Esterillos

Folks,

Like yourselves, we’ve just had a bank holiday weekend. We travelled to the small beach village of Esterillos Este, and had a really nice and relaxing time.

Terremoto
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We had a small earthquake on Monday. It was at around 9.30 in the evening, and was during the showing on TV of a film called “10.5” about an earthquake in San Francisco. You almost felt you were there!

Bank holiday weekend
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This was a bank holiday weekend. However, it wasn’t very busy, because most people had spent all their money during Semana Santa. We decided to head to the small village of Esterillos Este on the Pacific Coast. It was our first time go to a place on the coast that was off the beaten track. When the bus dropped us off on the main road we felt that we were in the middle of nowhere. We had about a 2km walk to the hotel. When we got there we discovered that bizarrely we had to cross an aircraft runway. Right in the middle of nowhere, and crossing the road. There was a stop sign warning you to look out for aircraft.

Esterillos Este
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Esterillos is a collection of beaches with little villages, called Esterillos Este, Centro and Oeste (or East, Central and West). We stayed in a small hotel for about €32 for a double room. That’s expensive for us! And beers were a whopping €1.60. It was very quiet and relaxed. Beautiful mornings and afternoons, with rainy evenings.

Sunburn
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The hotel had boogie boards available for guests. They’re kind of like sawn-off surfboards that you lie on. We went out on them the first morning and we had brilliant craic. However, although it was overcast there was sun getting through. I usually go right up to my neck in the sea because of the strong sun. But with the boogie boards you were out of the water most of the time, with the result that we got terrible sunburn. The first sunburn I’ve got in over a year here.

I look like I’m wearing a red t-shirt. Because I’d put sunscreen on my arms and legs outside of t-shirt and shorts. We’re getting over it now, but it’s still a little sore.

Yesterday, we decided to wait until after the late afternoon’s rain before going out on the boards. We had great fun surfing in the lashings of rain. So much safer.

Bank holidays
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This Monday was a bank holiday for Mayday. Next Monday, there is a bank holiday for the transfer of power for to the new President! But I think that the school will still be open, so we won’t have it off. But we should be paid double time. I think it would be popular at home to bring down the government if it meant a holiday each time.

Rainy Season
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The rainy season is definitely here. It rains most afternoons for a little while here in the Central Valley, and a little later on the Pacific Coast. However, the rest of the day is beautiful and sunny. And the temperature is hotter than in the dry season!
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So that’s it for another week. This is a short week. Only 3 days, because of the bank holiday, and because I’m not back on Saturday rotation yet. So until next week …

Pura Vida,

Éamon

Today’s headline in La Nación: PLN achieves comfortable triumph in legislative session