Thank you letter from Jackie Gero, November, 2005
My mother-in-law said that we should be more careful, we weren't all that young any more and I told her 'that may be, but we're not dead either'. We can't say enough about (Serendipity guide) Felipe and his abilities, his charm, his personality. He makes everyone feel he is there just for them and is very encouraging for a person to taking on an event not normally done. Thanks for making this trip so special for us
—Cliff & Helen R., Lexington, SC, February 2007
With your own personal trip guide and specialized guides for each activity, you'll be able to do things most companies don't offer.
Jackie Gero and her remaining children had special reasons for taking her Serendipity trip — her daughter
NOTE: Not long before her death, Jackie's daughter Jennie planned their Costa Rica vacation with Serendipity Adventures for herself, her husband, her sister and brother-in-law, and her mother Jackie. The trip didn't happen. Two years later Jackie booked their Serendipity aventure, which didn't happen either because Jackie's business partner became ill. Finally, in 2005 they got to do the high-spirited Serendipity Adventure originally planned by Jennie.
“I and my family want to thank you and all of the staff and guides at Serendipity for a great trip. Many people told me that I take chances when I book a trip online without prior experience with the company. But I like the humor of your web page. I have known people who have lost all of their money with travel agents. When the trip was originally planned for the year 2004 and I placed a deposit, then had to cancel because of my business partner being sick, I really thought that I may be out of my money (and all those many people would say “I told you so!”). But Serendipity turned out to be a pleasure the work with. Patricia followed up with me during the year 2005 to see when I would be rebooking and assured me that my deposit was still there. Ok, this made me feel more comfortable that Serendipity was a financially sound company and did not need my deposit to make things run, but could they handle the different personalities of our group of four?
Of course the first challenge would be: Can Serendipity match us with a guide that could accommodate our need for adventure? In our previous travels, we found that the primary guide would make the difference. I mentioned to Patricia several times “he or she has to have a personality with a good sense of humor”. Once again, Serendipity came through by assigning Filipe to our trip. From the very beginning he made us feel comfortable. I knew the personalities clicked when you allowed us to ride on the roof of the jeep when we were off road listening to some great music and looking for the monkeys, sloths, toucans and any other living creatures. Of course, we really didn’t believe that you nailed those fake sloths to the trees!!
The next challenge would test your personal creativity. After hiking and horseback riding for five hours deep, deep into the jungle, Gretchen jokingly informed you that this was my birthday and could you make this night special by having a birthday cake. I do not know how you, Moises (a great cook), and the rest of the guides pulled this off, but you did. That night I had a homemade cheese cake with fruit topping as my birthday cake. I believe that the cheese was to have been used for the next mornings breakfast. Keep in mind, there were no facilities or stores in this jungle. In fact we had a dug-out hole (the groover) for a toilet.
Serendipity is now two for two with the challenges. Of course we felt it our obligation to keep you and your guides on your toes. Thus the next day you faced another challenge. Because of the technical aspect and the rain factor midway trough the rapids, it was decided that safety was an issue and that we would have to terminate the ride down. However, the pack horses, supplies and all of our gear were already on their way back. We were now faced with returning by foot the balance of the way by hiking up and over a very very very very huge mountain!!! However, Jason only had on his aqua socks and he is flat footed. Adam began having lower back spasms and you were dealing with me (a senior citizen!!!). However, you came through again. You convinced one of your guides who happened to be the same shoe size of Jason to lend him his shoes (of course, Jason ended up wearing his aqua shoes and survived). Adam used positive thinking to overcome his back spasms and Carlos, your horseman, appeared from nowhere with a magnificent horse for me to ride over the mountain. You turned a difficult situation to a safe workable situation. This part of the trip happened to be my favorite part. Your positive upbeat attitude made this part of the trip very memorable.
