Costa Rica
I have just returned from my adventures in Costa Rica. It was definitely a fun-filled adventure which I will not forget anytime in the coming millennium. “Pura Vida”. In Spanish it means “Pure Life” and is a phrase you’ll hear and see, everywhere in Costa Rica. The locals live this expression to the fullest and their love for life is evident on their smiling faces and in their kind actions to strangers. And why wouldn’t they be constantly cheerful? You would be too if you could call one of the worlds most beautiful and exotic countries home. Costa Rica is one of Central America’s most popular destinations. Located between Nicaragua and Panama, Costa Rica has a population of approximately 3.9 million and is similar in size to West Virginia. There are only two seasons here – rainy and dry.
Day 1: Confusion here, there, everywhere.
Booked a flight which is way too early for normal travelers. Checked that off my list of things I'm not keen on doing. Security lines filled with college goers who are already yapping about the amount of tequila they need on an IV dosage every night. Check that as well. Don't understand why they made an EZ-check-in kiosk when there is still an attendant helping every passenger. Confusion. Why I pack the same amount of clothing for a 10-day vacation as I do for a weekend get away... My entire closet. I still can't understand either. Sigh. My flight took off at 7:35am which meant I was leaping around the house around 4am. Those who know me understand that I come with a warning label: not a morning person. I am a grouchy mess who prefers to brood silently glaring at her ticket until she can finally fall asleep again on the plane... And on top of that Continental is now charging $6 for passengers to watch movies. Jesus. My one happiness is gone from flying!
We landed around noon in Juan Santamaria International Airport, San José. Between trying to figure out why Costa Ricans don't have a SIM phone card system and getting our 12-seat van plus an additional AWD jeep rented I mysteriously developed a headache. Oh, I didn't mention that the 4 families (15 people) traveling together on this tropical escape decided to self-navigate and drive across Costa Rica... Shaking your head in disbelief. Yeah...that seems to be the initial reaction for most. Our first night in San José I learned exactly how difficult it was to navigate using just a map. You see there are only a few street signs in Costa Rica and even fewer addresses. Read that as almost none. Just about all addresses are in terms of a well-known building or landmark; often the local Church, cemetery, or another fixed location. But just to keep things interesting, some addresses are phrased in terms of buildings that may have burned down 20 years ago. To say the least we didn't find our restaurant that first night. We did get lucky enough to find another amazing place called Tintos and Blanco's though.
Day 2: The C's of Costa Rica: Coffee, Cards, Cash and Contacts
I had booked a tour today to keep the pressure of self navigation to a minimum. Our first stop was a town called Grecia, which was once named "the cleanest city in Latin America." It is noted for its unique church, Iglesia de la Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes, which is made entirely of pre-fabricated steel plates painted red. According to the urban legend, the original church was destroyed in an earthquake and the city wanted a church which would stand the test of time. Well 2012 isn't too far off so many they don't have to wait too long?
We then stopped at a town called Sarchí, which is Costa Rica's most famous crafts center. The town offers more than 200 stores and the world's largest Oxcart: A huge, brightly-painted "carreta" that was built in 2006 in order to get the name of the town into The Guinness Book of World Records. The plan was a success apparently, but what do you do with such a huge oxcart? Ticos are short statured people in general. Therefore, chairs, couches, etc. are built about 6-8 inches lower than furniture in the USA. The irony is comical.
Lastly we had a tour of Café Britt's coffee plantation. They were the first Costa Rican company to combine coffee with tourism. We saw their Coffee Tour, a play staged in their own coffee plantation, tracing the coffee’s production cycle. Thankfully I'm not a coffee or tea drinker so I wasn't really fazed by the smell. As the history goes... New York coffee broker Steve Aronson founded the company in 1985 to market roasted Costa Rican coffees to the domestic Costa Rican market. At the time, the country’s coffee-industry regulations required that all of the best coffee be exported, unroasted, to foreign markets. Britt earned recognition as an industry pioneer by lobbying for reforms to allow some of the best coffee to be roasted and sold locally.
The day was full of facts and random sightings like the middle aged man wearing a biker's helmet and holding a bike handle bar pretending to drive around. By the end of the day though I couldn't wait to take a dip in our hotel pool. When we got back I changed faster than Superman into a bathing suit and got ready for my first dive into Costa Rican waters. I apparently dove like a duck during hunting season since in my first jump I lost my contacts in the pool. Sigh. Thankfully Roshanee had an extra pair of contacts but they were the wrong prescription...X-Ray vision here I come. Later that night we played "Flash" which is the Indian 3-card poker card game. I lost $8 dollars, mom lost $40 and Rosh won $68... Sigh. Double Hmph!
