Tag Archives: Costa Rica

Prepaid ICE sim card in Costa Rica

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Yesterday I bought a prepaid ICE sim card in Costa Rica. Last time I was in Costa Rica they didn’t exist. Then they were available, but very hard to find I read. I walked into a shop called abCelular in San Isidro, and after a bit of confusion, walked out with a 2500 colones sim. Yay. :-)

They asked for an ID card. I offered my UK driving license. That was fine, except their computer would only accept numbers in the “identification document number” spot. So instead, I gave them my passport, where the document number is only digits. I probably could have pushed the issue with my driving license, maybe they would have just entered the numerical part or something, but the passport seemed easier, and I was in a hurry.

The transaction was painless. I showed no phone and they only looked at the photo page of my passport, but wouldn’t have seen it at all if I’d pushed the driving license. It seems that prepaid SIMS are finally available in Costa Rica… :-)

Now if only I could get service inside my house…

Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

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Yesterday I finally left San Jose, after 3 days and 3 nights. I saw almost nothing of San Jose in those 3 days. It was a good time to move on.

Five of us caught the bus to Puerto Viejo. We’re staying at Rocking J’s, a hammock hostel. We each have our own tent complete with mattress, under cover of a roof, for $6 a night. Wireless is $2 for 7 days. These are the kind of prices I can work with. :)

As I write this, I’m sitting in a rocking chair looking out over the garden. The ocean is just 20m to my right while the rain falls orchestrally on the tin roof overhead.

Timing worked well this morning. I woke up startled at 6am. Deciding to make the most of the day, I strolled over to the beach. After a brief explore I settled down to meditate on the sea shore. This morning I decided to meditate untimed, without a clock. Just as I finished my meditation, the rain started falling softly. Once I was back under covers the skies burst into a percussive downpour upon the roof. Splendid.

Here’s the spot where I’m sitting, having turned a rocking chair to face to the left of this picture.

My spot in the rocking chair

If I look slightly to my right, this is my view:

Looking out over the garden

Meanwhile the sound of early morning backpacker conversation floats up from the tables underneath me. It must be time for breakfast soon…