Costa Rica day 29 Feb. 6

Well this morning I tried to get on line w/ the mac. The girl in the internet place last night got on for me but this morning nada. I'm doing something wrong and it's extremely frustrating. After breakfast we walked to the Playa Negro just North of here. The surf was up and the beach really is black unlike the one to the South (Playa Blanco). The beach is all sand but fairly narrow and it's lined w/ driftwood and millions of coconuts. If I had a machete we'd be drinking coconut milk. We bought some yogurt and granola last night in the super mercado and had that for breakfast. The yogurt was mixed fruit and quite good. They make an urn of coffee out here on the patio around 6 a.m. each morning so we were good to go.
Tried to call Lance and Maggie last night on the receptionists cell phone but the line was busy. Too bad I don't know how to work this video that's built into the mac. Next time I travel I'll look into skype (I think it's called.)
Jo got to be the designated blood donor last night for the mosquitoes. I escaped unharmed. It just occurred to me I think it's eating bananas that attracts them. I'm sure I read that somewhere. We got rain last night and that brought them on as well. Walking to the beach today you could feel the humidity emanating from the dirt roads. It had to be 100%. I think in future we'll stick to Playa Blanco as the black sand sticks to everything and it's all intertidal so quite damp.
On the way to the beach we passed the local school. All the kids were in the yard getting their lessons under a shade tree. All around them were the adults who were also learning. I was hoping to get a picture but they were gone when we came back.
We had supper at the same place but this time we got a whole plate of the breadfruit. They hadn't salted it so when we asked for sal (salt) it came in a dish and we put it on with our fingers.) It was a downer of a day for me because I'd been counting on being able to get on line all night and then nothing. There is no wireless in town as we've looked. We had kept an eye out for the girl from the previous night but haven't seen her. She's the only one we've seen with a mac.
The toilet paper in this place is on rolls which may be sufficient for one day so it's a constant search for Rene to get more. We finally started using our own.
Well that's it for today
LINK OF THE DAY
Show people this album by sending them this public link:http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28377&l=6e708&id=680056043

Costa Rica day 28 Feb. 5

Another great day and good news! The camera is working again. It had been locked into high definition which changed the configuration of the pictures. I guess it just needed to dry out. The other great thing is a lady in the internet room, following Paul's instructions, got the computer working on DSL so now I can update everything. I've been doing the blog as a draft and then copying and pasting.
We had an early breakfast yesterday and got onto the trail in the park by 7:30. We checked in at the interpretation booth, gave a donation of 2,000 colones and off we went. We hadn't gone 200' down the packed sandy trail when we were bombarded with almonds from high above. The monkeys were so glad to see us. Shortly after that we came across a path of green leaf cuttings crossing the trail. At last, the leaf cutting ants. We watched them for several minutes as they carried the pieces of leaves into the nest & got some pictures. This park is more of a leisurely walk than a hike like the other parks we've been in. A high canopy with beautiful ferns and philadendrons. In places where it's muddy there is an elevated walkway. It was while crossing one of these that Jo spotted a green racer snake about 2' long.
The path goes for 8 km to the next village and follows the shoreline so it's shady and cool. We walked a total of about 5 miles there and back saving the last of the trail for another day. Following the path we then came across howler monkeys, white chinned monkeys, coons, and finally a sloth who was scooting up a tree. I got a short video of him and Jo got a good shot although his head was hidden behind some leaves in the canopy. Towards the 4 km mark we were approached by a white chinned monkey standing upright in the middle of the path. I walked up to him and he climbed a small tree while I took pictures. Jo was standing behind me when he came down & walked quite close past my legs. The next thing I knew he was on my back! Scared the hell out of me. I swung around to shake him off and he got down but not before stealing a banana that was one of several we had in a pocket in my pack. The zipper on the pocket was broken and he'd seen them in there. Jo couldn't get a picture of the monkey on my back as it happened so fast we didn't have a chance. Maybe we should have gotten a shot of my shorts! He followed us for a while but I picked up a Tarzan club and he got the idea pretty quick. About halfway along the trail we came upon a park volunteer who had a questionaire to fill out. He wanted to know why we chose to visit the park and I explained that I'd heard monkey meat was quite good when cooked right and that sloth made a good stew. He was French so probaby thought it was some kind of gastronomic delight he hadn't heard of
We stopped part way back for a rest and to enjoy a shady spot on a fallen tree and watched the waves. We'd walked for about 6-7 hours. That's a long way for a guy like me who drives to the bus stop. The legs are really getting into shape and we're eating very well with lots of chicken, fish, veggies, and the best fresh fruit I've ever had. The pineapple and watermelon is incredibly good!
After we got back I downloaded our pics and then went to try the internet again. Our room doesn't have a three way outlet so I can't charge the mac up although I can do the batteries for the camera each night. Glad I have two of them. Well now we've found we can get on line with the laptop and plug it in in a covered dining area just outside our room where there are tables and coffee along with a 3 way plug right next to a table. I'm now in heaven!
For supper last night we walked around and tried a new place about a half a block away. I ordered chicken w/ coconut sauce and Jo had a seafood/rice dish. While waiting the waiter brought over something we'd never seen before for a snack. We both fell in love with it and it turns out it's fried breadfruit! First you peel it and then boil it and then salt it and fry it. I asked for another dish of it but we had eaten the last they had. He assured us they'd have more today so we'll be back.
The restaurant is open to the street as most of them are, but even though the street is dirt the wind was blowing the right way and the traffic is low and quiet unlike some of the villages we've been in where motorbikes w/o mufflers prevail.
It's dark here by 6 and all the locals come out and socialize. The kids are really cute with little pom poms in the girls hair. The locals here are darker than on the Pacific side and are decendants of Caribbean and Jamaican. The town is reasonably clean with the usual homeless dogs present. Lots of people on bicycles and most of them speak English moreso than the Pacific side.
We met a Dutch lady last night who highly recommended the boat ride up the canal through the mangroves to the next village North. Lots of birds, snakes etc. so that's now on our list of things to do. We'll stay overnight up there and then return the next day. We also want to head to Manzanilla just south of here for a few nights and right next to another game preserve. It's a small fishing village which is to our liking as the food is great, few tourists, and very friendly people.
Well my mornings work is now done so we'll head out for breakfast and then hopfully update the facebook.
Maggie and Lance if you read this let us know by email when we can reach you.
LINK OF THE DAY http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28374&l=6c9eb&id=680056043

