The Wonderful World of Walmart

The other two girls in the program and I went to Walmart yesterday.  It's pretty much just like the ones in the United States, but it has like a buffet to eat lunch at and a gigantic bakery.  Obviously I bee-lined for the bakery. We all decided to get a piece of cake and share.  The other two girls had chocolate cake and tiramisu, which were good. I had cheesecake.  Worst decision ever.  It had the consistency of an eraser.  I am not kidding.  It's has to be in the top five worst things I have ever tasted.  I mean, I only took one bite out of it and threw the rest away and I am pretty much the human equivalent of a garbage disposal so that's saying something.  So to all of you travelers out there, do not order cheesecake at Walmart in Costa Rica.  That sounds pretty obvious now that I'm actually writing it. It's called New York cheesecake for a reason.

As we were enjoying the two edible cakes, a guy comes up to us and starts chatting us up.  He opens the conversation with the fact that he's from Long Island.  Great.  I try to avoid Long Island guidos in the US and can't get away from them. And now they find me in Costa Rica? I'm not sure what kind of karma is coming back around to me but, for the love of God, I'm sorry for whatever I did to deserve this.  Anyway, he was possibly the most forward man I have ever met.  He was looking threw our baskets and commenting on everything we were buying and giving pushy suggestions on why we should put back our chocolate and buy a different flavor. Funny, I didn't remember asking his opinion. Then he proceeded to tell us that we would be meeting him to watch the NBA playoffs and have a couple beers at a bar at the local mall.  Yes, I said "tell".  He phrased things only as commands rather than making polite requests.  He proceeded to have us write our email addresses in a flowered notebook so he could contact us later. Even in the email that was sent about 30 seconds after he arrived back at his house he used only commands concerning where we needed to be and at what time.  I guess his pointy suede shoes, pale yellow button down that had one too many buttons open massive amounts of chest hair, and his overly groomed yet still gigantic brows gave him a false sense of confidence.  Lesson learned:  Asshole American guys are still assholes when they travel to Costa Rica. But they have even more confidence which puts them in the red zone for douchebaggery.

I proceeded to do some shopping for the basics like shampoo and conditioner, which are actually reasonably priced and they have quality brands like Garnier Fructis and Pantene ProV.  Makeup, on the other hand, is absurdly expensive.  Mascara and foundation were about $25.  So bring enough for your entire stay.  Then we stocked up on chocolate and other junk food items, which is also reasonably priced as long as you are okay with buying local rather than splurging for American brands. 

After the cashier had rung out all of my items, I realized that I forgot on my money.  Typical.  And that's the end of my Walmart adventures.

I'm off to Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean side of the beach tomorrow.  Hasta pronto!