’t get the memo. Then from its nest it has to make sure it reaches the ocean before the sun gets too hot. Also we were advised not to pick up turtles, especially live ones, as they have sensors in their belly/feet that senses the and memorizes the path they take from the nest to the ocean, which will be very helpful if and when these babies grow up and mature to lay eggs.

While the beach was gorgeous and the tempatation to unlace my walking shoes and dip my heated toesies in the water was strong, I was glad that the beach portion of this tour was over. It was incredibly hot, people.

Finally, it was time to visit the village, which was immediately across the lodge from us. There is a paved path – should I even consider it road even when the only transportation that uses it is a two-wheeler bike – that goes straight parallel to the canal. Facing the village with our backs to the canal, we decided to walk to the right where both sides of the path are lined with stores and eateries and accommodations all housed in structures painted in vivid colors. We entered a few stores and bought turtle earrings for gifts and then continued our walk. My strength was dwindling mainly due to thirst and heat. I was able to finish a bottle of water immediately after we entered the village, but that doesn’t seem enough. I was still thirsty and at the same time worried that I might need a bathroom, which is a problem.

We spotted a cart vendor pushing coconuts – he was in demand – and my hubs and I split one coconut between us, which tide me over. And so I continued to shoot.

We returned to the lodge before lunch. While others jumped into the pool right away to cool down, I didn’t. The pool was under full sun and I was afraid I’d be taking extra sun than I needed (although I do have Vit. D deficiency) and that I’d be burned to a crisp so we just walked around and the perimeter and watched a family of monkeys swing from branches to branches, never gets old after two days 

Since we knew we wanted to see the giant turtle laying eggs that night, we had to buy our tickets at the reception area. After we secured our spots for the trip that night we lingered on the porch outside the reception desk where we could get a great view of the monkeys. I don’t recall whose cellphone it was that my hubs was carrying, mine or his, and why the heck was there a cellphone in his pocket in this out-of-the-way locale anyway, but for the heck of it he checked if there is wifi connection since we spotted a router inside the reception area. We were told this place has no phone, no tv, no internet. But yahoo, our little phone that could was able to connect to Facebook of course. And so he hurried to get the laptop in our room, which is a stone’s throw away from where we were sitting. I have to travel with a laptop because I need to upload my images to a computer – the bane of travelling with a compulsive shooter.

This serendipitious discovery has enabled us to email family and peek at facebook and allowed our newfound friends to shoot emails to their families as well.

Another couple that we spend our time here had shared that they had nowhere to go after we leave here tomorrow. They were under the impression that they were staying in the lodge for 3 nights. On the way back from the village, they chatted with Julio, our guide, about what’s in store for them tomorrow when the rest of us will leave. Julio told them WE all will leave. The lodge offers only either a 2 days 1 night stay or a 3 days 2 nights stay. And tonite is the second night here.

This is when my laptop was helpful. They had to make emergency travel arrangements. He even teased me why I’m carrying a huge laptop in this age when everything techie is going small. It’s a 15 inches laptop – not that huge, but it’s about 2 years old, antiquated to some, but it serves its purpose, cache for my photos and now their way to acquiring lodging for tomorrow night.


3:00 pm was the time the jungle cruise/boat ride began. As usual we were split into Spanish speaking and non-Spanish speaking/English speaking groups. On our boat we had Julio as our guide. Ronnie was our driver.

We sailed quietly, the hushed surroundings lent itself to a little meditative moment but we weren’t here to float aimlessly. We were here to see and hear and experience jungle. Parts of the jungle/national park can be explored by foot, which we did yesterday. Most of it can only be explored through the canals. There is an impressive canal system both natural and man-made that offers the best experience.

Have you been to the Disneyland ride to the jungle? This is a thousand times cooler and better. But having ridden both rides, I must say Disney had it right on target, but nothing beats the real thing.

Our driver had keen eyes. While the other boat passed us by because there was no activity going on, he spotted some curious lizards on the branches, by the bushes. He’s very good.

We continued floating by the canals, went into a smaller canal, which if my memory is correct is one of the man-made ones. These jungles are home to three different monkeys – howler, spider, and white faced. We saw all while staying in Pachira.

What a thrill! I cannot explain the pulchritude of the place or how affected I was of its serenity, beauty, power, and strength. If allowed I would not mind taking this boat trip every single day. So many things to see and hear and experience. Jaguars are said to live here, we didn’t see one that day. I wonder if they would come closer to the water. My guess is that they would stay deep in the forest.

Birdwatching is excellent, although there weren’t many birds. We saw enough to satisfy us.

The trip lasted 2 to 2.5 hours and we disembarked all sweaty and hot and in need of a dip in the pool. It’s an hour or so before dinner bell rings (figuratively) so we had plenty of time to congregate by the pool and enjoy some ice cold beverages.

