Going out for a walk or run in Costa Rica is a challenge, as I’ve mentioned many times before. There’s rarely a park to sneak out to - except for the la Sabana - and sidewalks are as rare as jellybeans at Christmas. In lieu of a good place to pound my feet and shake my tail feathers, I sometimes end up at the mall. Guess what? Even that is ripped apart and a mess. The tried and true pavement I could depend on is now mud, re-bar, and trucks. Lots and lots of trucks. (And don’t forget the construction guys….more on them another day.)

I used to be able to circle the mall early in the morning because there were no cars and it was pretty safe - a kind of suburban-gentrified-Central American, hiking trail. I trotted over to the mecca of commerce and forgot how refreshing it can be to be running without drivers pretending you don’t exist.

As I approached the mall, I forgot also how entertaining the scenery can be. Besides getting in a bit of work out, I found new and exciting uses for the plethora of sequenced scarves I have hanging in the back of my closet. (I’m just kidding, I only have two sequenced scarves.) What mother of the jungle would ever want to live without one?