Day 3 & 4: Car trouble, Volcanoes, and a mud bath
Today we packed up shop and packed into the two cars and started our drive to Arenal, home to Costa Rica’s most active volcano, located about 140 kilometers north of San Jose, near the tiny farming community of La Fortuna. Even if geology was not your favorite subject in school, there’s nothing quite like the sights and sounds of an active volcano.
Along our journey to Arenal, we stopped at this remote mountaintop café to stretch our legs and calm our nauseated stomach's from the windy, foggy roads they had to endure all morning. When we packed back into the van and the jeep, the jeep wouldn't start.
After experiencing a car ride equivalent to water torture used by army officials, I figured I better book something to relieve the adults and children of their pent up hostility. I decided upon Tabacon Hot Springs which is a spa that sits near the base of Arenal. Its thermo mineral pools are heated by the volcano in natural rock pools and waterfalls. Although some might find it difficult to completely relax while sitting at the foot of an active volcano, the warm waters were heavenly.
After a night of relaxing in the hot springs spa, and the next morning spent hiking. I decided why not pick this monsoon-like day for ATV (all terrain vehicle) mischief for the children and few adventurous fathers and mothers. It was a 2 hour adrenaline filled riding session which concluded with me finding wet mud in my hair, shoes and appendages. Not to mention, a butt which needed to be flexed for 25 minutes afterwards to regain blood flow.
Day 5: Peek-a-boo I want to pinch you
Our stay in Arenal though short was memorable. We again got into our Scooby Doo van and accompanying jeep and started our drive to Monteverde. These roads were not only curving and winding all over the geological terrain but they were also unpaved and rocky! Sigh. I am sure my jaw which had been dislocated and out of its Feng shui locale these past few months popped back into place with all the rattling and movement.
We stopped to stretch and snack en-route but when we re-started our journey the van wouldn't start. Karma? The van was manual so the fathers said it just needed a running push start. Whatever that meant in mechanical terms I have no clue. I figured okay i'll be optimistic but what about the fact that it was parked on a slope loaded with 15 suitcases. A few scraped and bleeding body parts later with a dose of extreme pushing we had a working van. On we went following the broken unpaved road...
Monteverde (Green Mountain) Cloud Forest: This mountaintop phenomenon provides a rare glimpse into one of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. I’d never even heard of a cloud forest until I landed in Costa Rico.
We were bunked at a hotel spin-off between a log cabin and a bed and breakfast situated on a 30 degree inclined slope. My thighs are still cursing me. We only had one night in Monteverde but that evening was enough for a lifetime. We arrived and went straight to Selvatura, a zip lining reptilian, canopy bridge orgy. And with the limited time we had we decided to see the reptiles first, which translated into a lot of snakes, frogs and lizards. Then a forest canopy bridge was decided upon. It was beautiful to view the forest from a bird’s viewpoint. But when I trekked into the hotel that night...my body was in severe denial that such bodily maltreatment was possible. I awoke from a restful slumber a few hours later to find my parents and siblings back from dinner and getting ready for bed. I shuffled along looking for my pajama's as well. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something scurry across the wooden floors towards my mother’s foot. I turned to find myself staring at an angry looking scorpion. I screamed at the top of my lungs which if the situation had been a casting call would have landed me a part in the Nightmare on Elm street Sequels. My mother jumped while running and of course grabbed my sister's designer shoe and stomped the life out of our cabin visitor. Needless to say, I didn't sleep much after that with the crumpled remains of the scorpion next to my bed.
Day 6 & 7: Sunburns, Subway & Swimming in riptides
Should I even utter the words? Fine I shall...once again we got into our Mystery machine and drove. Leaving the remains of our menacing friend behind in mountainous Monteverde we started towards Manuel Antonio. The beach. A visit to any tropical country is not really complete without at least one trip to the beach. During our drive to Manuel Antonio we thankfully had no further car troubles, even when we stopped to eat Subway. To get to Manuel Antonio you pass through Quepos, the base for visiting the beach, which has admittedly become overrun with hotels and restaurants which now stretch all the way down the 7 kilometer road leading to the beach.
