Park of Fun

Our plan for going to the Parque de Diversiones hit a slight hitch: Chino, the local pirate taxi driver, was out of town. We had to take a regular taxi, which cost us 3300 colones. So our plan to save money by not borrowing the Blue Bomber for one more day was turning out to not work so well.

The park was a blast. It’s very similar to amusement parks in the States. But cheaper (free to get in, 6000 ($12) for a wristband that lets you ride everything). Like Schlitterbahn, they let you bring in your own food. We brought fixings for PB&J’s and some chips and Oreos. We rented a locker to keep it all in. The Sheridans arrived soon after and we got started.

Sofia is not a big thrill-seeker when it comes to amusement park rides. She’s no roller coaster connoisseur. So I was surprised when she agreed to ride the roller coaster right off the bat. The coaster wasn’t a huge one, but it had a few twists that put you upside down. The line was long (Bill said he’d never seen the park so busy) but the ride was fun. Alex and I sat together in the back with Sofia and Callista. Bill wanted to ride in the very front.

That's us in the last car!

Feedin' the fish

Some even smile for the camera

Cristina and Jennifer didn’t buy wristbands. They mostly chatted and took pictures of the rest of us. And though we brought our on food, we still wound up buying some hot dogs and snacks. Bella got a sno-cone, which she shared.

They had a children’s roller coaster with the Teletica train mascot from Channel 7. Cristina likes the train. It brings up good childhood memories. She even remembers the little song. So I bought her tickets so she could ride the Teletica train with Bella.

Car 3: Alex & Sofia, Car 4: Cristina & Bella, Car 5: Callista

The only ride we rode twice was called Disko. A big flying saucer seats 40 people, facing outward, along the edge. The disk spins and then goes back and forth on a curved ramp. I’d never seen anything like it, and it was really cool. A smooth thrill without making you sick or jarring your bones.

The ride that had the most affect on everyone was the Skymaster. This is a familiar one. Two boat-like contraptions slowly start swinging back and forth, ever higher, until they go upside down and then make several complete loops. It’s one of those rides where someone’s gonna lose some pocket-change (and I did hear the clatter of coins when we were upside-down).

Anyway, I rode it with Alex and Sofia rode it with Callista. I think everyone agreed that it was the scariest ride (and conversely had the shortest line). Alex said he felt like he couldn’t breathe at times, and sometimes he felt like he was going to throw up. He’s the daredevil of the family, but once was enough even for him. I agreed. Again, kudos to Sofia for trying it. We couldn’t get her to ride La Torre, a big tower that carries you way up into the sky and then drops you straight down. I told her that La Torre was much easier than Skymaster, but she wouldn’t give in. She doesn’t dig the big drops.

La Torre: That's me waving on the right

The Sheridans left around 6. They had to get home to let the dogs out. We thought erroneously that the park closed at 11, so we ate our PB&J’s and prepared to ride a few more things. But it turned out the park closed at 7, so we only had time to ride Disko one more time. We called Wito and had him pick us up on his way home from work. That saved us another taxi fare.

Back at Pavas, guess what I saw as we drove up to the house. The taqueria was open. But Maritza had made a fresh pot of rice, and there were beans, sour cream, and shredded beef. So we decided to hold off on the tacos and eat Maritza’s food.

Cristina’s chest got sunburned again (the first time was at the 4th of July party). The only sunburn I got was on the backs of my lower legs. Sofia didn’t understand how the backs of my lower legs could get sunburned.