Costa Rica day 27 Feb. 4

Another fairly early start. After breakfast of a pancake, coffee and juice we headed to the bank as there aren't supposed to be any at Limon. Waited for the bank of Nova Scotia to open and then were told they don't do master card. Checked out and took a cab to a different bus station near the museum which appeared to be an old fort. Great bus station. Much classier than the Coca Cola from yesterday. Traffic with all the busses in San Jose is unreal! We bought tickets for Limon which left in 15 minutes. Another great ride on a Mercedes! We were on the L.H. side so a lot of the pictures were blurred by oncoming tractor trailers but the views were incredible. Worth the $4.00 each just to see that. It was a 3 hour ride up mntns. out of San Jose and into the rain forest. Completely different than the lowland dry forest we had grown used to. Very lush with beautiful flowering trees, huge leafed philadenderons,vines, and something that resembled sea oats that towered over the bus. Drove through what I guess to be a cloud forest and then a tunnel that went right through a mountain! It was very dark in the tunnel and my backpack was next to me in the aisle so I had a firm grip on it. Coming down out of the rainforest it leveled out to fields of pineapples, and bananas as far as you could see. As we approached Limon (on the Caribbean coast) we passed huge yards full of containers and semis waiting to pick up the produce and take it to the ships for export.
As soon as we got off the bus we were approached by Edgar the cab driver. He was quite a salesman but we told him we wanted to eat first in the depot. A great bus terminal! We had bifsteak (that's the way they spell it),rice and beans and a coke. Edgar stayed at our table to avoid us getting away. Good thing as he was the best! He suggested an inexpensive place about 50 km down the road near another game reserve which is what we're here for. Off we went in his old Honda and breakneck speed. The road was quite good as was the toll road we took in the bus to Limon. We followed miles of beautiful beach and banana plantations. All the bunches of bananas were covered with blue plastic bags. Edgar explained this is to keep the mosquitoes off the fruit. We then came to a banana processing factory where he pulled in. We could see the large trucks of green bananas, the sorters, and the wash/debugging facility. From here they went onto a conveyor and then into a truck for export.
The next stop was a fruit stand beside the road where he explained the different kinds of fruit. Breadfruit, small honey bananas, watermelon and coco beans (nuts, whatever you call them but not coconuts) He told us how to eat them and we bought one just to get the seeds to bring home. We next came to a coco tree on the L.H. side of the road. he pulled over and drove down the wrong side (with an oncoming car) and then onto the side to show us the tree complete with seed pods. He picked one and cracked it open on the road. It was filled with a white milky substance which you eat. The seeds can be dried out and ground up into coco. (our next project).
He also pulled over to show us two guys fishing for bait. They used a termite nest, dig out the termites and use them as bait to catch bigger bait. When we got to our destination it was no vacancy but Edgar talked to the guy and here we are. $25/ a night. Nice enough place and about 100 yards to the beach and the entrance to the reserve is only a block away. The book says "lots of sloths, capuchin monkeys, snorkelling on a reef, snakes, etc. " Sounds like heaven to me. I still have leaf cutter ants and a yellow boa on my list.
We picked this place as it has internet but it's DSL and I can't get old Mac to work, so hopefully Paul can talk me through it. If thats the case I can update facebook finally. There's no wireless around here. We checked in, looked for wireless and then headed to the mercado to get a bottle of $10 bacardi and some coke which is now in process. I think we're going to like this place and tomorrow we'll check out the beach and maybe a hike. We figure 3 days here and then 3 days farther South in Manzanilla at the South end of the road. More bugs here but we've got our 99% neat (repellant from hell) and a mosquito net so we'll be in good shape. If that doesn't work we're taking our malaria pills every Thurs.. Any bugs bite me they'll get what they deserve. A lethal dose of Bacardi and deet.
Our stomach turmoils have ceased and we're back to normal on that front (or rear as the case may be). It wasn't the water but our systems getting used to the different bacteria. Thanks to Nic and Doug for their advise. We never had diarreah but just stayed "loose". That's a little different than hanging loose, for you novices. We're in great physical shape now and ready to hike anywhere. It will be nice now to get in some beach/snorkelling time. We're still only eating twice a day and don't miss the extra meal and the "no junk stuff diet". I've never eaten so healthy but you don't know what fruit is until you've tried the stuff down here. The closest I usually come to fresh fruit is wine aged a year.
We're "happy in the jungle" and all is well.
From this coast we'll head back to San Jose and then take a look at Arenal the volcano/cloud forest, hot springs. There is a lot to see and do around here so we may stay longer. There's also a lot to see in San Jose according to Jo so we'll spend a few days there. It's quite a bit higher than the coast and we had a cool night last night with no need for a/c or the fan.
LINK OF THE DAY http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28371&l=41285&id=680056043

