Today has been an incredibly eventful day in Costa Rica.

costa rica earthquakesFirst, it’s Mother’s Day. Feliz día de la madre! Most families gather around and spend quality time together while eating delicious food. For some, it’s even a holiday and they are gifted the day off from work.

Second, there were FOUR earthquakes this morning! FOUR! No damages reported, so they just added a little extra jiggle in the bed to those living on the Pacific coast. Perhaps a Mother’s Day gift from Mother Nature?

#1 3.6 at 12:11 am near Osa Peninsula, #2 4.3 at 1:47 am in Guanacaste, #3 3.6 at 2:43 in Pavones, and #4 3.6 at 4:10 in Manuel Antonio. Those weren’t aftershocks. Those were four. separate. earthquakes. Wowsers!

Third, the heavy rainy season officially started. It’s rainy like crazy right now!

raindrops on window

In Costa Rica, the rainy season starts around May and lasts through the end of October, but there is a break from the rain every year called Veranillo de San Juan which runs from about July 15 to August 15. After August 15th, the rain increases in strength until it lets up rather rapidly in the beginning of November.

I don’t know why people don’t talk more about Veranillo de San Juan. It’s the perfect time to come and visit Costa Rica because everything is green from the start of the rainy season, but you don’t have to deal with rain everyday on your vacation. It does get hot, but not as hot as it is in the middle of the dry season and it’s technically the low season, so prices are drastically reduced. Great time for a bargain holiday!

Maybe people aren’t talking about it because it’s like a secret Spring Break for Costa Ricans. Most of the tourists are gone, so Ticos can afford to take off from work and visit the beaches and volcanos themselves while benefitting from the reduced prices. Or maybe the North American and European tourists prefer to visit Costa Rica while it’s cold at home?

dark storm clouds rolling over the central valley of Costa Rica

So it’s storming right now and I’m writing this on battery power because we unplug everything from the wall when we are having a crazy storm with wild lightning, even if it’s plugged into a surge protector. A major thunderstorm starts and it’s like a mad dash to prepare the house: close the windows, secure the gate, bring in the laundry, unplug everything… batten down the hatches!

When the storms get unusually wild, everyone will stop what they are doing and watch the awesome power of mother nature, silent in awe as she screams and rages around us.

And if it’s a storm cloud passing us by, saving her rain for another town, I sometimes have the sense to grab my camera and record that moment in time.

storm cloud passing us by in costa rica

raindrops on window photo by Tanveer Chandok on Flickr