Yesterday we took a bus to the small Costa Rican town of Sarchi. The town is known for its crafts, especially woodworking and the traditional oxcarts.
The bus system in Costa Rica is always an adventure. I've traveled a lot in Mexico and Chile, and both countries have an excellent system. There's one major bus station in each town, and there's a printed schedule and you just buy your ticket at the window. Well, Costa Rica is not like that. In San Jose there seem to be at least 10 bus stations and each one will take you to different cities. So, yesterday we ended up walking around the city of San Jose for an hour and a half trying to find the right station. We found the bus, finally, and it turns out that you just get on and pay instead of buying a ticket. We got really lucky, because there are only a few buses every day that go directly to Sarchi and we happened to get on one of them just 2 minutes before it left.
In Sarchi we explored the central square and had a great lunch at a tiny restaurant on the square. Then we did some shopping, of course! My favorite thing is a wooden puzzle in the shape of a snake, and each piece has a letter of the alphabet. Our nursery theme is animals from around the world, so this is perfect.
On the way back we didn't get quite as lucky with the buses and we had to change buses in another tiny town. I was confused about where to catch the bus back to San Jose, so I asked a shopkeeper for directions. She was so nice and even walked outside with us, across the street, so that she could point out the bus we needed to get on. So, even though things are confusing, the people here are very friendly and helpful.
The bus system in Costa Rica is always an adventure. I've traveled a lot in Mexico and Chile, and both countries have an excellent system. There's one major bus station in each town, and there's a printed schedule and you just buy your ticket at the window. Well, Costa Rica is not like that. In San Jose there seem to be at least 10 bus stations and each one will take you to different cities. So, yesterday we ended up walking around the city of San Jose for an hour and a half trying to find the right station. We found the bus, finally, and it turns out that you just get on and pay instead of buying a ticket. We got really lucky, because there are only a few buses every day that go directly to Sarchi and we happened to get on one of them just 2 minutes before it left.
In Sarchi we explored the central square and had a great lunch at a tiny restaurant on the square. Then we did some shopping, of course! My favorite thing is a wooden puzzle in the shape of a snake, and each piece has a letter of the alphabet. Our nursery theme is animals from around the world, so this is perfect.
On the way back we didn't get quite as lucky with the buses and we had to change buses in another tiny town. I was confused about where to catch the bus back to San Jose, so I asked a shopkeeper for directions. She was so nice and even walked outside with us, across the street, so that she could point out the bus we needed to get on. So, even though things are confusing, the people here are very friendly and helpful.
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