Sitting by the fire in an airport? Yes, I found it slightly unusual, too. Sipping single-malt scotch (Jill's having a mocha) in The Red Lion Restaurant--Portland International, operated by the same folks that started the Red Lion chain of hotels, I feel like I'm in another world, even though I'm still in the U.S. Posed on only my second journey beyond the countries bordering the U.S., the anticipation must be rubbing off on the local scenery. That's not to say that current conditions aren't nice, or that they aren't different from normal airports. But, I don't think I've ever been in an airport bar that's quite so nice--not too elegant, or too informal, stuffy or smoky. The leather armchair and attentive service make the wait for our next flight not only bearable but enjoyable. And if I wasn't staring at two dinners on my upcoming flights, I'd probably be staring at a plate like my neighbor's--a shrimp cocktail that is hardly shrimpy. The correct term should probably be prawn cocktail, and for only $4. But enough about food, or I'll end up sounding like Calvin Trillian (sp?).

The question is: Why Costa Rica? Why now?

We fell into Costa Rica for a destination as a default, I think. Having just finished Stephen Jay Gould's Ever Since Darwin when Jill started asking me about where we should take a vacation, I popped out with Galapagos. Jill didn't have to be convinced for a destination like that, but as we started looking into the possibilities, we realized that it would be out of our price range for this year. The Galapagos Islands are--fortunately probably for the species that live there, but unfortunate for the traveler on a skimpy budget--not very accessible. They are administered by the government of Ecuador, which has recently declared that only vessels carrying less than 100 passengers may make the Islands a stop. This is a boon to the entrepreneurs running the smaller ships, who no longer have to compete with the "Love Boats," and the larger cruise ships hardly notice the difference, I'll bet.

As we were gathering information on the Galapagos Islands, we picked up brochures for other countries as well. After determining that we weren't going to be able to afford a trip to the Galapagos, I started looking at trips to Greece or Italy. Ever since taking Italian in college, I've wanted to visit the Mediterranean. Jill, on the other hand, wanted to visit a developing nation. The battle--of which there wasn't much of one--was who would be the person to do more information searching and itinerary arrangement. Never having been one for planning, I easily lost out to the more organized Jill.

To state it that way makes it sound too glib, though, for Jill didn't have an easy time arranging this trip--as she constantly informed me, trying to get me involved and take part. My idea of help was to look at a brochure and say, "Okay, whitewater rafting looks good. Turtles? Sure. Horseback riding? Yeah, okay."

Jill first attempted to define the itinerary herself, piecing together a trip from ideas and locations gleaned from the brochures and the guidebook that we had bought (Costa Rica, from Lonely Planet). Most of the travel agents that she had approached in our hometown of Richland-Pasco-Kennewick, Washington (the Tri-Cities) turned a blank stare at her when she discussed with them terms like eco-adventure or adventure travel. The one agent who was willing to help Jill put together an itinerary was obviously new to the job. The itinerary the agent arranged from our suggestions was fine on the surface, but the bottom line strayed from our prescribed instructions regarding price.

All was not well in the household for a month, as Jill tried to get the agent to play with the itinerary and decrease the cost. When the agent finally stopped returning her calls, Jill realized that she had reached a dead end. While I resumed picking up brochures touting Austria for under $1000 from Portland, Jill began the hunt for a travel agent who was experienced in Central American countries.

A trip to Powell's Travel Bookstore proved the turning point. (You may have heard of Powell's World of Books in Portland before; if you're an avid reader, it's paradise. A city block of well-arranged new and used books. But Powell's also has several satellite stores in the city, including a technical bookstore, one specializing in cookbooks, and the Travel store located downtown--701 SW Sixth Ave.) A travel agency called Journey's had a presence within the store, and Jill picked up their business card. We had meant to meet with someone, but their counter at Powell's wasn't staffed on Saturdays, and by the time we had obtained the card, it was later than their business hours at their main office.

From there it was a downhill run, with very few moguls in the way. Journeys connected us with Randy Maxwell, their expert on Central America, who looked over our plans and professionally drafted a new itinerary based on his own personal experience and the experience of his co-workers and clients. We modified it only slightly--we wanted to try to catch a glimpse of the leatherback turtles at Tamarindo and have several open days. Randy was pleased to satisfy our wishes.