I spent the days just lying on the sandy beach which makes basking in the sun a pleasure in the crescent shaped beach bordered by the rainforest and rocky islands offshore where the tide catches and creates slippery pools of the Pacific’s blue water. They don't kid when they warn you of the strong ocean currents. I literally swam for 15 minutes and didn't progress any closer to shore as a wave crashed over my head and pulled me further out. I am still alive but my time basking in the sun and swimming resulted in a thoroughly sun-burned 25-yr old who can't wiggle her sunburned nose.
Adios CR:
My flight returning was at 6am which meant I had to figure out how to get from Manuel Antonio to San José since I was leaving before my family. Let’s just keep the story at limited amounts of sleep, car rental drop off contracts with random security guards and missing items that Nanki kept on finding.
Day 1: Confusion here, there, everywhere.
Booked a flight which is way too early for normal travelers. Checked that off my list of things I'm not keen on doing. Security lines filled with college goers who are already yapping about the amount of tequila they need on an IV dosage every night. Check that as well. Don't understand why they made an EZ-check-in kiosk when there is still an attendant helping every passenger. Confusion. Why I pack the same amount of clothing for a 10-day vacation as I do for a weekend get away... My entire closet. I still can't understand either. Sigh. My flight took off at 7:35am which meant I was leaping around the house around 4am. Those who know me understand that I come with a warning label: not a morning person. I am a grouchy mess who prefers to brood silently glaring at her ticket until she can finally fall asleep again on the plane... And on top of that Continental is now charging $6 for passengers to watch movies. Jesus. My one happiness is gone from flying!
We landed around noon in Juan Santamaria International Airport, San José. Between trying to figure out why Costa Ricans don't have a SIM phone card system and getting our 12-seat van plus an additional AWD jeep rented I mysteriously developed a headache. Oh, I didn't mention that the 4 families (15 people) traveling together on this tropical escape decided to self-navigate and drive across Costa Rica... Shaking your head in disbelief. Yeah...that seems to be the initial reaction for most. Our first night in San José I learned exactly how difficult it was to navigate using just a map. You see there are only a few street signs in Costa Rica and even fewer addresses. Read that as almost none. Just about all addresses are in terms of a well-known building or landmark; often the local Church, cemetery, or another fixed location. But just to keep things interesting, some addresses are phrased in terms of buildings that may have burned down 20 years ago. To say the least we didn't find our restaurant that first night. We did get lucky enough to find another amazing place called Tintos and Blanco's though.
Costa Rican Side Note #1: a popular Costa Rican meal is Gallo Pinto – rice and black beans. It sounds quite simple, but is surprisingly tasty. They even eat it for breakfast. Could be the next contestants on "the biggest loser" reality show...
Costa Rican Side Note #2: Wi-Fi seems to be everywhere in this country. And it's unlocked! So I wasn't too excluded from my daily ritualistic iPhone thumb workout.
Day 2: The C's of Costa Rica: Coffee, Cards, Cash and Contacts
I had booked a tour today to keep the pressure of self navigation to a minimum. Our first stop was a town called Grecia, which was once named "the cleanest city in Latin America." It is noted for its unique church, Iglesia de la Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes, which is made entirely of pre-fabricated steel plates painted red. According to the urban legend, the original church was destroyed in an earthquake and the city wanted a church which would stand the test of time. Well 2012 isn't too far off so many they don't have to wait too long?
We then stopped at a town called Sarchí, which is Costa Rica's most famous crafts center. The town offers more than 200 stores and the world's largest Oxcart: A huge, brightly-painted "carreta" that was built in 2006 in order to get the name of the town into The Guinness Book of World Records. The plan was a success apparently, but what do you do with such a huge oxcart? Ticos are short statured people in general. Therefore, chairs, couches, etc. are built about 6-8 inches lower than furniture in the USA. The irony is comical.
Lastly we had a tour of Café Britt's coffee plantation. They were the first Costa Rican company to combine coffee with tourism. We saw their Coffee Tour, a play staged in their own coffee plantation, tracing the coffee’s production cycle. Thankfully I'm not a coffee or tea drinker so I wasn't really fazed by the smell. As the history goes... New York coffee broker Steve Aronson founded the company in 1985 to market roasted Costa Rican coffees to the domestic Costa Rican market. At the time, the country’s coffee-industry regulations required that all of the best coffee be exported, unroasted, to foreign markets. Britt earned recognition as an industry pioneer by lobbying for reforms to allow some of the best coffee to be roasted and sold locally.
