Manuel Antonio
Yesterday we went rafting and it was awsome. We spent about 2 hours total in a c-3 to c-4 river. The rapids were great fun and no one fell out, much to the chagrin of the photographer. We saw a lot of beautiful birds and butterflies. Then we went out for a nice dinner (I had lobster with mango butter! Yummy!) and wandered back up to the blue monkey then went back to our hotel, since we were a little wiped out.
Today we went to Manuel Antonio and hiked around the reserve. We saw a lot of lizards, a sloth and right at the end, a bunch of really cute monkeys. I got one picture close up, but I fear it will be a little blurry. We hiked up to a waterfall--not as nice as Montezuma´s--and spent the afternoon on the beach. The water was blue green and the sand was white. Just past the waves there was a deposit of coral and wave worn shells. The waves would pick us up and drag us out, then in and the salt water kept us afloat nicely.
Tonight we might go eat at the plane restaurant--El Avion--then tomorrow is back to San Jose, meet up with Joshua who is staying there and back on our plane to Dallas and Seattle on Tuesday. Almost home...
I am ¨"cranky" because I got bit by a weird orange bug on the bus, and it hurts. :(
Today we went to Manuel Antonio and hiked around the reserve. We saw a lot of lizards, a sloth and right at the end, a bunch of really cute monkeys. I got one picture close up, but I fear it will be a little blurry. We hiked up to a waterfall--not as nice as Montezuma´s--and spent the afternoon on the beach. The water was blue green and the sand was white. Just past the waves there was a deposit of coral and wave worn shells. The waves would pick us up and drag us out, then in and the salt water kept us afloat nicely.
Tonight we might go eat at the plane restaurant--El Avion--then tomorrow is back to San Jose, meet up with Joshua who is staying there and back on our plane to Dallas and Seattle on Tuesday. Almost home...
I am ¨"cranky" because I got bit by a weird orange bug on the bus, and it hurts. :(
Montezuma - Quepos
We had another day of lovely abandon at the waterfall, made all the better by meeting two fellow travelers from Colorado Springs. They were a couple of school teachers who make a point of going on a big trip every year. We chatted with them for a bit, goading each other into more daring leaps and swings off the waterfall and rope swing.
Later that evening we went into town, found the ATM was out of money. We took a walk down the beach to some pillow basalt, enjoyed the view and the sand, watched the sea creatures in the tide pools then decided to have a nice dinner via our credit card. We went to Ylang Ylang--which is also a very nice hotel--and had some really good seafood. I had prawns with pinapple sauce and Meagan had blackened tuna. They were both delicious. I also had Hamatchi Sashimi, which did not kill me (or I wouldn´t be typing this...) and was very good. It was beautiful to see the sun set over the water through the palm trees. We also had 3 very strong cocktails each, which made for a very giggly walk home.
We spent another miserable day on the buses yesterday. We had just enough cash to pay for our transportation into Puntarenas, where we went to the bank, and luckily there was a later bus to Quepos, or we would have been stuck there. Most of the late busses end at 2:30 and we caught a 4:30. We didn´t get into Quepos until after 8 and took a taxi to our hotel, which is a haven of comfort after our stay in Montezuma--they just need more pillows or a comfy chair in there. We didn´t have anything to drink or eat though, so we went to bed early as there was nothing close enough to venture out to in the pouring rain that started just as we got there.
Today we walked into Quepos, which is about 3km from our hotel. It was a fairly easy walk. We have been doing the touristy stuff; buying souveniers, using the internet cafe, taking in the sights. Later we are going to book a water rafting tour. We will get some supplies on our way back to keep in our room. Tomorrow will either be rafting or the Manuel Antonio forest and the beach. Tonight we will hit the Blue Monkey for dinner and drinks and check out a club close to our hotel. We have been wiping ourselves out hiking and such, so haven´t had much energy left over for partying.
Later that evening we went into town, found the ATM was out of money. We took a walk down the beach to some pillow basalt, enjoyed the view and the sand, watched the sea creatures in the tide pools then decided to have a nice dinner via our credit card. We went to Ylang Ylang--which is also a very nice hotel--and had some really good seafood. I had prawns with pinapple sauce and Meagan had blackened tuna. They were both delicious. I also had Hamatchi Sashimi, which did not kill me (or I wouldn´t be typing this...) and was very good. It was beautiful to see the sun set over the water through the palm trees. We also had 3 very strong cocktails each, which made for a very giggly walk home.
