The Brel Chronicles

B:
After all the plush and cush of the first few days, it seemed time for a little adventure, Costa Rica-style. First up: canyoneering! Canyoneering is a combination of scrambling down a steep river canyon, often neck-deep in water, and rappelling down waterfalls up to 200 feet high. Mel and I suited up, strapping on our harnesses and clipping into our…Mel? Mel?

Strangely, Mel wasn’t insane enough to follow me on this one, and instead opted for some shopping in La Fortuna, possibly the world’s worst collection of animal wind chimes, brutal bikinis and general handcrafted sh*t.

M:
The afternoon brought our first true adventure together: rafting the Rio Balsa class III rapids, with Desafio Adventures (www.desafio.com). As our guide took us through the safety instructions of what to do if/when our raft flipped over or one of us fell out, I repeated the following mantra: “Brendan, I hate you right now. I don’t know what I ever saw in you. I will make you pay for making me do this.” [This was distinctly in Mel’s outside voice. - B]

The rapids were fierce, the water was cold, and the paddling furious at times. And no, neither one of us fell out. In the end, we both loved rafting the Rio Balsa, and are anxious to tackle even more challenging rivers as we make our way across Costa Rica.

You’ll note in the pic below, that Sporty Mel is not one of my sexiest looks. Apologies in advance. And for all of you who told me I would bail on wearing makeup, you were right – but I did hold out for 5 days.

One of the first conversations we had the day Brendan and I met, was the whole travel vs. vacation debate. His point, of course, was that I had not truly travelled, but merely vacationed. His criteria for what constituted ‘travel’ were unambiguous: he talked of $2/day hotels; spontaneous experiences; immersing yourself in local culture and random local food.

And so I embarked on this 10-month journey to prove that I too, am able to ‘travel’.

I awake this morning, on day 4 of our adventure, recalling my new ‘travel’ experiences. Our hotel: a luxury 5 star resort set at the base of the third-most active volcano in the world. The price? Less than his hotels in Thailand, at $0 per night. Spontaneous experiences…well let’s see…in the midst of touring the spa facilities, Brendan made the very spur-of-the-moment decision that I should participate in the Tabacon mud massage, provided in an private outdoor setting next to the famous hot springs, while he would take part in the spa-version of the traditional sweat lodge. Spontaneous experiences…check. Next criterion: immersing ourselves in local culture…we’ll be seeing much of the countryside over the next few days as we partake in rafting, canyoning and horseback riding adventures. Random local food? Well we did have a 6-course gourmet meal with the General Manager of the hotel, complete with samplings of his private liquor collection– does that count?

So Brendan…if this is ‘travel’, you’re right. I haven’t experienced it before. But count me in. Travel: 1, Vacation: 0.