Journal

We all got up early and ate breakfast in the cabin. Curt picked us up at 7:15 and dropped Alaine and I in Heredia to catch the bus to San José. It was rush hour and it took us a long time to get there. The bus stopped almost in front of the Hotel Talamanca, which is ironic because the part of Costa Rica where we live is called Talamanca. We went into the hotel and asked where the U.S. embassy is and the woman at the desk said it was very far and we would have to take a taxi. It took about 20 minutes in the taxi. There was a long line outside the embassy, but it was for Ticos (Costa Ricans) who wanted to take some kind of test to work for the U.S. government. We were able to go ahead. They had tight security: they searched our bags and we couldn’t bring in our camera or binoculars. We found our way to the right counter took a number and waited a few minutes. Alaine went to the window and got the forms she needed and filled them out while I went to call ATEC and find out her passport number and date of issue. She went and had her picture taken outside the door of the main building and then went in to the cashier. He said we needed $60 dollars cash for the passport and we didn’t have enough so I left to go the ATM across the street and get cash. The machine didn’t work so I asked directions to another one and ran/walked there and got the money because it was getting late and we had an appointment with a lawyer about our residency. We paid and they said she could pick up her temporary passport tomorrow. It is only good for 6 months and they said she can only renew it in the U.S. because she didn’t have her birth certificate with her. I hope they are wrong about that; I think she should be able to renew it here if she brings her birth certificate to the embassy next time.

We grabbed a taxi in front of the embassy and went across town in heavy traffic and were 5 minutes late for our appointment. We got the details from the lawyer about all we would need to do and how much it would cost to get residency. It sounds like a lot of work and expense, but the lawyer is pretty confident that we can do it. We went to lunch at a Chinese place nearby and then got a taxi to a hotel in the center of town and checked in. We had a lot to do, but we were tired so we decided to lie down for 5 minutes. An hour later we woke up. We went across the street to the RACSA building, which is the national Internet company, and transferred money from savings and checked email.

We got a taxi to the Honda dealer to pick up the license plates for the new motos, but they didn’t have them. They gave me a paper plate for Mel’s, and nothing for ATEC’s. They said they could send the plates to the dealer in Guapiles when they come in at the end of the week. We have to take the motos there anyway for the 500 km check-up. We caught a taxi back to town and went to buy the CD player that we had looked at earlier in the day. We dropped it off at the hotel and started walking around looking for a place to eat. We finally settled on a Mexican food place that had beers with bocas for 800 colones ($2.28) so we just had the bocas for dinner. The food was OK. We were tired by then so we headed back to the hotel and to bed.