Costa Rica Feb. 3

Sunday and we're off. Booked out of our place in Quepos and bought our tickets to San Jose ($5.40 ea. for a 200km trip). The bus left at 12:30 and everyone got a seat. (They were reserved). We keep our backpacks w/ us on the bus and squeeze them in between our legs and the seat in front of us. It's tight but at least secure. Our ride was a 1st class Mercedes bus with a helluva lot of power! We also had Mario Andretti behind the wheel. You don't need to go ziptrekking for a thrill ride. Just get on a bus that's 20 minutes late! We passed everything on the road by twice the speed they were going! There was one accident I saw where a car had gone end over end. We were going too fast to see but it looked very recent as there were people milling about.
The bus trip took 4 hours and dropped us off at the Coca Cola bus stop which is the main terminal in San Jose. It was only a block and a half to the B&B. This place is very secure and you have to ring a doorbell by the gate at the street and someone buzzes you in. They have internet so I may see if I can hook their cable up to my mac. After checking in we walked over near the bus station to inquire about catching the next bus to Limon and found out we need to go to a different terminal by cab.
The scenery from Quepos to here was out of site! We went from sea level and climbed forever up steep winding roads. Cars were pulled over at every wide spot with boiling radiators. These busses live a hard life! There was a 15 minute break about halfway here at a Soda where you could go to the banyo, get a pop and a bite to eat. We stayed with our bags on the bus and had our water, gator aide, and two bananas each along with a granola bar.
Supper last night consisted of 2 cokes, and a loaf of bread and 5 pieces of bbq'd chicken. We brought it back here to eat. The chicken (5 pcs) came to under $3.00 and was great.
We have a huge room with 2 dble beds, a/c,fan,t.v. and private bathroom w/ hot water (most are cold water down here but it's not cold). The temp here is quite a bit cooler and I'd guess in the high 70's so we didn't need the a/c. The only downside to this place is we're in a front room and the street noise is very loud. Something to remember in the future. Seems like everyone in San Jose is glad we're here as they all greet us as they pass by with their horns or if that doesn't work with their Jake brakes (although there's no hill).
Well time to call a cab to get to the bus stn. Next stop the Caribbean side where we're hoping to get some beach and exploring time in. We've got a mask and snorkel and there's a reef there. I also realized that now my camera is on the fritz it's stuck in high definition mode so the pictures are elongated. Hope it doesn't interfere with adding them to facebook. Paul if you read this can the h.d. be converted on the mac to standard format?
LINK OF THE DAY http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28370&l=68acf&id=680056043
Al & Jo

Costa Rica day 25 Feb. 2

HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL EVER SEE THIS?????