Costa Rican Side Note #3: In Costa Rica, it is not uncommon to give coffee to babies (in their bottle, with milk) and to young children. I simply can not imagine a two year old on espresso.
The day was full of facts and random sightings like the middle aged man wearing a biker's helmet and holding a bike handle bar pretending to drive around. By the end of the day though I couldn't wait to take a dip in our hotel pool. When we got back I changed faster than Superman into a bathing suit and got ready for my first dive into Costa Rican waters. I apparently dove like a duck during hunting season since in my first jump I lost my contacts in the pool. Sigh. Thankfully Roshanee had an extra pair of contacts but they were the wrong prescription...X-Ray vision here I come. Later that night we played "Flash" which is the Indian 3-card poker card game. I lost $8 dollars, mom lost $40 and Rosh won $68... Sigh. Double Hmph!
Day 3 & 4: Car trouble, Volcanoes, and a mud bath
Today we packed up shop and packed into the two cars and started our drive to Arenal, home to Costa Rica’s most active volcano, located about 140 kilometers north of San Jose, near the tiny farming community of La Fortuna. Even if geology was not your favorite subject in school, there’s nothing quite like the sights and sounds of an active volcano.
Along our journey to Arenal, we stopped at this remote mountaintop café to stretch our legs and calm our nauseated stomach's from the windy, foggy roads they had to endure all morning. When we packed back into the van and the jeep, the jeep wouldn't start.
Diagnosis- Dying battery.Can you imagine after hundreds of years of dormancy your neighborhood volcano springing into sudden movement? Arenal erupted in July of 1968. Now Arenal sits close to cloud forests, which means that it, too, is often shrouded by clouds and rain. Gastronomical bummer since this obscures the view of the volcano during the day, and our hotel was right at the base of the volcano, but the best time to view the volcano is at night when it is easier to see the red hot lava streaming down its sides. The clouds couldn’t completely obscure the sparks of red and orange spewing from the volcano into the night air. But perhaps more enthralling were the grumbles and groans that the volcano periodically produced. While hiking in the forest near the base of the mountain I experienced this volcanic groaning while searching the treetops for spider and howler monkeys on the hiking tour of Arenal National Park. The monkeys were more interested in urinating and defecating on fellow members of my group. It's considered good luck, no?
Prognosis- Find a willing "Tico" to give us a jump start in our limited Spanish.
Survival Rate- We managed to get a jump from a turismo bus.
After experiencing a car ride equivalent to water torture used by army officials, I figured I better book something to relieve the adults and children of their pent up hostility. I decided upon Tabacon Hot Springs which is a spa that sits near the base of Arenal. Its thermo mineral pools are heated by the volcano in natural rock pools and waterfalls. Although some might find it difficult to completely relax while sitting at the foot of an active volcano, the warm waters were heavenly.
After a night of relaxing in the hot springs spa, and the next morning spent hiking. I decided why not pick this monsoon-like day for ATV (all terrain vehicle) mischief for the children and few adventurous fathers and mothers. It was a 2 hour adrenaline filled riding session which concluded with me finding wet mud in my hair, shoes and appendages. Not to mention, a butt which needed to be flexed for 25 minutes afterwards to regain blood flow.
Costa Rican Side Note #4: The word for HOT, in Spanish, is caliente. Caliente begins with a "C". Water faucets imported from the USA almost all have a "C" on them. If your Hot Water never seems to get HOT in Costa Rica, try the handle with the "C". I had an amusing shower my first day here. My skin is still sensitive from my mud cleansing session.
Costa Rican Side Note #5: In many countries, pedestrians have the right of way. In Costa Rica, the Spanish word for pedestrian is "Target". Oh the fun I had while driving from Arenal to Monteverde.
Costa Rican Side Note #6: Front doors of almost all commercial establishments almost always open INWARDS. This is against every fire code in the USA, but here, perhaps because they have never had a tragedy in which hundreds died because the door could not be opened outwards, there is no such code. As we Americans have become "programmed" to do the opposite I am still nursing a wound on my forehead and ice cream stains on my shirt.
Day 5: Peek-a-boo I want to pinch you
Our stay in Arenal though short was memorable. We again got into our Scooby Doo van and accompanying jeep and started our drive to Monteverde. These roads were not only curving and winding all over the geological terrain but they were also unpaved and rocky! Sigh. I am sure my jaw which had been dislocated and out of its Feng shui locale these past few months popped back into place with all the rattling and movement.
