Before we get to life in Potrero we need a place to lay our heads. Much to my dismay our little metal bunkers don't come prebuilt on our already prepared land. So we will be landing in Heredia in the central valley while we are building. Eduardo actually grew up in Heredia so he will be more familiar with the area. We are going to be staying in Eduardo's parents house. After Eduardo's father passed away, his mother moved into his sister Sandra's house. We will be there for a few months, or as long as it takes to build our bunkers.
I'm excited we get to spend some time in the central valley for a few reasons. (Yes I made a list. Why would anyone EVER pass up on a chance to make a list?)
As one of the points on my list indicated ;) I am super excited about the central market. I've always wanted an every day market close enough to home where I could go every few days a pick up fresh produce, grab a fast and delicious lunch at one of the food shops, and look for unique items. My first visit to Costa Rica provided me an opportunity to see the central market in Heredia. Though most of that visit I was stressed out a bit due to meeting all the family and a bit of culture shock. Now I'll get to spend time there on my own and see what all the central market has. There is row after row of interesting things. So much fresh produce it would make any foodies mind whirl! You can find anything from a fresh mango to unique spice mixes. There are fish sellers that come in with fish straight out of the ocean, people who have been making cheese for generations, and unique kitchen items that you never knew you needed. The best part is it's only a 15 minute walk from the house. Well, it might be a 20 minute walk from the house with my chubby bum.
The supermarket is just south of where we will be and even closer to the house. It's called Mas X Menos. The stores are actually owned by the Latin American branch of Walmart. This store is not a whole Walmart though, just the food section part of it with some health goods. The interesting part of it is that it's attached to the local mall as well. I don't know what kind of stores are in the mall but I do know they have a food court and food courts come with fountain soda. Oh ya, fountain soda. Yes all my Indiana friends, it's SODA not pop. It can be soda pop but never just pop. My short stint at Johnson and Whales collage taught me that much. When you say pop in a culture of soda you get popped!
So we are looking forward to getting down there soon!!
Next we talk about shipping containers............ oh shipping containers. Try your best to contain yourselves until I can get that one typed up! Oh, plus there is the fun design and styles I've been working on for the rentals and our house. What one to type up first?
- I'm looking forward to getting to know Eduardo's family better.
- It will also be wonderful to see Eduardo with his whole family.
- I want to be with Eduardo as he goes back and sees all the sites of his childhood memories.
- Being immersed with his family and a more concentrated pool of people will hopefully help me learn Spanish faster.
- Heredia has a wonderful thing called a central market!
- It's a different culture and hopefully being popped down in the middle of it will help me adjust faster than I would being on the coast that has a larger influx of expats.
Heredia is basically a suburb of San Jose. It's a bit north west of the city but still connected enough you wouldn't know you were going from one city to the next. Here you can see where Heredia is compared to San Jose
We will be living just south of the city proper but within walking distance of all our every day needs. The pictures below show where the actual house is.
One of those rectangle boxes is ours. I don't know what one, but one of them. We don't plan on keeping a car at the house because we don't want to park it on the street. Our car will be at Sandra's house when we are not using it. That means our mode of transport is either out feet or the buses. The bus systems in the city are privately owned and there are a number of them. There is no map of where the buses go so its a "ride and find out" kind of thing. I know Eduardo's sister will be help when it comes to finding the buses that will get us to her house or the Super Walmart in Heredia. Thankfully most of the places I will need to go like the central market, local grocery store, banks, and other useful places like the shopping mall are all in easy walking distance. The central market is just a 15 minute walk from our home. The supermarket and mall is a 10 minute walk in the opposite direction.
As one of the points on my list indicated ;) I am super excited about the central market. I've always wanted an every day market close enough to home where I could go every few days a pick up fresh produce, grab a fast and delicious lunch at one of the food shops, and look for unique items. My first visit to Costa Rica provided me an opportunity to see the central market in Heredia. Though most of that visit I was stressed out a bit due to meeting all the family and a bit of culture shock. Now I'll get to spend time there on my own and see what all the central market has. There is row after row of interesting things. So much fresh produce it would make any foodies mind whirl! You can find anything from a fresh mango to unique spice mixes. There are fish sellers that come in with fish straight out of the ocean, people who have been making cheese for generations, and unique kitchen items that you never knew you needed. The best part is it's only a 15 minute walk from the house. Well, it might be a 20 minute walk from the house with my chubby bum. 
The supermarket is just south of where we will be and even closer to the house. It's called Mas X Menos. The stores are actually owned by the Latin American branch of Walmart. This store is not a whole Walmart though, just the food section part of it with some health goods. The interesting part of it is that it's attached to the local mall as well. I don't know what kind of stores are in the mall but I do know they have a food court and food courts come with fountain soda. Oh ya, fountain soda. Yes all my Indiana friends, it's SODA not pop. It can be soda pop but never just pop. My short stint at Johnson and Whales collage taught me that much. When you say pop in a culture of soda you get popped!So we are looking forward to getting down there soon!!
Next we talk about shipping containers............ oh shipping containers. Try your best to contain yourselves until I can get that one typed up! Oh, plus there is the fun design and styles I've been working on for the rentals and our house. What one to type up first?
So exciting!! <3
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