Curiosity

Sure, my mind runs freely & wildly. It's beneficial in many situations, but pointless (even if entertaining) during other times.

I was at work and came across a prescription for cialis, an ED (erectile dysfunction) medication. Typically, medications that fall under this category are expensive! Pharmacy benefits will cover only a percentage of the cost. I've seen some patients WITH insurance pay anywhere from $50-$200 for 8-27 tablets. Anyway, there was nothing special about the prescription itself. The thing that caught my attention was realizing it was processed through a worker's comp claim!

I'm sure it was used for something else like PAH (pulmonary arterial hypertension), but I couldn't help but chuckle at the thought this man was theeee deuce bigalow... male...

Sushi Sankai, Santa Ana

I love sushi, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE authentic Japanese (not Korean) sushi!

I had a great time catching up with my friend, S! Great conversations, lots of laughs, and delish food!! I even appreciated how our neighbors were a bit chatty with us~

(taken with my droid)

yummy pink-bottled sayuri nigori sake 

oysters on the half shell

agedashi, fried tofu in ponzu sauce

toro! my faaaav.... but this one wasn't the freshest =(

shrimp bowl topped with quail egg... YUM!

amaebi- raw sweet shrimp... sadly, this one was gross!

...but the fried shrimp heads were delicious!!! hehe

fried potato wrapped shrimp... my FAVORITE of the night!!

tuna tataki with cream sauce, mushroom, & asparagus

we asked the sushi chef to surprise us and he came up with the Santa Ana roll...
it was ok~ wished it were a bit more exotic of a dish

Costa Rica, Day 6

Exhausted!

We just got in from Nicaragua! We were so excited to add another stamp to our passport- especially to have it stamped in the next available, appropriate box (we both have a minor case of OCD and find it absolutely necessary to have the stamps in chronological order hahah)!

We actually had to wake up by 4am to start the day. We took a 2-hour drive to the border and encountered theeeee most sketchy experiences of all (i.e. random amigo comes up to you, takes your passport, fills out your customs form, and follows you until you tip him)... We eventually were "passed" on from one guide to the next as we walked through the Costa Rican/Nicaraguan borders. Here, we met a flustered Octavio who eventually collected himself... The day was full of color, culture, history, & hearty Nicaraguan cuisine. I sincerely appreciated having a tour guide around to explain the significance of the country´s struggles & milestones... Octavio was so full of information and we were ready to take it all in. I loved his little accent & tiny lisp, too!! I remember trying my best to hold in my giggles as I heard him explain how "caca (cocoa) beans" were traded as goods.

We visited the cities of Rivas, Masaya, & Granada. These different cities had such beautiful & interesting landmarks! The highlight of today was cruising around Lago de Nicaragua (supposedly, when the Spaniards came to take over the land, the lake was mistaken for the ocean because it was so large!). We took a powerboat around the 300+ islands off of Granada. Out of the numerous islands, the most memorable was the one that housed a bunch of spider monkeys. A different boat full of tourists got a bit too close and one of the monkeys jumped in!!! One girl was screaming at the top of her lungs while the lil aggressive monkey was hissing and climbing all around the boat (and tourists!)... he was just looking for food, but it was chaos! Octavio, very calmly, tells us that monkeys don´t like little children HAHAHAHAHHA! I was only able to laugh because we were far from it AND because nobody was hurt... I stood tall & broad-shouldered until we were far enough away hehe

Costa Rica, Day 5 recap

Call me a surfer chick!!!! hahah at least I want to be! We hired two private instructors for $60/2 hours. Manrique & Henry gave us a briefing on technique and took us right into the water. The waves were friendly and it gave us the perfect opportunity to catch numerous waves (on my second try, I stood up & took it in to shore)!!! I had such a good time- minus the unfashionable, holey, dark green turtle neck rash guard I was lent =P anyway, I´m hoping to go again once more before heading home! =)

We just finished up dinner and have to head back soon- we need to wake up by 5am to catch a ride to Nicaragua. It was funny walking around town because we felt so popular! hahah Tamarindo is such a small town that everyone seems to know everyone! Cynthia, the vendor; Jill & George, Serena & Kiana from Living Social; Ruben from Jacamar; Mary-Catherine & southern girl #2 (hehe I forget her name) from Tabacon have all run into us multiple times and we´re always pleasantly greeted with warm smiles... and the locals... wow! Some are neu ggi hae ("greasy" or ppl who gross you out hehe), but some are HAAAAWWWTTT!! Chiseled bodies, beautiful faces aaaand they´re quick to compliment on our beauty LOL!! Of course, we don´t take them seriously, but it´s fun hearing that we... STILL... got it!!! heheh

Funny quotes of the day:
"Me gusta the negro."
"Move out the way, Bizzle"
"Una ahoroaraohoro"

Costa Rica, Day 5

We made it into Tamarindo 2 days ago, but didn´t want to pay the ridiculous prices for internet access (We actually had to stop by an internet cafe to catch up on our emails). Since arriving into town, we had many ups & and a few downs..

The first night in Tamarindo, we walked around to explore the area. There are cute boutiques and many outdoor restaurants. It poured rain a few times (lightening, thunder, and all), but it only enhanced the beauty of the town as we saw the lightening light up the ocean waters. It was amazing being able to walk around in the wet, yet warm, weather.

The second day, we had a kayak-snorkeling excursion planned with Jacamar. They picked us up on ATVs from the hotel, stopped by their offices to pick up all the equipment, walked over to the beach, kayaked to Capitan Island, then snorkeled around the area. I was excited to see a variety of mutli-colored fishies swimming around me! I swam the Great Barrier Reef before, but I wasn´t able to see as many fishes coated in bright, iridescent colors. The only bad thing was that the waters were a bit murky so I had to dive in to get a closer look at them. It felt nasty swimming the shallow waters because I would swim through patches of really warm waters contrasted with patches of cold waters... I wanted to tell the ocean, ¨make up your mind!¨=P On the way back, a wave capsized our kayak!!! My purse, clothes, Jen´s favorite sandals, and a handful of beautiful shells we hand-picked from the island fell into the Pacific!!! Luckily, I was able to recover my purse & clothes (we had to say our good-byes to Jen´s sandals w a memorial service), but my phone got drenched!!! I just had my new phone for about a month!! HAHAH ughhh... I have it burried in rice in our hotel room... Keeping my fingers crossed!!

Today, we have a surf lesson planned for the afternoon... Shamu better hope we won´t catch him with a fancy pair of sandals on!! heheh