We stopped to stretch and snack en-route but when we re-started our journey the van wouldn't start. Karma? The van was manual so the fathers said it just needed a running push start. Whatever that meant in mechanical terms I have no clue. I figured okay i'll be optimistic but what about the fact that it was parked on a slope loaded with 15 suitcases. A few scraped and bleeding body parts later with a dose of extreme pushing we had a working van. On we went following the broken unpaved road...
Monteverde (Green Mountain) Cloud Forest: This mountaintop phenomenon provides a rare glimpse into one of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. I’d never even heard of a cloud forest until I landed in Costa Rico.
We were bunked at a hotel spin-off between a log cabin and a bed and breakfast situated on a 30 degree inclined slope. My thighs are still cursing me. We only had one night in Monteverde but that evening was enough for a lifetime. We arrived and went straight to Selvatura, a zip lining reptilian, canopy bridge orgy. And with the limited time we had we decided to see the reptiles first, which translated into a lot of snakes, frogs and lizards. Then a forest canopy bridge was decided upon. It was beautiful to view the forest from a bird’s viewpoint. But when I trekked into the hotel that night...my body was in severe denial that such bodily maltreatment was possible. I awoke from a restful slumber a few hours later to find my parents and siblings back from dinner and getting ready for bed. I shuffled along looking for my pajama's as well. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something scurry across the wooden floors towards my mother’s foot. I turned to find myself staring at an angry looking scorpion. I screamed at the top of my lungs which if the situation had been a casting call would have landed me a part in the Nightmare on Elm street Sequels. My mother jumped while running and of course grabbed my sister's designer shoe and stomped the life out of our cabin visitor. Needless to say, I didn't sleep much after that with the crumpled remains of the scorpion next to my bed.
Day 6 & 7: Sunburns, Subway & Swimming in riptides
Should I even utter the words? Fine I shall...once again we got into our Mystery machine and drove. Leaving the remains of our menacing friend behind in mountainous Monteverde we started towards Manuel Antonio. The beach. A visit to any tropical country is not really complete without at least one trip to the beach. During our drive to Manuel Antonio we thankfully had no further car troubles, even when we stopped to eat Subway. To get to Manuel Antonio you pass through Quepos, the base for visiting the beach, which has admittedly become overrun with hotels and restaurants which now stretch all the way down the 7 kilometer road leading to the beach.
Science fact: A cloud forest is created when warm, damp air coming off the nearby ocean is forced upward by the slopes of the mountain. As the moist air rises, it cools and forms clouds. Now in Monteverde the mountaintop is enveloped in dense clouds on a daily basis and the resulting moisture gives rise to a unique combination of life forms. The one drawback, ironically, of a cloud forest is the clouds. Often they blanket the entire forest, making any of its wildlife hard to spot. Hmph!
Costa Rican Side Note #7: Milk, eggs, and many other items that you have been trained all your life to refrigerate, are available off the shelf (un-refrigerated) at almost every super market. Nothing looked spoiled and no one was screaming about diarrhea. Amusing.
I spent the days just lying on the sandy beach which makes basking in the sun a pleasure in the crescent shaped beach bordered by the rainforest and rocky islands offshore where the tide catches and creates slippery pools of the Pacific’s blue water. They don't kid when they warn you of the strong ocean currents. I literally swam for 15 minutes and didn't progress any closer to shore as a wave crashed over my head and pulled me further out. I am still alive but my time basking in the sun and swimming resulted in a thoroughly sun-burned 25-yr old who can't wiggle her sunburned nose.
Adios CR:
My flight returning was at 6am which meant I had to figure out how to get from Manuel Antonio to San José since I was leaving before my family. Let’s just keep the story at limited amounts of sleep, car rental drop off contracts with random security guards and missing items that Nanki kept on finding.
Costa Rican Side Note #8: Ants are everywhere here, and they outnumber us about a zillion to one. I really only had one choice as I saw it - The tiny ones are flavorless, and probably added a tiny bit of protein to my diet. And the bigger ones add more zest and crunch."tink, tink, tink...
Costa Rican Side Note #9: At 7 AM every morning, most Costa Rica radio stations broadcast the exact same program. It begins with the Costa Rican National Anthem and provides the government and other authorized entities a way to send messages or information nation wide. I died looking for some Micheal Bublé on the radio... Sigh. I think I can actually sing the first few verses of the national anthem.
posted by Khush51 at 4:10 PM
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