foodies

          For all of you who watch the food channel every day without fail (Adam), and for those of you who are schooled in cooking (Liza and Tessa), are a master baker (Myriah), actually blow-torch hamburgers (Ford), or cook every night on a propane stove (Katie), I bring you this entry. In honor of all of my foodie children, I give you the scoop on deliciousness in Costa Rica.
       My personal favorite, which I've mentioned over and over, is casado.  Casado is the term for the typical Costa Rican meal.  It consists of black beans, rice, a meat, fried plantain, and a side of either vegetables or a salad.  There are different versions of the sides, but this is the basic meal. It's satisfying, balanced and so healthy.

You can get casasdo in the home of a tico, if you are fortunate enough to be invited, or at a restaurant called a "soda". Yes, you read that correctly. Here, a soda is not something you drink, it is a local cafe owned by a tico.  Soda's serve up delicious local meals, authentically made from fresh ingredients.  They are inexpensive too, with a normal casado costing 2,500 colones, or five dollars. Below is a soda near my school that I like to frequent.  It's named D'Angel and  although it doesn't look like much, the food is fantastic and the family that runs it is wonderful.

Padre spreads new dirt on the parking pad.

Notice that both Coke and Pepsi are offered.
Hmm, they seem to be able to get along here.

One day, I went to Jose's International which is the soda with the fantastic burritos. It was a very hot afternoon and we were done with school for the day, so my friends wanted a cold beer with their lunch. Jose said, "I don't have beer, but what kind would you like?"  We answered, "Um, Imperial, please."  We looked at each other wondering if we had just translated that correctly.  Was he bringing us a beer or not?  A few minutes later, a young man pulled up on a motorcycle and ran into the soda with a bag. A minute after that, Jose brought four cold Imperials to our table with big smile. We learned that soda's don't have an alcohol license, which is incredibly expensive, but you are welcomed to bring your own drink into their establishment. Jose had called in a delivery for us. That delivery came from a market down the street called the Super Joseth.  It has most of the basics a person needs for sustenance if one lives here, and for those vacationing in paradise, it has plenty of alcohol. The amazing thing is that Super Joseth delivers.  Anything.  You can call for an entire weeks worth of groceries, or you can ask for one lime.  No matter, it will cost you a delivery charge of 500 colones, or one dollar, and will be delivered in five minutes.  When I have my own place with a view, I am certain now that I will not leave it for days on end.

Super Joseth

The delivery box translates,
"don't stop the party call us"

Yummy pastries

My friend Tony? Well he just gets around.

There are some things though,
no matter how far you go, you can not get away

Translation????  Please! 

Yes, this truly is rum and coke in the same can.

An exciting place to find amazing produce is the agricultural fair, or farmer's market, on the weekends in Quepos.  I have never seen so many exquisite fruits in one place. There is no place like a rain forest to grow the sweetest mangos, papayas, and pineapples ever tasted.

Two fellow spanish students at the farmers market.

Beautiful, fresh items can be yours for only a few colones.

fun times at the market

yikes, no federal safety regulations here

Another of my favorite treats is a visit from Jose, the empanada man. Again, a vendor named Jose, but this one is a traveling one-man show.  He carries a cooler full of hot empanadas filled with chicken,beef or potatoes. He also has a plastic water bottle full of a hot sauce and he will drench your meat pie it if you wish. He makes his rounds to the language schools during their morning breaks and then he heads down to the beach to continue selling his product.  He remembers everyone's name, what school they attend and their favorite food order.  To me, this is as impressive as the quality of his empanadas.  The coolest thing though, is that he sells juice in a bag.  He squeezes fresh fruit, puts the juice in a baggie, and carries it in a cold cooler.

I'm sure Jose thought up this idea
long before Welches had a clue

I'd heard that a juice bar recently opened in Manuel Antonio and that they had coconut water. I was really excited because the water from a coconut is nature's perfect sports drink with electrolytes and potassium.  The juice bar was also located at the end of my morning runs to the beach.  Perfect.  I stopped into the small shop and ordered a coconut water to go.  I looked around the cafe thinking, "Good, I'll see what the brand is and maybe I can get it at the Super Joseth." Hahaha, silly me.  The woman reached under the counter and pulled out a machete. She grabbed a small coconut from a bowl and hacked off the top.  She popped a straw into the top and charged me one dollar.  My "agua de pipa" was refreshing and I was rejuvenated.  The best part was, it was recycleable.  As I ran up the hill, I put the straw in my pocket and tossed the pipa back into the jungle.