Falling in Love with the City!

 Enamórate de tu Ciudad

This is my second Saturday going consecutively to the activities being offered at the this corridor of cultural activities. There are activities for all ages and interests. They take place at the main parks from the capital, España park, Jadín de Paz park (I did not know the name I just knew it as the park in front of the metal school which is a pink colored building that is made out of metal, it's known as the Escuela Metálica/Metal School), Morazán park, La Merced park. This last one is located far from the others which actually come one after the other.

Parque España

As I  walk home after spending 2 hours hula hopping, I feel happy, tire and happy. At 9 am, I did the yoga class at España park, and then moved to the hula hopping area at 10 am in the Jadín de Paz park. For the yoga class, you have to bring your own mat, and for the hula hooping class, you just go and take one of the many colorful hula hoops available and start dancing to the rhythm of the electric beat played by the live djs. There were also African, Hip hop, Break dance classes, Parkour lessons, table games, local products exhibitions, an exchange market, and some many other things to discover. The activities for each Saturday can be found at the Enamorate de tu ciudad Facebook page Here.

As a foreigner if you want to spend some days in San José, make sure that one of those days is a Saturday since this is a most to see activity, all the classes and workshops are free and you can also have the chance to buy souvenirs that are  different and unique.

What I loved the most? Seeing a 4 year old learning how to hula hoop and it was mainly the fact that I saw so many parents sharing with their children at this community gathering where you can play, laugh, learn, share with people and enjoy the city. I do feel as if I were falling in love with the city, there are certain things about San José that definitely can be much better but there are also these other great experiences that makes me love to spend time in Chepe.

El Sótano de Barrio Amón

Finally, I got my fingers to the keyboard to writte a little about this place. El Sótano (The Basement) is a new underground bar that provides a space for vinyl music lovers  and the possibility for young artists to make their proposals. My first visit was to hear Dinamita and her band which is a fusion of hiphop and jazz. I've heard her before and I knew  I liked her lyric and presence on stage; she's a strong woman with lots of character and a fast, spicy tongue. So, hearing her fusing hip hop style music with jazz was something I had to hear.

As I walk down the four blocks at Calle 3 which is the street that goes north exactly from the corner where supermaket Automercado is, I'm thinking how strange it is for a woman to be walking alone at night at downtown San José; however, I'm not afraid at all, I'm actually excited since I get to see and enjoy my capital  as I know many people would not even dare. I'm actually expecting to see a least one transvestite since I know  this is the area where they usually are. When I get to the third block, there are no transvestites and the only people that were also walking the same direction as me get into this lesbian bar called Castilla which is on the opposite site of where I'm walking so it is only me an half a block more to walk. There are also the taxi cap drivers who cannot miss the horn as they see me. So, as they do this, I wonder, do I look like a crazy girl who's walking alone Barrio Amón or may be as a sexual worker that is looking for its next client, I think I was dressed more like the crazy girl walking alone, loose aquamarine blouse, black pants and black boots. Definetely  a street walker.

When this street walker finally gets to the corner of the fourth block what is in front of me is the bar VIPS which is known as a brothel so I turn left and 3 meters later there's my friend and her boyfriend at El Sotano's entrance. The place is a beautiful white house right on the corner that has two entrances. One that leads to the main floor of the house and it's accessed from the north side of the house and the basement which is the entrance right around the corner. The basement  is where the bar is and where the vinyl records are played. It  has also a small stage for instruments when there is jamming. This area gets crowded very quickly so it's a good idea to get early if you want to get a seat.Upstairs is for events that need to hold more people and it also has a room with tables if you wish to grab a bite. Haven't eaten there yet but the menu looked provoking, so definitely next time. 

What kind of music can you hear? Jazz, Blues, Rock, Punk, Reggae, Neo Soul, Alternativo, National, Hip Hop in  vinyl or live.  

I loved the placed, it is definitely for people who enjoy  music and the vibe of a crowd that shares the same passion. It is also a promising place that I looks to be defined by the same artists that want to show their art. Whether it is fusioned rhythms,  theather plays or a dance show, we''ll see what comes next...