After the rappelling the following day, you went beyond our expectations of a guide. Instead of just dropping us off at the lodge, you made sure that we got the full experience of the culture in Costa Rica. After a great lunch you took us to see the poisonous snake expert with the photogenic frog. Then we went to several different local bars/food spots to really experience how people lived in Costa Rica. None of this was in the itinerary, and it turned to be Adam’s favorite part of the trip (of course those Imperial’s helped!!) We thought we would give you a break by not having a challenge for the day.
Before I go on to the next day, I want to mention that during every part of this adventure trip safety safety safety was always the number one concern. During the rapelling down the various rock formations, safety was the key. Seeing how your guides double checked all the lines and the safety features made the adventure stress free for us.
The following day took us back to the rapids and camping. Of course your challenge was to organize a soccer game at the campsite and a thanksgiving feast since it was our Thanksgiving day. We didn’t give you much time to accomplish this since it was discussed the night before at one of the bars. Since our first camping experience with Serendipity had us using a groover for a toilet, we were ready to “rough it out”. Little did we know that your campsite was the equivalent of a five star hotel with running showers, privacy and first class meals. We were the only guest at this site. The thanksgiving feast featured very delicious black vulture (the equivalent of our turkey) and cranberry sauce on a table that included candles, wine glasses and what appeared to be a fine set of dishes. Gretchen was a little concerned when we saw Moises & Abel read the directions on the cranberry sauce can and appeared to want to cook them. She set them straight. Not only did you produce a soccer ball, but we ended up with a great match with me on the winning team (Abel was the ace player and even thought Adam tried to be fancy with that bicycle kick his team could not pull it through). A five star campsite, first class meals and entertainment for the evening with your guitar and a large pot as a drum.
The following day ended with a road trip to the Tilajari Lodge with another challenge. Where are the iguanas? After an hour of searching on our own at night we were convinced that they were not around. However, with a small flashlight you were able to conduct your own search and found them sleeping. The added touch with the flowers spread on our dinner table that evening did not go unnoticed.
The next morning we awoke to more iguana sightings and the premier table for breakfast( once again we were the only table with beautiful flowers spread on the table with the added nature cards). Then we were on our way via horseback to the zip wires. This was a heart stopping adventure. The Arenal Volcano in the background zipping at great speeds was fantastic! Looking at the pictures, I can’t believe how high up we were. The guides were extremely cautious and helpful. Phillip, you however made this day even more exciting. The walk down to the waterfall and the dip in the cold refreshing water was great. You did not let it end there. You went beyond by taking us to find the wildlife around the Arenal Volcano. Once again you were up to the challenge and for every animal that you were able to spot, we added a new one- with your coming through. The evening ended with a great viewing of the erupting volcano and the hot springs. It was very much appreciated the specialty drinks that you surprised us with- now knowing our individual personalities.
The last adventure day started with a climb of the Joseph strangler fig tree and the rappelling down. Of course, I had a lazy moment and did not complete the climb. But this was a challenge for Gretchen, Jason & Adam. Even with the bat crap and the ants, their climb and rappel was successful. The day continued with spending time at the 4x 4 international competition. Something that was not on the itinerary, but you made sure we saw this. Then the wonderful horseback riding on the “ dancing” horses. One of the challenges that we gave you earlier during the week was fulfilled on this date. The watching of a local soccer game. How did you time the game to coincide to our riding into the village? That was great!!!!!!!!! Then the end of the trip at the Xandari. What an awesome place to end the trip.
Phillip, my family has the unfortunate experience of realizing that one day the memories may be all that is left. This was an important trip since it was planned with (my daughter) Jennie in mind. I didn’t think that we could enjoy ourselves without her even though she was constantly with us in spirit (she had designed this trip before she died, and she was dancing in the stars above) and I believe she was the cause of the fierce rapids on that first trip (she always had a lot of spunk). But not only did we all enjoy ourselves, but we laughed a lot and we felt alive. This is what she would have wanted, and you were instrumental in making this happen. You and Serendipity have created many good memories that will be with us forever! Nothing can take those memories away!!!
Thank you, thank you and thank you!!!!!
Jackie Gero.
