It's Sunday night and I'm here in San Jose (Costa Rica) with my friend Ryan Rowe. I arrived at the perfect time, during the annual winter festival. Last night was the festival of lights and the main boulevard was overflowing with crowds of people. My hotel is facing the main party route and I was unable to sleep as the party noise did not cease until 6:00 am. You gotta see this dump we're sleeping in. Its absolutely horrid. Shared toilets, no hot water, the room is like a prison cell and cleanliness is not an option. You can't expect much for 5$us a night. I guess, not until we live like this do we appreciate what we've got.

Today, we visited the city's main attractions and walked all day. What a city, poverty is everywhere - this is no paradise. However, amidst all this poverty the locals still remain jovial. The weather is nice, but the scorching sun is ever-present and just wears you down. Tomorrow we catch a ferry at Puntarenas and then a bus to Montezuma where the beach awaits us.