This will be short and sweet but want you folks to know that we arrived in this beautiful, clean capital city around five in the afternoon, right in the midst of rush hour.
Our flight on Copa took just over forty-eight minutes. It was long enough in duration for the flight attendants to pass through the cabin with sodas, juices and liquors on one pass. And, those who imbibed on the strong drinks were given them gratis.
Flight 115 operated on time and the aircraft used was a Boeing 737-700. Over one-half of the seats were unfilled so we were able to spread out for additional comfort. Flight announcements were mostly pre-recorded and given in English and in Spanish. The movie which was playing on the screens regarding flight safety had the English narrative with English subtitles but the Spanish narrative was given with Portuguese subtitles. Cover all bases I would suspect.
Upon leaving Managua International airport, the departure tax of USD35 was added to the price of each of our tickets so we did not have to front that amount on the day of our leaving. That was a nice surprise. And, despite our riding in the main cabin, our attendant had marked our bags as priority so we were able to retrieve them almost immediately after having landed.
The Managua airport, while not a beauty on the outside, is a gorgeous structure within. It is clean, well-maintained and one can pass easily and quickly through both the immigration and customs gates. It is a pleasure to pass through that airport. The same can be said about the airport here in Costa Rica.
When we had collected our bags, we went speedily through the formalities of entering another country and were soon outside of the secure area. We had not arranged for transfers from the airport so we hopped into a cab after paying USD24 and were in the mire of rush hour in the capital city. It took us approximately thirty-five minutes to arrive at our hotel, Parque del Lago. We checked in with the help of Freddie who made us feel like we were wanted here. A very happy lad who was more than helpful.
When we opened the door to our room, we found a solo queen bed. We had requested a room with two beds so I hurried down to the reception and made the change. It was done with a smile and this time we were up on the top floor with a gorgeous view of the surrounding volcanic mountains.
This city is set at about 3,750 feet above sea level so the temperatures and climate are more comfortable for us. Quite a contrast from Managua and Granada where the temperatures and the humidity were in the higher ranges. Also, in this city, we were told that the water from the taps is completely potable without repercussions from the intestines and stomach. Nice to be able to brush one's teeth without using bottled water as we have done in all of the other Central American countries that we have visited to date.
Our pick-up here at the hotel for our next adventure is at 6 this morning which should come within about 45 minutes so I need to abbreviate this note and try to fill in after we return to this very hotel in one day. In the interim, we will be rafting and at an Eco-lodge in the wilderness. I promise to take pictures and keep notes so you can come along with us on our fun.
Have a good day everybody.
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