Create your Trip Journal [click here]Left Seattle for a complicated flight to San Jose via Phoenix and Charlotte. First class was a splurge, even with frequent flyer miles, but so nice for such a long flight. Big huge seat, big huge arm rest. If only I hadn't worn jeans that were too tight it would have been perfect. Tip for next time: do not assume you are going to loose weight when buying clothes for a trip.
Arrived in San Jose. Costa Rica feels familiar and exotic at the same time. Steamy, tropical heat. The airport was clean and modern. Changed money and got a city map at the airport, then took a taxi into town. This was very easy; the official airport taxi had a desk right by the door and took US money. Arrived at Hotel Le Bergerac. Very pretty...clean and airy with a garden patio and huge tiled bathroom. A 15-minute walk downtown for dinner of arroz con pollo at the fabulous Gran Hotel...a beautiful old 1930s building. I felt like I was walking into an old movie. If I didn't like Hotel Le Bergerac so much I would love to stay here. The staff told me that if I wanted to take a taxi back to Hotel Le Bergerac I should only pay 600 CRC, but a taxi driver wanted to charge me 2000 CRC so I walked. It felt perfectly safe. Next trip: write down weather, exchange rate, and tipping guidelines in advance. Figuring out who to tip and how much has been the most complicated thing so far.
Breakfast on the patio at Hotel Le Bergerac....watermelon, pineapple, papaya (?), fresh juice, croissant and hot chocolate. Met several other people beginning and ending their tours. Van to Selva Bananito ecolodge...about 4 hours. We were met for the last leg of the journey by a Jeep that took us over a back country road and a couple of river crossings. This wasn't scary until I saw another truck crossing behind us...and saw that the water was up to his bumper. But we made it just fine. Beautiful cabin with louvered windows and doors, tiled bathroom, mosquito netting over the bed, hammock on the porch. Went for a horseback ride...horses absolutely sweet and gentle but happy to get up to a good gallop. Buggy and muggy outside. Tip for next time: Remember the DEET!
Sunny today. Beautiful view of the rainforest from the deck. It took some time to get used to sleeping under a mosquito net...I kept feeling that ghostly hands were reaching for me. Occasional crashes on the roof....coconuts dropping down from the trees? Tiny lizard in the bathroom this morning. Hike into the rainforest...saw a sloth, some wildly colored poison-dart frogs and a fer de lance (the guide competently removed it from the path with a large stick). The hike was about 3 hours and not difficult except for a few inclines. The other people in my group were much more fit than I am but also enthusiastic naturalists so the pace was easy. We stopped in the middle of the hike to zipline from platform to platform in the canopy. Stepping off the platform was a little scary the first time but the actual zipping was a lot of fun. After the hike I read and lazed in my hammock instead of joining the afternoon's tree climbing activity. I should have thought to bring A Year of Fog to read since so much of it is set in Costa Rica.
Raining hard. Horseback riding was on the agenda but it was too wet for me. Connected with some friendly women who are one day behind me on the tour and played Taboo and drank wine in the dining room.
Still raining hard. We started our trip to the Cariblue beach resort in a Jeep. When we got to the river it was too high to cross, even in the enormous tractor that was sent to meet us. So we crossed by zipline, luggage and all. Zipping across the water would have been scary if I hadn't done the zipline activity the other day, but since I knew what to expect it was just plain fun. The Cariblue resort is cute with thatched roofs and everything painted bright, tropical colors. Really good food at the restaurant. The menu was full of local specials like jumbo shrimp and sea bass.
Spent the morning walking on the beach...not sunny but warm and windy. The local village is very cute; lots of bright colors, fruit stands, surf shops, and murals. Galleria LuLu had beautiful handmade crafts. Met up with my new friends from Selva Bananito for dinner. They told me that the river was still flooded when they left this morning and they had to cross by horseback.
Whitewater rafting today. I knew this was going to be scary for me as I have a major water phobia. I went on an easy river, and the guides were so clearly competent and my fellow rafters so supportive, that I was able to do it. I could even see how much fun it would be if I could just get over my fear. Anyway, I did it, and I am very proud as well as thankful to be safely through. We saw some beautiful birds...a great blue heron, a white egret, and a tucan. The tucan looked just like it does on all the Costa Rica postcards. Next time: bring sturdy sandals, waterproof camera, and a bag of dry clothes. Back to San Jose and the Hotel Le Bergerac.
Woke up to a beautiful sunny day. I'm so glad I had an extra day to spend in the city exploring the markets, shops, and butterfly garden. Bought some souvenirs at a high quality crafts shop in the Balmoral Hotel and had lunch at the Gran Hotel. That's definitely a place I'm coming back to. Caught up with my freinds for a bottle of wine and a recap of the trip in the evening. I wasn't sue how easy it would be to get to know other people on this trip since I'm traveling by myself, but it was one of the very best parts.
Up at 4:30 for an early taxi to the airport. Used the last of my US $ to pay for the taxi. I could have managed easily with about $250 in US $ and not bothered to change any money. Was able to use VISA to pay the departure tax. Nice shops at airport, bought a few last souvenirs.
