[Above: Drive Around the World Land Rovers are parked at a dealership in San Jose, where they underwent some routine maintenance.]

Journal by Nancy Olson

The team had an early start today, because today is Drive Around the World vehicle maintenance day at Land Rover San Jose. That’s right, we drove for forty-one days, only to end up right where we started: San Jose (Costa Rica, that is.).

We arrived at the dealership at about 7:30 in the morning and were greeted by an enthusiastic and excited staff of employees. They had the entire mechanics’ bay cleared and ready for us.

Todd had a list of items that needed to be addressed for each vehicle. It was basically routine stuff, such as condition the windshield wipers, adjust the headlights, balance the tires, and check the brakes and fluids. Our next opportunity for service would be Chile, and we wanted to make sure everything was good to go. The Number One thing you learn at a Land Rover driving course is “vehicle preservation.” These vehicles have to get us all the way around the world, and we depend on them for everything. They are our most important equipment, and we treat them well. Not surprisingly, they have performed swimmingly. After all, they are Land Rovers; they were born and bred for this sort of stuff.

We stayed at Land Rover all day, and we were just blown away by the hospitality extended to us, especially by Rodolfo Echeverria, the chief of Land Rover Café, whose office is co-located with the service center. He worked extra hard to ensure we had everything we needed, and he even helped us with non-Land Rover errands, such as buying an inverter and picking up a package at customs. He is absolutely amazing, and I’m privileged to be able to call him my friend.

Rodolfo is a man who has found his true passion and is now making a living doing what he loves. He knows and understands the science and the art of producing the finest coffee in the world. His family has been in the business for more than 100 years. He is a go-getter, and I admire people with his integrity and work ethic. He’s what I refer to as “good people.” You should read more about Rodolfo and our trip to the coffee plantation at our education website.

At around 6:00 p.m., we were overdue at a reception at Motores Britanicos, which is the Land Rover building that houses the dealership. It’s located only about six kilometers from the service center in San Jose. Well, it was rush hour, and that six kilometers took almost an hour to drive. I was having a blast, though, because driving in San Jose is akin to driving bumper cars. I got to use my most aggressive defensive driving skills. We poked and prodded our way through crazy intersections and bumper-to-bumper traffic like George Costanza playing Frogger (Seinfeld reference; my apologies.). Suffice it to say we did well, and no buses, trucks, pedestrians, motorcycles, or micro-machine-style vans could slow us down. I was feeling pretty stoked.

When we arrived at the dealership and saw the spread they had laid out for us, we felt even more stoked. The other three vehicles had arrived more than an hour ahead of us (Nick, Chanda, Todd, Rodolfo, and I had been delayed by additional business.), and they were parked inside the building in their big showcase room. We pulled right in behind them, and all four expedition vehicles were on proud display for the evening. An amazing chef was manning the barbecue, and he served up beef, chicken, and sausage tacos until we couldn’t stand to eat another bite. I seriously don’t know how he made them taste so good.

By 9:00, a pretty severe food coma was beginning to set in, and the employees had to get home to their families, so we had to wrap things up. It was no fun having to bid our new friends goodbye, but I feel pretty certain we’ll see them again, perhaps in the States. Our host, Oscar Echeverria, owner of Motores Britanicos, and each member of his staff, are the type of people you just want to keep as friends forever. They are good people.

It was easy for me to sleep that evening, with the contentment of a full belly, new friends, and the anticipation of the next day’s journey to the wilds of the Osa Penninsula wafting through my mind. Life is good.

Logbook for December 11th
Start: San Jose, Costa Rica
Finish: San Jose, Costa Rica
Mileage: 11
Notes: Visted San Jose Land Rover dealership for vehicle maintenance. Attended a BBQ with Land Rover employees.

Help support our cause: The LONGITUDE Expedition is the longest journey ever attempted with a focus on Parkinson's Disease. The Drive Around the World team aims to raise money for Parkinson’s Disease research by driving four certified pre-owned Land Rover Discoverys around the globe following lines of longitude. Readers are encouraged to pledge small amounts of money per expedition-kilometer via a pledge form that can be found on our Parkinson’s page by clicking here. 100% of donations received go directly to Parkinson's research and all who donate $10 or more will be entered into a raffle to win an expedition-equipped Land Rover Discovery.