How I Survived the Terrifying Ride to Manuel Antonio with Unknown Vegetables
Journey through the Gunas included!
The third leg of our trip was south to Manuel Antonio, right on the Pacific Ocean. We had a van lined up to take us on the three-hour journey, but our driver arrived a half hour late. His delay was unusual because we'd arranged several van rides, taxis, and Ubers in Costa Rica, and none had kept us waiting.
When he finally pulled up, he offered no explanation or apology.
He didn't bother to introduce himself.
There were already two other couples in the van, plus a young solo traveler who turned out to be a friend who was riding shotgun. Even though we were late leaving Monteverde, we had plenty of time before our afternoon check-in. We had foregone scheduling activities for our last stop on our tour so that we would have relaxing pool time.
Away we went with our anonymous driver, passing through Santa Elena one last time and over to our driver's home.
Yes, you read that right.
We pulled into his driveway.
His sand-colored pit bull lay in the dirt yard and didn't budge when his owner arrived with strange-smelling foreign passengers. Anonymous parked and went inside.
Did he forget his lunch?
We captives languished in the van awaiting our destiny. His co-pilot had the sense to turn down the blaring radio while Anonymous was perhaps taking his morning constitutional.
I turned to the people behind us for some acknowledgment that this was indeed weird and definitely strange and should not be happening. The young couple from Berlin was cracking up, amused by the detour.
Anonymous returned with two squash-like eggplant-y vegetables and placed them on the console. He backed the van out of the driveway without a word of explanation.
Away we went down the "special" roads of Puntarenas, with his friend/co-pilot prattling in Spanish. The friend did not come up for air as Anonymous listened. I wondered why we had stopped to get the VIP produce and would have asked if he ever deigned us worthy of his attention.
Our other van drivers slowed down and elaborated on points of interest during our journeys.
Anonymous was not most van drivers. Once, he squawked, "Pacific Ocean," and pointed to a tree, a field, or something we weren't sure what, during the early part of the drive.
After a couple of hours of jostling and bracing ourselves on the jutted roads, my compassionate husband commented that our driver would have to turn around and face the same crappy roads on his return home. Together we concluded that driving all day long on Costa Rican roads was a grueling job.
While we had experienced pleasant temperatures in La Fortuna and Monteverde, we were in for a significant change at our destination in Manuel Antonio, the closest we'd come to the equator in our travels.
The air-conditioning in the van, which had been working so well in the cooler climate of Monteverde, now struggled to meet the demands of the increasingly hotter temperature. As the van's interior heated up, our ride was less bumpy because the roads turned into paved highways the closer we got to Manuel Antonio.
Even though it was about 10 a.m., I was getting sleepy in the warm van.
In yoga, the Sanskrit word "Gunas" is the name for the three fundamental qualities or attributes that exist in all things to varying degrees. Because I hadn't moved for a couple of hours, inertia was making me tired. The Tamas Guna is the quality of being lazy, slow, and dull.
The drive's monotony and the heavy air made me feel like a giant two-fingered sloth.
Even though I had filled my backpack with snacks, drawing pads, needlework, and writing materials, I felt too lethargic to do anything.
I was drifting off when I felt the van suddenly gain speed. I opened my eyes and saw we were in the opposing traffic lane, passing a long line of cars on the right.
Our tourist van was booking, passing one, two, then-OMG-ten cars, with no sign of Anonymous returning us to our rightful lane. I hadn't considered dying in Costa Rica since we went over the "Oh My God" bridge to Monteverde a few days earlier.
This death would be terrible, or I would be left mangled but alive.
Telling myself stories about how I would die shifted me to the Rajas Guna. I was freaking out. I would jump out of the van and save myself if I could.
Rajas Guna is the state of energy, action, change, and movement. With so much anxiety coursing through me, my crazy-monkey mind was in full panic mode.
I squeezed my eyes shut so I couldn't see the semi I knew would meet us head-on.
I was powerless against Anonymous' reckless driving. None of the other passengers made a peep, and I considered for a moment if I was overreacting from all that Rajasic energy.
There was nothing to do but accept my circumstances. Everything must be fine. The others were sitting like zombies before the apocalypse. That's when I melted into "Jesus Take the Wheel" or the Sattva Guna, or tranquility, harmony, and balance.
The Sattva Guna is the one that leads to enlightenment and growth. When we have excess Tamasic or Rajasic energy, we move away from the wisdom of Sattva.
The three Gunas are constantly in flux. They interact with one another in a playful state which is called Maya or illusion.
By the grace of the Goddess, we glided back to our lane. Anonymous was still in a hurry, tailgating the cars with frequent slams to the brakes.
I had lost all trust in this tardy, vegetable-wielding, road-rage-filled man. He already had proven that he could hijack us wherever and however he wanted to.
I began tracking our progress on Google Maps, counting the minutes and miles until we reached our hotel.
As had been his practice with all the van drivers, my husband gave a tip when we got out of the van. This resulted in a giant smile spreading across Anonymous' face, and he showed my hubby his appreciation with a bro handshake and a slap on the back.
This is me, back in balance, the next day.
I hope you enjoyed reading about our journey to Costa Rica.
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