Tickets & Tea in Costa Rica

Hola from San Jose. We have had a (mostly) restful day. We ate breakfast by the pool and let Madi and Nate swim for a few minutes before we all went to physical therapy. (Matt doesn’t swim because it is too cold for him. He runs up and down the walkway and does cartwheels.)

On the way to physical therapy, our driver was stopped by the police. It was an educational experience. In Costa Rica they do not have to have a reason to pull you over and this was the case with our van. The driver gave them all the necessary paperwork, but they wanted to question him further. In the end, I think they called the clinic, the hospital, and his boss, who came to where we were stopped, just a block from our hotel. They questioned us as well, trying to determine if we were all from the same family and if we were paying this driver to take us somewhere. (They are paid as part of the treatment price and we can tip, but not “pay” them for the service.) I think they were making sure that he wasn’t breaking any laws that regulate taxis (I don’t think he is considered a taxi) and there was something about the number of people in the vehicle and how many people a taxi can have. In the end he got a ticket, but I wasn’t clear what it was for. He said it could be that a driver from another taxi company called the police to have him stopped. I have no idea. I am just so glad that they don’t do that in the states. My Spanish is not that great but I did understand our driver when he said, “Es Stupido!” Our driver was more upset about us being late to our appointment than the ticket itself. He said he would take the ticket to a lawyer and he would not have to pay anything.

Earlier I had asked Edward about what would happen if he drove in San Jose on the day that he was not supposed to drive in the city. He said he would get a ticket, but he could also be stopped again on his way out of the city. In essence, you could get several tickets on the same day for a single offense.

At the hospital, the physical therapist began to show me how to help Dennis do the exercises that are needed to strengthen his muscles. Madi took pics, so that we could remember everything. I will go with him again on Thursday and Friday, because they work different parts of his body on different days. Today they worked on leg exercises and on Thursday and Friday they will work on his arm, his abs, and walking.

We ate lunch at a rotisserie chicken place. They had wonderful guacamole, black beans, roasted chicken, chicken fajitas, and quesadillas. They also served something that looked like fried cheese, but is was cube shaped. We noticed that this restaurant served tea fria, which means iced tea, so Dennis, Matt, and I ordered that with our meal. I don’t know what it was, but it wasn’t iced tea! It tasted like tea with some kind of fruit juice in it and it was extremely sweet. We prefer the Texas kind!

This afternoon we rested and did laundry – I know I said I wouldn’t do that again, but it couldn’t be helped! It was much easier this time. I only did 2 loads and the washers and dryers all worked - they just take a while. We also let Madi and Nate swim again this evening after it stopped raining. Matt continued to do cartwheels. Tonight we ate here at the hotel. We finished up our leftovers and our peanut butter, so we will be off to the grocery store tomorrow. I have heard about chocolate covered coffee beans and I’d like to give those a try!

Thank you so much for continuing to pray for us. Tomorrow Dennis will receive another spinal injection, but will also receive the first half of the liposuction derived stem cells by IV. Tomorrow will also be the kid’s and my last day in Los Guidos. On Thursday and Friday I will need to be here to go to physical therapy with Dennis. He will receive another spinal injection and his second IV on Friday as well. We look forward to coming home on Saturday.

Love From Costa Rica,

The Trammell Family

“Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them – the Lord, who remains faithful forever.” – Psalm 146:6