Because of the propinquity of the jacuzzi/pool area to the entrance to the jungle/national park, we were watching the sloth up in the tree while soaking in the jacuzzi. How cool is that?

We had to take our dinner quickly because we had signed up for a tour to see the turtles lay eggs on the beach that night and it was starting at 8 pm.

I’ve noticed that people/tour guides are very punctual here in Costa Rica – no tour is late, earlier even.

We were transported from our lodge to the village by boat/water taxi and was met by our guide for tonight. It appears that a different license is required to guide tours for turtles laying eggs than regular tours, and Julio didn’t have that license. He was however very firm in saying over and over again to observe the rules set out by the park – without exceptions no recording of any sort, no cameras, no video nothing. When a tourist violates these rules, which apparently are enforced diligently, the guide will lose her license for a period of 1 to 2 years. No one wants to be responsible for a guide losing her job because we can’t follow the rules.

What I thought was going to be a lazy walk on the beach by moonlight was the opposite. The minute we all got out of the boat and the guide introduced herself, we were off like we’re running away from immigration officers . Brisk walking, meet Maria. It was a tough walk to the beach. We passed by the village then onto the dimly lit portion of the beach to a waiting station. The rangers don’t want a mob descending on the beach during this time when the turtles are just coming out of the water. The waiting station which was totally in darkness is a ways off. The beach area is divided into stations and a runner/ranger would be scouring the beach for turtles. When they spot a turtle and find where it goes and begins to dig, the runner would then go to the waiting station and informs the guide where to direct the tourists.

We waited for a long time in the station, which was good because I was able to catch my breath. There were hushed conversations among us, but in general the quiet and the dark were a potent combination for relaxation – if I wasn’t dog tired from that almost running we just did. I was so horrified at how poorly I performed at brisk walking. How could I be so out of shape – nope don’t answer that.

When the runner came, he said something to the guide who then herded us to backtrack because apparently we overshot our target spot, the turtle chose to lay eggs closer to the village.

Another long brisk walk, I was crying (figuratively again!) I drank like a gallon of juice and water over dinner and though I was sweating profusely, my tee-shirt was soaked, I felt the need to pee.

We found the section that we were told to go but nothing was happening. Apparently, we had to wait for another runner to tell us when to approach. While we were waiting on the beach, I was imagining how romantic this scenario would be under different circumstance. All of a sudden, we spotted a turtle coming out of the water to the beach to lay an egg. I thought that was our turtle. I was wrong. Our turtle was already in the beach, digging furiously and was about to lay eggs. This whole tour is 2 hours long. Whether or not the group sees a turtle the tour ends after 2 hours. And so our time was spent mostly waiting and waiting. An hour and 30 minutes into the tour, a runner approached us as we were sprawled on the cool sand and told us where to go to see the turtle.

The long hike on the beach and the seemingly endless wait on the beach dissipated upon the sight of this once-in-a-lifetime experience. The turtle was huge. You know even bigger than a paella pan. She was in the process of laying eggs, they could lay about a hundred eggs if my memory is correct and once they start laying eggs they go on a trance. We were really quiet, but awestruck at how amazing a sight this is. We let the other group – there was another one – to peek, then it was our turn again. This time the turtle was done and she was covering up the eggs with sand. She takes breaks in between; she must have used up most of her energy laying all those eggs.

We didn’t stay to see the turtle eggs get fully covered in sand, because we’re on a time limit and another set of tours is about to commence. They have two tours daily during the laying season from July to September, 8 and 10 pm.

The couple from Baltimore was complaining how vigorous the walk was and they are regular walkers; they walk daily for an hour. The woman even said the tour guide’s plump appearance belied her physical conditioning.

While many chose to stay around the pool/bar area – the full moon was beautiful – to enjoy a few more cold ones, I decided it was time to hit the showers and the sack soon after.

A group of guys decided to see the baby turtles return to the ocean in the morning. They agreed to leave by 5:30 am. A handful signed up, this isn’t a tour sanctioned by the lodge or the tour agency. It was a group of visitors who wanted to see the baby turtles early in the morning. The public is allowed on the beach on certain times and that’s 5 am to 7 am only. This is done to minimize disruption to the turtles routine during the time of laying eggs. Plus the beach is part of the national park.

My husband signed up and so did the Baltimore guy. Both the Baltimore wife and I opted to sleep in, we were tired from last night’s marathon hike . The wives volunteered to pack up for tomorrow’s departure, not that I had plenty to do since we only took out the clothing we needed for the duration of our stay here.

The group had fun exploring the beach and found a baby turtle on his way to the sea.