October 12, 2025

Dateline – Playa Conchal, Costa Rica

Today was another low key travel day. The bowlers must have been partying hard last night as the breakfast room was not too crowded this morning. I’ve been doing a bit of a hybrid in terms of breakfast food – some Costa Rican, some American. As long as I get my fresh pineapple I’m happy with whatever else is on the menu. I’m not overly fond of tico gallo (black beans and rice) which is the local breakfast staple but I’ve certainly seen stranger things on breakfast buffets, especially in Thailand.

The weather remained somewhat gray and rainy this morning but, as it is Sunday, the traffic wasn’t too horrific and the transfer to the airport was a breeze. I was booked on a local Costa Rican airline from San Jose to Liberia, about 100 miles northwest near to the border with Nicaragua. The country is so small that there aren’t a lot of domestic flights and the domestic terminal at the airport consists of two gates. The planes are all about 12 passenger capacity with minimal room to move about. I am not a fan of small planes. I’ve been up in a few and, in general, I’ve learned to close my eyes and wait for it to be over. I think I was scarred the first time I was up in a small plane. I was 19 and had gotten a job working on the U of W research vessel for the summer running water sampling equipment while it cruised the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea. In order to meet the boat, I had to fly to Anchorage, spend the night, and then catch a small plane to Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands. I did fine with the flight and got a great aerial view of Southwest Alaska on the way and then we hit the landing. Apparentlly the airport at Dutch Harbor requires you to fly straight at a mountain wall before banking into the runway. I was sure we were going to smash into that cliff face and I’m pretty certain my issues with small planes stem from that moment.

Fortunately, the flight from San Jose to Liberia, even in a small prop plane, was only about 40 minutes long and, as it was overcast, was mostly accomplished in fog. I landed, found my ground transportation, and began an hour and a half drive from the airport to the Westin Playa Conchal resort and spa on the coast some thirty or forty miles away. The drive was through the lowlands, so mainly flat. It was misty and grey so I didn’t pay a lot of attention to scenery along the way as we appeared to be driving through mainly agricultural land.

I arrived at the resort in time for a late lunch, checked in and got the lay of the land. It’s been a while since I’ve stayed in a Latin American all inclusive beach resort (Steve and I did a bunch of that. Not so much with Tommy as he was against the beach due to his tendency to sunburn within about fifteen minutes of going outside). They don’t seem to have changed a lot. This one consists of a lot of eight unit bungalows scattered through manicured tropical landscaping. It ends in a very nice beach. The restaurant consists of a number of buffet stations of various types – Latin American, meats, Italian and Asian. The drinks are included. The pool is large and relatively warm with a swim up bar. I realized I had accidentally left my bathing suit in Manuel Antonio so I bought myself a new one with three toed sloths on it at the boutique. The whole thing gives White Lotus vibes. No incest, gunplay, or drug use as of yet but it’s still early. I was texting earlier with a friend who said I needed to be a White Lotus character. Mike White needs to write a gay man of a certain age travelling alone to add to his mix. I’ll be happy to chat with him about it if anyone knows him. I’m casually acquainted with his father through LGBTQ circles but I’ve never met him.

I haven’t figured out what I’m going to do with my time here yet. I’ll check out the excursions to see if there’s anything of interest that doesn’t overlap what I’ve already done. I may just read on the beach. I may sort out my writing projects and put together a schedule so that I actually start to get things finished. I was just emailed and informed that I have been cast not in one, but in two plays at Encore Theatre between now and Christmas so maybe I’ll begin working on lines. That is if I get sent scripts. I’ve also got a couple of legal cases that I have to finish up. I don’t see boredom setting in. As there may not be that much happening, I might not do a daily travelogue as is my usual habit the next few days. We shall see.