We spent another miserable day on the buses yesterday. We had just enough cash to pay for our transportation into Puntarenas, where we went to the bank, and luckily there was a later bus to Quepos, or we would have been stuck there. Most of the late busses end at 2:30 and we caught a 4:30. We didn´t get into Quepos until after 8 and took a taxi to our hotel, which is a haven of comfort after our stay in Montezuma--they just need more pillows or a comfy chair in there. We didn´t have anything to drink or eat though, so we went to bed early as there was nothing close enough to venture out to in the pouring rain that started just as we got there.
Today we walked into Quepos, which is about 3km from our hotel. It was a fairly easy walk. We have been doing the touristy stuff; buying souveniers, using the internet cafe, taking in the sights. Later we are going to book a water rafting tour. We will get some supplies on our way back to keep in our room. Tomorrow will either be rafting or the Manuel Antonio forest and the beach. Tonight we will hit the Blue Monkey for dinner and drinks and check out a club close to our hotel. We have been wiping ourselves out hiking and such, so haven´t had much energy left over for partying.
Montezuma
After the worst day so far, today has been the best. Of course, since everything has been so great, the worst day so far wasn't really that bad. Yesterday, we took the bus from Santa Elena to Puntarenas. We left at 6am and arrived at around 10. It was quite hot by the time we got there and we decided to walk the few blocks to the ferry. First we stopped by the sea for a break, then headed up the coast line to the ferry terminal. We just made the 10:30 ferry--but in the mean time, the heat took its tole on me. I had a raging headache and a bit more of a sunburn than I had gotten the day before by the time we got on the boat. We were in the shade, but there was no breeze and I was only feeling a little better by the time we got off and got on another hot bus. I won't go into too many details now. After some fanagling, we made it to our bed and breakfast. There was no running water at the time, although we hope there will be by the time we return. Otherwise it is a great place and my friend Joshua (who isn't there) and his brother Ryan (who is) seem to be doing a great job running the place.
Montezuma is amazing, there are many colorful folks here and I think tourists outnumber the locals--but everyone seems to want to stay here forever. Many of the tourists are long term, with the tans to prove it. Today we hiked a short way to a local waterfall and had a blast. We dived off the rocks and a rope swing, sat in the rapids and climbed around the rocks. It was wonderful; sitting in the rapids is like getting a water massage. I was so relaxed after, my legs didn't want to walk the short distance back to the house. We only left because we didn't have any water or food with us and we needed to replenish. Next we walked into town, had lunch, bought a couple of sarongs and hit the beach. The waves were a little raucus, but that didn't stop us from having some fun in the water, then we relaxed on the beach and read. I am on book number 5 since I left and I only have one left to go...everything here is in spanish, so I may up a creek...
Our expedition to the Cloud Forest was interesting. We walked about 10km to get there and I got a little sunburn on my shoulders. Then on our hike around the forest, it started pouring! I really mean pouring--there was a river running down our trail. At first it was fun, hiking in the rain with thunder and lightning in the distance, the forest dripping around us. But the rain didn't let up and the going got harder. We were only about a quarter into the 4.8km hike when it started, so we still had a way to go. When we got back we got a ride down with a tour group, as we no longer felt like walking back. Meagan's boots were full of water and chaffing by then and I was just plain tired. We made it though and were glad we had our raincoats!
Montezuma is amazing, there are many colorful folks here and I think tourists outnumber the locals--but everyone seems to want to stay here forever. Many of the tourists are long term, with the tans to prove it. Today we hiked a short way to a local waterfall and had a blast. We dived off the rocks and a rope swing, sat in the rapids and climbed around the rocks. It was wonderful; sitting in the rapids is like getting a water massage. I was so relaxed after, my legs didn't want to walk the short distance back to the house. We only left because we didn't have any water or food with us and we needed to replenish. Next we walked into town, had lunch, bought a couple of sarongs and hit the beach. The waves were a little raucus, but that didn't stop us from having some fun in the water, then we relaxed on the beach and read. I am on book number 5 since I left and I only have one left to go...everything here is in spanish, so I may up a creek...
