Thursday, August 3, 2017

A Birthday at Mother's - Our Life in Costa Rica Y#2

Our friend and Spanish teacher, Shirley Murillo told us about a new restaurant that her family owns which opened just down the ridge from us in San Luis. She invited us to join her and her son Andrew last Sunday for his 16th birthday.

In reality the restaurant is probably only a little over a mile from our house but it takes about 15 minutes by car because part (about 1/2) of the road is unpaved and the ride is a bit "bumpy" (and I use that term loosely) LOL

Seriously though, the ride was not that bad but this is a good time to discuss "roads in Costa Rica".

I often get messages from people traveling here who want to go from point A to point B by car and because the distance looks short on the map they think that they can zip around quickly by "freeway" like they do back home in the states.

Usually NOT true! You must take into account the condition of the roads here and the weather.

Roads vary from well paved two-lane highways to pothole-ridden dirt roads with treacherous river crossings. Most of the roads in and around the capital of San Jose are nice and smooth, but once you get out of the city, conditions can change a lot. 

Costa Rica’s topography is extremely diverse, with everything from lofty mountains and low visibility cloud forest to flat plains and farm fields. While most areas are accessible without four-wheel drive, a few are not. Be sure to research in advance if a 4X4 is necessary to access the specific places you’ll be visiting.


You will find them on Facebook and more info on Que Pasa

Now back to Sunday. The "calles" off the main roads on our ridge (and probably on the other 4 ridges in Grecia) are often unpaved. So we were not surprised that the road to the restaurant was partially unpaved as well. We shot some video (included) of our ride to give you an idea of what it was like. The footage is raw so you will get to experience the bumps as we did (and the bumps interfere with the auto focus on the camera as well)

The big payoff, which is most often the case - at the end of the road - 
for us this time, was a quaint little restaurant perched high on the ridge with spectacular views, great food and service (they will prepare food for you "anyway you want it" - which is great for vegetarians and people with special diets) and a very friendly staff (all family members of Shirley's). 

Sunday is family day and the restaurant was packed! Many members of the Murillo family stopped in as well. The restaurant TVs carried a local futbol game between Grecia and La Liga (our rival in Alajuela).Unfortunately Grecia lost!😞

At one time the area was all coffee. The family's dream was to open a restaurant and so they did. Madre Tierra opened on June 29. 

The family still grows coffee which they serve in the restaurant (and is available for purchase). 

They are working to clear a hiking trail and soon to add a coffee tour.

That will be wonderful for our area.

We had a very good time! The restaurant goes on my recommended list!
If you come to town and want to experience a restaurant in Costa Rica away from the town center, be sure to check them out!
Now hang on for the ride and more scenes from the road and the restaurant!


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2 comments:

  1. Devon, you do NOT exaggerate the drive there ... if anything you make it look better than it really is! Have to get there for a meal soon!

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    Replies
    1. Hahaha yes a bit bumpy to say the least - and that's why we recorded it! It will be nice if they get the coffee tour and hiking trail tho it's
      an extra added benefit!

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