Sunday, August 23, 2009

At the crack of dawn we were up and heading from San Ramon to the airport San Jose to drop friends, Bill and DorisAnn, off for their flight back to Arizona. I always build in a little “just in case time” into the schedule to allow for any surprises we might encounter. In the past we have come upon bridges being welded together while we waited, protesters blocking main roads, random police inspections and cattle crossing the road. This day it was simply a flat tire that slowed us down. After a quick change on the side of the highway we made it to the airport and bid adieu to our visitors. We returned to San Ramon to relax. That evening we were back at the airport picking up two more guests, Robin and Melissa who were arriving for a 9 day stay.

Fishin’ for our dinner

I have been fishing numerous times in my life. I have caught branches, boots and a whole cadre of miscellaneous items, but never fish. So here I was at Stephanie’s place in San Ramon. We decided it would be fun to catch our dinner from the tilapia pond. Now, you may look at my photo and wonder how I can possibly call “that” a fish. For the record, I actually caught 3 of them – all similarly sized but all fish, nonetheless. Lucky for us some of the others had more luck catching “fry-sized” fish. What fun!

Stephanie’s place in San Ramon – a Slice of Paradise

Bill and DorisAnn’s vacation was almost over. They had already spent time at the beach at both the Caribbean (Atlantic) and Pacific oceans. We decided they should spend the last day and night in the Central Valley area. This is Costa Rica’s primary agricultural area and where most of the coffee comes from. The climate here is milder and less humid than by the oceans. We chose San Ramon for several reasons. It’s less than an hour to the airport. There is a McDonald’s, Papa John’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken at the mall. There is a mall. And most importantly, this is where Stephanie’s vacation rental is. Stephanie D. Feeney Arias (stefanie@tucanrealty.com) lives on 5 acres on the Rio Barranca just minutes from downtown San Ramon. The property is meticulously landscaped. Flowers abound. From the backdoor of the 3-bedroom guest house you cross over a small water feature to the stand-alone “rancho” overlooking the river (think “gazebo”). A well-maintained pathway leads from here to waterfalls on the property. There is also a tilapia pond, swimming pool, and larger rancho with a bar that’s perfect for parties and larger gatherings. But that’s not what makes this place so special. What makes it special is Stephanie. There are little touches throughout. Flower arrangements inside and out. Fresh fruit brought to your door. Coffee in the kitchen. Movie rentals. To put it in the words of our guests, “I could just stay here for the whole vacation.”

Searching for a retirement home - San Ramon

August 30, 2007. Our second trip to Costa Rica to find the "perfect retirement home." We started in San Ramon which is just outside of San Jose in the Central Valley. We had scheduled an appointment to meet with realtors from http://www.american-european.net/. Through them we met and stayed with Stephanie and Wilbur of West Osaka Island Properties (http://www.american-european.net/ site #1740). What a fantastic introduction to this part of Costa Rica. We had a private 3-bedroom guest house with it's own jungle barbeque "rancho." The house had all the modern conveniences and is set on the banks of the Rio Barranca. In addition to an un-matched natural setting complete with waterfalls, the property includes a large tilapia pond for fresh fish frys, horses, swimming pool and more. Believe it or not, Stephanie only charges $400 per week for up to 4 people! Her email is curvette1@aol.com. I highly recommend a visit.