Our expedition to the Cloud Forest was interesting. We walked about 10km to get there and I got a little sunburn on my shoulders. Then on our hike around the forest, it started pouring! I really mean pouring--there was a river running down our trail. At first it was fun, hiking in the rain with thunder and lightning in the distance, the forest dripping around us. But the rain didn't let up and the going got harder. We were only about a quarter into the 4.8km hike when it started, so we still had a way to go. When we got back we got a ride down with a tour group, as we no longer felt like walking back. Meagan's boots were full of water and chaffing by then and I was just plain tired. We made it though and were glad we had our raincoats!
Santa Elena, Monteverde
Everything is great! We got here, all of our reservations have been in order, no one has scammed us. We got in to our hotel at around 9pm on Wednesday in San Jose. Our hotel was very comfortable and the people at the desk were very helpful. Breakfast was good and "typical" (local). In the morning we went to find the library. The building itself was large and impressive, but there were very few books inside, and what they did have was very old. I couldn't find a postcard, so we took some pictures. Then we checked out several parks, hit the tourist info office to find out about the bus to Monteverde, saw the Mercado Central and walked literally all over town. It was not near as scary as it was the night before when we drove through (much homeless, prostitution and public drunkenness.
At around 2:30 we took the bus to Monteverde. While we were waiting, we went to a local diner and had some yummy food and sat drinking aqua and fanta. The bus ride was long, supposed to be 4.5hrs but was really 6. Luckily, when we got in, we were only about a block from the hotel and there was a decent pizza place next door. They tried to shortchange several of us at the pizza place, but everyone seemed to be too savvy. Asside from that experience everyone has been very nice and helpful.
Our hotel is nice--comfortable--although it doesn't have an ice machine or glasses in the room. They are definitely trying to motivate people to use the cafe. We got around this by going to the Super Mercado that is at the end of the block, stocking up on water and getting snacks and some lunch makings. We also had a very cheap and yummy dinner at the bar around the corner. Nachos Carne are two large corn tortilla chips with well placed meat, beans, salsa and cheese--Meagan said they were very good (I plan to try them soon) and I had fajitas con Pollo, which was marinated meat and peppers served with french fries and cabbage salad. We heard some local music and had our first good night's sleep last night.
Today we went on the ziplines and walkways at Salvatura park. It was amazing! We zipped along the canope, jumped off a 30 ft structure to do a tarzan swing--it was scary, you jumped off into space and it caught you and swung out about 5ft before the ground. The walkways were beautiful and allowed us to see more of the Cloud forest than the ziplines.
I wish Kory was here with me. Everything I see or do, I keep thinking how much Kory would like it. There are some long hours where all we do is read and recoupe from our walking etc. But everything is so beautiful and exciting. I can't wait to be able to bring him with me next time.
That's all for now. I will put up some pictures when I get back and update when I get a chance. Adios!
At around 2:30 we took the bus to Monteverde. While we were waiting, we went to a local diner and had some yummy food and sat drinking aqua and fanta. The bus ride was long, supposed to be 4.5hrs but was really 6. Luckily, when we got in, we were only about a block from the hotel and there was a decent pizza place next door. They tried to shortchange several of us at the pizza place, but everyone seemed to be too savvy. Asside from that experience everyone has been very nice and helpful.
Our hotel is nice--comfortable--although it doesn't have an ice machine or glasses in the room. They are definitely trying to motivate people to use the cafe. We got around this by going to the Super Mercado that is at the end of the block, stocking up on water and getting snacks and some lunch makings. We also had a very cheap and yummy dinner at the bar around the corner. Nachos Carne are two large corn tortilla chips with well placed meat, beans, salsa and cheese--Meagan said they were very good (I plan to try them soon) and I had fajitas con Pollo, which was marinated meat and peppers served with french fries and cabbage salad. We heard some local music and had our first good night's sleep last night.
Today we went on the ziplines and walkways at Salvatura park. It was amazing! We zipped along the canope, jumped off a 30 ft structure to do a tarzan swing--it was scary, you jumped off into space and it caught you and swung out about 5ft before the ground. The walkways were beautiful and allowed us to see more of the Cloud forest than the ziplines.
I wish Kory was here with me. Everything I see or do, I keep thinking how much Kory would like it. There are some long hours where all we do is read and recoupe from our walking etc. But everything is so beautiful and exciting. I can't wait to be able to bring him with me next time.
That's all for now. I will put up some pictures when I get back and update when I get a chance. Adios!
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