The rains of October always bring some noticeable changes to trails and town’s streets. On Sugar Beach, the waterfall right at the bottom of the hill begins running strong. Some of the trails see occasional downhill water flow that means it’s best to stay off the trails at the moment, but will lead to smooth and well-packed trails once running water subsides.
The rain also adds an extra layer of life to the streets and plazas as well. On Paseo Árbol and parts of Calle Cartagena the drains flow like rivers as they carry water down through town towards the ocean. The stream in the Monkey Corridor fills and flows as well, creating a little estuary out towards Playa Danta. Along the downhill parts of the Calle La Ronda, the water runs across the cantera stone in a thin smooth layer. The fountains all throughout town bubble with fresh water.
There’s another reason for this extra layer of life. During heavier rainfall, schools in the area can often be canceled for various reasons. With the consistent rain, there is always a sense of anticipation among students and their families around town as they prepare for school, keeping an eye on phones for news. Often it's not decided until the very last minute, just before the school bus leaves, that the kids would have school off for the day, leading to a joyful rush back out into town as kids celebrate the Costa Rican version of a snow day.
In Costa Rica, rainy days like this one are “pasados por agua”, or “passed by water”, and they always come with a slight shift in the schedule and creative rainy day activities. Some kids in town have start the day by racing down to the beach to play and searching for puddles and rivers around town, and there are a few special activities that go on to make días pasado por agua lively and fun.
Last time, Cuatro Calle La Ronda took orders for Tico Breakfasts at home until noon. Limonada hosted a tico cooking class to learn how to make picadillo and tortilla palmeada, and showed a movie on the second floor, with a special menu of cozy homestyle lunch options.
Then, throughout the afternoon, Limonada had soups, coffee, and cakes as a rainy day treat, while Wake Day Spa offered special deals on all massages from 10am to 6pm. The day was capped off by a cocktail-making session at the bar in Ponciana.
These rainy day activities, as well as the fact that you can still do almost every outdoor activity in town anyway, are one of the many reasons that rain is a fun part of life around Las Catalinas.