Costa Rica
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Behind the Facade
I’m sitting at my hostel, typing this on my phone as my glasses slide down my greasy nose. No matter how many times a day I wash it, the humidity insists on keeping it shimmering. I want to take a shower but there is no A/C until nine and it’s only seven so I’ll wait a bit longer. It’s moments like these that are beautiful. When your body smells like three-day-old cheese that’s been sitting in the sun and your one set of clean clothes is damp from the water that leaked through your rain cover and into your backpack. I have given up on trying to tame the curls…
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Monkey Mayhem
My last day in Manuel Antonio, and really Costa Rica as well, was by far my favorite. So much happened in that one day, and I spent so many beautiful hours with amazing people. Rain threatened to mar the day with its persistence. I had plans to meet up with Arno and Elke, who I had met in Monteverde, and finally go into the National Park. Around eight we decided, rain or no, we were going to meet at the park entrance. Guides accosted us from every side, offering deals for tours and a better chance of seeing wildlife. We repeated, “No, gracias,” like a trio of broken records until…
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Manuel Mangroves
In my last post we left off with the bus finally arriving to whisk me away to Manuel Antonio. Well, let’s just say if I were an egg white I could have been a lot fluffier. The bus took me all the way to a roadblock three miles outside of Quepos. It was 14:30 and the block was not to be removed until 16:00. So I could either wait or walk. To my delight, there were six other backpackers on the bus so I didn’t have to walk alone. We chatted along the way, switching off to get to know the other people in our group. Names were not exchanged,…
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Jacó
I didn’t really want to go to Jacó. I mean I had when I planned the trip, but the more I head about it from others the more it sounded like a tourist hub, where the reality of Costa Rica is painted over for money and convenience. The journey there was relatively uneventful…but not entirely. We only had one roadblock, which lasted twenty minutes. People gathered on either side of the road, waving flags and cheering on the passing buses and cars. I can only assume they were protesters but they also did not seem to wish to mar our path. My understanding is that they are allowed to block…
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Monteverde
Although my intention had been to bus all over Costa Rica, I wasn’t eager to hop back on the bandwagon after my last experience. Not to mention there was a strike going on so public transport was taking two to three times as long. Instead I paid twenty dollars for door to door service. It was kind of an adventure: I got to take a boat across Lago Arenal, and the windy dirt roads we took were devoid of traffic. Upon arriving in Monteverde, I booked a night walking tour in the hopes of seeing some more wildlife. What I hadn’t realized was it took place in a wooded area…
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Arenal Volcano
I know Costa Rica is often associated with the jungle and wildlife, but in reality it should be known as the land of organized tourist activities. Every city I visit advertises zipline tours, white water rafting, hiking, kayaking, zip-lining, horseback riding, did I mention zip-lining? Most of the available activities are exciting and adventurous, but laid back excursions like coffee tours, or drifting downriver on a boat are available. Well obviously I’m all about the extreme, so as soon as I got out of San Jose it was one adventure after another. On my first full day in La Fortuna I decided to visit the famous La Fortuna waterfall. After…
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La Fortuna
There is a town in Costa Rica that sits at the base of an active volcano. During the last major eruption the town remained untouched and so the people changed the name to La Fortuna, or “The Fortunate.” It was on my journey here that I had the worst situation I have ever experienced while traveling.Sara and I sat on the bus, chatting about travel and life. She was nearing the end of her trip to Costa Rica, whereas I was just at the beginning-day two to be exact. We watched the city of San Jose melt into jungle and farmland. At some point I drifted off, lulled to sleep…
