Playa Tamarindo

Just throwing some images at you from late yesterday afternoon on Tamarindo beach. The last one is for Olivier.

Way pre-dawn start today on our trip to Nicaragua.

¡Hola, Costa Rica!

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We made it. Through the good offices of our friend and colleague, Dave Selden of Tamarindo Daily Photo, we are settled into one of his two beautiful condos (pictures here).

Yesterday was a rare day in which we saw both the Atlantic and Pacific within a space of two hours on our flight from Miami. The first photo is of a pair of volcanoes that form Ometepe Island in Lake Nicaragua, followed by two shots of the coast of CR's Guanacaste Province. At the bottom, a view from our balcony of the catamaran that does an afternoon and sunset trip (known locally as the booze cruise) returning to port.

Fabulous dinner last night at the restaurant of the Swiss-run Capitán Suizo resort. Hard to beat seafood that came off the boat the same afternoon. El Capitán must be retired from the army, since the officer corps of the Swiss navy is severely depleted.

Long day tomorrow. We have a 5:15 AM pickup for our trip to Nicaragua. Depending on time, I might have some pix on Tuesday.

Sorry for the late post. The Internet service in the building went down last night. There's a solar storm, isn't there? Besides, everything here runs on Tico time.

Time To Cut Loose

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When this gets uploaded I will be sound asleep at a Miami airport hotel. (Well, I sure hope I am.) It's time to stop wearing neckties and incessantly checking my email, to start lowering my heartbeat and consume more rum cocktails. I won't be wearing any plaid flannel shirts, though. It's just a last Idiotarod pic to send me off.

If all goes as planned, I'll upload something from central Tamarindo this evening.

Bowling For Hunger

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As I mentioned on Sunday, the Idiotarod was held for the benefit of Operation Food Search, a wonderful organization helping to feed St. Louis' hungry. One of the contestants' required activities in support of the cause was to roll a few lines at Flamingo Bowl, downtown's hippest (and only) bowling alley and cocktail lounge. The contest official and Burger King in the middle photo have had quite enough. Perhaps they would prefer to retire to the bar.

If it is of interest, there is a good sized set of Idiotarod photos on Flickr here.

My week of marathon running at work is done. Late afternoon flight to Miami today, where we will spend the night at an airport hotel. On to Liberia, Costa Rica, tomorrow morning and then a 90 minute drive to Tamarindo. Looks like our day trip to Nicaragua will be Monday, not Wednesday. It sounds a little scary but, what the heck, we've been to The Bronx.

Muppets

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Even though Jim Hensen is long gone, the Muppets still draw crowds on television, movies and on Locust Street in downtown St. Louis. This iteration is another team at the Idiotarod. Most everyone will recognize Kermit, above, and Miss Piggy, below. The whole crew lines up at the bottom, including Fozzie Bear and the Swedish Chef. I don't remember the character with the guitar. Suggestions?

I did a B&W version of the portrait of Kermit that I much prefer. The color version seemed better for the portal. You can see the B&W version here and decide for yourself.

STL DPB will be on automatic mode until the weekend. Posts with Idiotarod photos will be uploaded in advance and I won't be able to leave comments. I've got a ton and a half, possibly a ton and three-quarters, of work to do. Friday is a travel day. Fresh posts and comments will resume Saturday night (maybe) or Sunday morning (for sure) our time from Tamarindo, Costa Rica. It can't come too soon. And hey! We just booked a day trip to Nicaragua for next Wednesday.

Zombies Stalk St. Louis

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Ever feel like a zombie on your way home from work after a long, stressful day? (Actually got a clue what it would feel like to feel like a zombie?) Well, one team at the Idiotarod took a crack at it. I can't quite find a pattern in their costumes, though. There's a soldier, the Statue of Liberty (What? Is there some political satire here?), a Dom Deluise impersonator and two I-don't-know-what, just walking around ex-people.

There were a few required activities along the race route. In the bottom picture, the zombies become remarkably animated while trying to throw tennis balls through holes in a board about three meters away.

I think I've actually seen big, sealed cooler boxes on airport luggage carousels labeled as having organs for transplant. You can't trust FedEx for that sort of thing but checked baggage on American Airlines seems to be okay.

STL DPB will be on automatic mode the rest of the week. Posts with Idiotarod photos will be uploaded in advance and I won't be able to leave comments. I've got a ton and a half, possibly a ton and three-quarters, of work to do. Friday is a travel day. Fresh posts and comments will resume Saturday night (maybe) or Sunday morning (for sure) our time from Tamarindo, Costa Rica.

Wicked Clowns

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This was the theme of one team of make-believe dog sledders at the Idiotarod. It's a meme derived from horror movies, I suppose, and the old belief that clowns frighten small children. At the same time, it's an excuse to look scary-evil without actually doing anything bad. And more evidence that St. Louis (or some of it) loves an excuse to drink beer in the morning.

STL DPB will be on automatic mode the rest of the week. Posts with Idiotarod photos will be uploaded in advance and I won't be able to leave comments. I've got a ton and a half, possibly a ton and three-quarters, of work to do. Friday is a travel day. Fresh posts and comments will resume Saturday night (maybe) or Sunday morning (for sure) our time from Tamarindo, Costa Rica.