On our first day waking up in Playas del Coco, I wanted to take my parents over to my favorite little breakfast spot, Cafe de Playa. Its just across the street, and sits directly on the beach. They have lawn chairs out back on both their grass & sand, and its the perfect spot for a "Tico" breakfast.

Unbeknownst to me, this cafe doubles as a timeshare selling hub. We were immediately accosted by a Realtor, trying to push her wares on us. We politely declined, pushed our way through, and sat down. During breakfast, we could constantly hear the pitch of another Realtor two tables over. It wasn't as bad as it may sound, but it was a little annoying for me in particularly. I wanted this to be perfect, and was hoping they would just disappear. No such luck, but the food was good, the view was better, and the company at my table was the best.

Afterwords we strolled down the beach to the waterfall, or what was left of it. It was more of a watertrickle, since the weather had been so dry lately. We wanted to jump in and take a picture together, but didn't feel like waiting around until the couple who was occupying it left on their own.

Lots to do, lots to see. We hopped into the car and drove into town. A whole three minutes later, we were parking. Like I said, its a small town. In Coco, there is a very common scam of what I'll call "parking patrol." These are guys that sit around with reflective vests on, and wait for unsuspecting tourist to pull up. They slyly walk over and ask for money to watch your car.

I had been hit with this before when Scott had visited. After he left, I started asking around town about these guys. Its a rip off, and the locals know not to pay. Its like feeding milk to a stray cat, you'll never get rid of it after that.

So this time I knew better. As soon as we parked, sure enough here he comes. I jumped on him, and just wagged my finger, "no, no, no." He actually smiled, turned, and left. Sometimes you just have to be in the know.

We had souvenir hunting to do, and if there is one thing Coco has, its souvenir shops. We started at one end, and hit every single store on the strip making a big loop back to the car. The stores are small, so each one didn't take that long. Truth be told, they all have a lot of the same stuff.

What a different experience it was walking around town with a camera around my neck. Mom had hers on too, so it was as if we had giant signs attached to us, flashing "Tourist!" We were approached several times by the guys selling timeshares. At one point I got so sick of it, that I started to get a little rude. I upset one guy so bad that he was cussing as he peddled off. We just smiled.

Funny thing is though, they never bother me when I walk through town alone. They did at first, but I guess I've gone native. Either that, or they recognize me now. I hope its the later. After all, I've been here for five months.

We found what we had come for, and by this time we were ready for lunch. I had just the spot in mind, a place uptown called the Coffee House. For a place that sells great food, they probably couldn't have picked a worse name. I have tried to tell friends about it, but they always reply, "I don't drink coffee."

We took a quick drive through the south side of town before heading up for lunch. The south end has a very different feel from the north, but we all get along just the same. It is the older section of town, and has many more permanent residents, as compared to the newer vacation condos on the north.

When the market was booming in 2003 to 2005, developers came into town and started constructing anything they could think of. There was an overnight explosion of condos on the north, and now that the market has fallen out from under itself, there is nobody here. Construction had ceased by mid 2006.

We settled into the Coffee House, and Catherina, the cook, smiled and said hello. She is one of the best cooks in town, and I've been in to see her countless times. I can't remember exactly what each of us had, but I know that we all had one kind of smoothie or another. They are exceptional, filled with fresh fruit and served ice cold.

The restaurant is connected to a gift shop, and its one of the more decadent gift shops in town. The souvenirs sold in this store are unlike anything else around, and its always a treat just to wander through.

Ever since Scott was here, I had been eying one particular piece. It is made out of ironwood, and is a 3D sculpture of a seascape. In my opinion, its the best piece in the shop, simply beautiful.

Ironwood has a unique, hidden ability. It is extremely hard, and the trees from which its cultivated are very drought resistant. However, its special trick is that when heated, simply by the sun shinning through a window on a piece such as this, it emits a potent fragrance. You can smell a hint of it when cold, but once warm, it is said to fill the room with a pleasant odor.

I happened to lead my parents over and point it out. They shared my opinion, and bought it on the spot. It was an excellent buy, and now it just came down to shipping it home. This proved to be a nightmare, and ended up taking over a month to finally arrive in the US. Long story short, it is now in my parent's possession, unscathed, intact, and beautiful as ever.

My parents had brought me a copy of NCIS season 7. We're big fans of that show, if you didn't know. We took a few hours to rest and recoup, watch a few episodes, before heading out for an evening walk along the beach to admire the sunset.

Along the coast there are some beautiful homes, like this one. This tree is a pretty common area for people to sit, and just enjoy the beach. I'd imagine that those tinted windows come in very handy during the hot season.

A few years back, the government came through and bulldozed any building within the 50 meter mark from the water. This is apparently land owned by the government, and they were reclaiming their property. Some houses fell, others only partial fell, but I'm glad this house, and its tree, are still standing.

Our walk ended at La Dolce Vida, a pizza parlor around the corner from my house. By the time we ordered, it had started to lightly rain. We walked home while our pizzas were cooking, and I grabbed the car to return and pick up our food.

With pizza in hand, we turned on an episode of NCIS. I'm not sure how many we watched that night, but we were up until almost 11pm. It was too good of an evening to call it quits any earlier than that...