Caitlin and I are a late-20s DINK couple that love to take nice vacations to exotic locales. We've been married for four years, and decided early in our relationship, before starting a family, we were going to spend time together traveling the world. So far, our finances have allowed for one large and one small vacation each year, with destinations that have included Paris, Buenos Aires, and Istanbul.
Using all our discretionary money for trips has not exactly been conducive to planning for the future, and even though we still wanted to wait a couple more years before having kids, we realized it was time to start saving. However, since we weren't ready to just stay home, the answer seemed to be to scale back. We had always leaned towards splurging, rationalizing that we might only have one chance to visit a place, but now that was going to need to change.
Caitlin and I met at work. At the time, I was an up and coming assistant product manager and she was fresh out of college working in the marketing department. We were introduced at a company happy hour and things immediately clicked. In fact, those working with us at the time like to tell stories about how they knew we were destined for each other from that very first meeting.
Fortunately for me, my wife is both attractive and intelligent, and she quickly wrapped me around her finger. She is a slender 5'7" tall with soft shoulder-length light-brown hair, matching brown eyes and full kissable lips. She has B-cup breasts tipped with tiny nipples that sit high on her chest and are well-proportioned for her frame. However, her best feature is her legs which are long, shapely and end in an extremely well-toned butt. I'm 5'11" with a medium build and a slightly receding hair line, not in bad shape, but I don't work out with near the fervor of Caitlin, so I'm a bit softer.
Having decided to make less extravagant destination plans, we threw ourselves into researching places that might fit our interests, and finally selected a Pacific beach town in Costa Rica. Since we both spoke some Spanish, it was appealing, and when the offseason rates were factored in it just seemed to make sense. To top it off, Caitlin was interested in learning how to surf, and there were many other activities nearby as well. It wasn't going to be first class this time, but we looked forward to it as something of an adventure.
We landed in San Jose and took a bus directly from the airport to the beach town. The bus was reasonably comfortable and the ride wasn't too bad except for a couple of tight turns around chasms in the mountains that caught our attention. Caitlin was dressed conservatively in hiking shorts and a short-sleeved button shirt, but still attracted male attention from the mix of locals and tourists.
We were dropped off near the center of town, and after asking directions to our hotel, we made what turned out to be a short 300-yard walk to its location, arriving right before sundown. It was one block off the beach, with no real view, but the room was clean with a king-sized bed, a bathroom with both a shower and tub, and there was a nice sitting area with a couch and a couple of chairs. The hotel also had a small pool with an outside bar and satellite TV, so all things considered, it exceeded our expectations.
"Can I buy you a drink Mrs. Behrens?" I asked after we dropped our bags.
"Yes, you may. I need one! It's been a long day," she replied eagerly while flashing me her lovely smile.
We walked towards the beach and found a small bar with just a smattering of people, and after ordering our drinks, we relaxed while watching and hearing the sea roll in.
"Pretty big waves," I said, raising an eyebrow towards Caitlin.
"You need big waves to learn to surf properly," she replied, seemingly undaunted.
We signaled to our waiter for another round, and when he arrived, we started a conversation.
"Hector, do you know anyone that teaches surfing lessons," I asked the pleasant older man.
"Oh, yes. There are several instructors," he replied.
"How do you find them?" I followed.
"They work off the beach. Right along in there," he said, using his hand to gesture at the expanse in front of us.
"Anyone you would recommend?" Caitlin chimed in.
"The best is Juan Pablo. He is also the surfing champion," Hector informed us.
"And where do we find him?" she asked.
"Just a bit down there. You can ask anyone," he said while pointing to his left.
"Well, looks like tomorrow is planned," I said with a laugh.
"For part of the day. I'm sure it's tiring. We can relax and explore for the rest," she responded.
Caitlin tends to overdo things and it looked like this vacation would be no different. Since both of us were tired from the travel, we finished our drinks, went back to the hotel, and within minutes we were both asleep.
We were up early the next morning and after a light breakfast we wandered towards the beach. Unfortunately, it was still mostly empty, so we explored the town, noting several places for further investigation, and an hour later we returned to the water where things were beginning to liven.
"Hi, we're looking for Juan Pablo, the surfing instructor," I asked a young man in broken Spanish.
"There," he said, pointing towards a small hut under a few trees about fifty yards down the beach.
"Juan Pablo?" I asked a young man that looked to be in his early twenties, after walking to the hut.
"Yes, I am Juan Pablo," he replied in good English.
"My wife is interested in surfing lessons. We are told you are the best instructor," I said.
"Well, I think I am good, but perhaps not the best," he responded with a charming smile.
"How do you teach surfing?" Caitlin broke in, wanting to get to specifics.
"Ahhhh, well I teach about the board first and how the waves work and then we go to the water," he explained, turning and openly looking her up and down.
"How much are the lessons?" she asked, unfazed.
"Each lesson is $40 and lasts between an hour to an hour and a half," he told her, now completely ignoring me.
