galileo

well... we both of our flights got delayed by 2 hours. which turned out to be ok since it meant that there was enough time in between the connecting flights for our luggage to get transferred. we ended up arriving in san jose at 11, and got to our hostel at midnight (local time - 2 am hometime). i was thankful that getting a taxi and getting admitted into our hostel went very smoothly.

one of the highlights our the trip was that the airplane was equipped with 'direct tv' (a first!), which meant we were able to watch the opening ceremonies of the olympics!! i love the opening ceremonies and was pretty disappointed when i realized we'd be traveling that day. they'd just started when we boarded, and i watched straight thru so the 'T's in the parade of nations by the time i got drowsy. it was on ABC, so it was american coverage. hearing them talk with such surprise over the tribute to the national health service was quite noteworthy.

today we've been getting the lay of the land and figuring out currency stuff. we've been thankful that there's only a 2 hour difference with home, making the jetlag almost unnoticable. we're enjoying functioning fairly normally from the get-go. we had a great breakfast of rice and beans, then headed out to the market. it was almost immediately clear that we won't be able to avoid rain. we knew coming in july-august that it is the rainy season, so we're not surprised or disappointed. the temperature is perfect, it's just a little wet out. so our first order of business was to buy a small umbrella.

we also visited an art museum and a coffee shop. cooked ourselves a delicious dinner in the hostel kitchen and had a beer at the bar. we're having a great time. tomorrow is sunday, so less will be open, but we have a few things planned that will keep us busy :)