JANUARY, 2005
January 23, 2005
In yet another awesome gesture of hospitality, Stan and Cindy motivated for a drive out to the coast at San Juan del Sur and Playa Madera. While not too far kilometers wise, it is a pretty bumpy slow trip, so we were thankful for the company and ride.
San Juan is a fairly sleepy beach bay town, with a few cool bars, shops and a relaxed vibe. They also rented boards at one shop which was good for Pat and Mike who wanted to surf Madera, which is a fairly well know destination for surfers making stops up the Pacific, and was highly recommended by several people in Mal Pais. Unfortunately, the kids renting the boards were pulling the gringo tax, for instance wanting $5 for surf wax, but, fortunately, they were so stoned that by the time we had to pay, they either forgot they were trying to rip us off, or just couldn't do the $ to Cordoba math and ended up giving us a really good deal on the boards and wax. It was pretty comical to watch.
As for Madera, it is a beautiful little spot in between a bunch of rocks on a totally isolated beach. That was the good news, The bad news was that the waves were well beyond either Mike or Pat's budding skills. Two hours only netted 3 decent rides, and about 14 poundings, but it was still great being out there, and several locals were putting on clinics, so it was educational. Definitely going to wait a few years before returning for a rematch. Ruthie got in a beautiful beach walk, Stan put together quite the shell collection, and Stacy and Cindy kept the sand from blowing away.
With the sunset came the need to watch the NFL playoffs, eat, and of course cocktail hour. We hit Ricardo's on the beach which had great Mahi Mahi burgers, and Margaritas. Stan and Cindy seemed to knoiw the whole place, so we got the royal treatment. We also got one of the most beautiful sunsets of the trip from our table and Mike won 100 Cordobas, or about $7 off Pat . . . woohoo!.
