Arenal Volcano

Chris came to visit us for a week here in Costa Rica. We spent a few days in San Jose and then hit the road! We drove up to Arenal Volcano in the Northwest part of Costa Rica. The road was extremely windy and just wide enough for 2 lanes. With oncoming traffic including trucks and busses.. it was a rough trip!

Almost 3 hours behind trucks and busses... Ugh!This is Chris and I out for lunch at a rest stop.
Arenal Volcano (with a cloud cover)

The view from our hotel room! Awesome!

When we arrived in La Fortuna, we were in need of some relaxation. We ventured out to a hot springs park. The water is naturally heated from the volcano and fills the pools from the ground up! This is Chris enjoying the warm hot springs.


The park is decorated with plants and flowers everywhere. They make the place look like a water-park but we are told that the water is all natural!

The Kiddie Pool....

This is Chris and I enjoying our evening at the hot springs.

Back in Escazu

Maggie and I are staying in a suburb of Costa Rica known as Escazu. There are a lot of neat restaurants and fun things to do without going into the chaos of San Jose. We are really enjoying our own little "barrio" and have tried lots of new dishes! Here is Chris and I at one of our favorite local restaurants!


Upon arriving to Costa Rica, Chris was excited to try some local beer. Here is a selection of some of the labels that we tried out at dinner. Costa Rica has 4-5 local brews... they are delicious!

Chris and I ventured into San Jose to check out the street vendors, markets, and shops. Being in a big city is both exciting and overwhelming! We stopped in at this local cafe to enjoy an expresso near the main square or center of San Jose. In Costa Rica, they are famous for their coffee and they sure know how to make a good expresso! It was delish!

This is the pharmacy that we are working in for the next few weeks. It is conveniently located in our suburb of San Jose! Here we are looking at a community pharmacy that is has a lot more patients. We have enjoyed giving recommendations to a lot of patients!

We work from 8-Noon... A nice work day!

This is the pharmacist working at the local pharmacy. We are learning a lot and enjoying some time on the homefront! Next up... some volcanoes and a big road trip! Lots more to come!

-Debs, Chris, and Mags -

Oxcart Parade

On Sunday, Maggie and I visited a small town (or barrio) where they were having an Oxcart Parade. We enjoyed some traditional costa rican music, food, and oxcarts! Here is Maggie and I seated in front of an Oxcart! So pretty!

A traditional oxcart

Check out some of the parade...

This weekend we also went to the farmer's market. They have the best fruits and veggies!

It was a great weekend back in San Jose. We are happy to be back "home"... but we still have more adventures ahead! Chris arrives this week and we have lots to do! Until next time. -Debs and Mags

Small Town Pharmacy

The last week we have been working at Farmacia Cruce which services about a dozen small towns (known as Barrios) along the Pacific Coastline in Northern Costa Rica. Here is a glimpse at what our week was like! This was our first night at the beach!

The Pharmacy...

A Costa Rica Small-Town Pharmacy

We are ready to treat some patients!!

Maggie and Carolina - a big help around the pharmacy!

Workin hard... :-)
An Old School Register... It was awesome!

We had a wonderful week at the beach and we truly experienced the rural part of Costa Rica. The towns were rich with family histories, traditions, and the true parts of costa rican culture. This week will be an experience that we will never forget! - Back to San Jose - Debs and Mags

Arizona Cowgirls

We participated in the town horse parade! Maggie and I were working in the small town of Huacas in the Northern part of Costa Rica. During the full moon on Thursday evening, the town celebrated their 8th annual "Calbalgata". In the US, we would call this a Moonlight Horse Parade! One of the ladies from the pharmacy gave us some Cowgirl Gear! Check us out!

Maggie is ready for a horseride!

Debbie has her boots on and it ready to go!

Beer, Boots, and Horses! Arizona Cowgirls!

The Pharmacy Crew!

The Pharmacist's Family... Girls ready for a Horse-ride!

Mags is so excited!

On Horseback...

Debs is loving the horseride!

After the parade, we celebrated with food and drinks! So fun!

It was great to be part of this celebration. We enjoyed a 3 hour horse ride that went from the mountains to the beach using the moonlight to guide us. Our experience and the traditions in the small town was unlike any other! Until next time. -Debs and Mags

Days go by

Today was another wonderful day here in Playa Flamingo. It is nice to get out of the large city of San Jose and spend some time relaxing. Maggie and I are staying at a hotel with 10 little huts and everything is open cabanas. It feels like we are on a private island in Hawaii... pretty nice.


We worked at the local pharmacy from 9am-3pm. Today, the pharmacist had some family events and decided not to come into work, so the clerk just ran the pharmacy! This would never be allowed in the US, but I guess she has been working there for a long time and knows what to do. It was different being the "pharmacist in charge" in a country where we don't know the medications!

It was a slow day for business and all worked out fine... This afternoon, Maggie and I got a ride to the next beach where we enjoyed the sunset. We shared a delicious pizza and had dinner overlooking the ocean. It was beautiful. Another relaxing day here in Playa Flamingo.

Pura Vida (Life is So Good!)

Rural Pharmacy

This morning started off with an attempt at running. I wanted to check out the area, but it dawned on me at 95 degrees and 90% humidity even at 7am is unbearable. I did see a some snakes and wild monkeys, so a good start to the day!

So, today Maggie and I experienced a true, rural pharmacy in Costa Rica. We are working a small town called Huacas. This town is only made up of about 200 families but the pharmacy services a lot of the other nearby towns and beaches.

The pharmacy is called "Farmacia del Cruce" and the pharmacist knows just about every patient. He also can change prescriptions or give recommendations about any medication that he feels necessary. It was amazing to see the interaction that he has with the locals and the liberties that he has as a pharmacist. This would definitely not fly in the US!

This is the pharmacist's examination table...

Maggie is exploring the pharmacy....

Tomorrow, I will take more photos.... They sell so many different products and there are a lot of things that we don't have in the states. Oh and I forgot to mention, there is NO air conditioning! We did our best to keep cool and get by with our first day! Thank goodness we are only here for a short while! Ha. More to come!