Stayed in a nice place last night right downtown. This place (Quepos) is quite nice and reasonably clean. Had a great supper of lime chicken and Jo had coconut curried chicken. Went back to our air conditioned room and crashed. The hotel electrical outlets won't accept our plugs so I can't charge the computer or camera batteries. We also had no luck at the internet place across the street as they're on dial up. Found this place today but they close shortly so I'm going full throttle.
We caught a bus this morning to Manuel Antonio Nature Reserve for about .23 ea. What a ride. Straight up and then straight down. Paid $7.00 to go hiking. We didn't use a guide as the hotel mngr. told us not to. I've got to be brief here so I'll get the picture of the baby sloth posted and then we'll be getting the boot. It was on a pretty deserted trail and there it was about even with our hips on a tree about an inch thick. Just hanging on and apparently sleeping. We also saw some white faced monkeys, coons, and some dizzying heights for pictures. Another really hot hike but worth it.
LINK OF THE DAY
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28367&l=23bed&id=680056043

Costa Rica day 25 Feb. 2

Stayed in a nice place last night right downtown. This place (Quepos) is quite nice and reasonably clean. Had a great supper of lime chicken and Jo had coconut curried chicken. Went back to our air conditioned room and crashed. The hotel electrical outlets won't accept our plugs so I can't charge the computer or camera batteries. We also had no luck at the internet place across the street as they're on dial up. Found this place today but they close shortly so I'm going full throttle.
We caught a bus this morning to Manuel Antonio Nature Reserve for about .23 ea. What a ride. Straight up and then straight down. Paid $7.00 to go hiking. We didn't use a guide as the hotel mngr. told us not to. I've got to be brief here so I'll get the picture of the baby sloth posted and then we'll be getting the boot. It was on a pretty deserted trail and there it was about even with our hips on a tree about an inch thick. Just hanging on and apparently sleeping. We also saw some white faced monkeys, coons, and some dizzying heights for pictures. Another really hot hike but worth it.
LINK OF THE DAY http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28367&l=23bed&id=680056043

Costa Rica day 24 Feb. 1

We got up before dawn today and got all packed to leave Montezuma. Got to the bus stop at 7 a.m and the bus was to be there waiting at 7:45. It showed up at 8:15 and after much shoving, elbowing etc. we got on. There's no such thing here as manners apparently and we have to get more aggressive than we're used to. The driver was busy most of the time talking to the guy across the bus and behind him. Problem being he had to look at him while he was talking. When he wasn't doing that he was on his cell or stowing stuff under the dash & driving w/ no hands! The bus took us to Paqueral where we boarded the ferry to Puntarenas It was a big ferry and held a pile of vehicles. It took just over an hour to get to the other side and then we boarded a bus to the bus station. The ticket office was a couple of blocks from the depot and we were lucky a lady showed us where to get the tickets or we'd have been sitting there out of luck. The bus got there at 12:30 and we thought we were going to Jaco where we would catch another bus in the morning as it was getting too late to catch a bus w/ no reservations in Quepos which is just outside the game preserve of Manuel Antonio. It's hard to make reservations ahead as you never know how far your going to get.
We hadn't gone more than 45 minutes out of Puntarenas when the bus stopped. After about 15 minutes people started getting off. Turns out it had broken down but the driver hadn't said anything. We all piled off and stood under a tree for shade and waited for another bus. Fortunately our tickets gave us a seat number so we were ok although we kept our backpacks between our legs and the seat in front of us for the three hour ride. People were standing and the lady in front of us had two seats. One for her handbag and another small bag. She did this for the whole 3 hours even when there was a lady standing beside her holding her little girl in her arms! Another girl had asked if she could use the seat and was told no! These were local people and we've witnessed this before. I can't understand how such great people can be so inconsiderate of each other! I'd have given the lady my seat but she couldn't get in for the backpack.
The 2nd bus came by about 45 minutes later and off we went. I was concerned that we wouldn't get our seats back but it worked out. We don't like to stow the backpacks under the bus as nothing here is secure. I never let go of my laptop or camera. The stuff in the backpacks is all expendable as far as I'm concerned. Well we got to Jaco and the bus keeps going South! Well hey that works for us so we go all the way to Quepos where we intended to go anyway. On the way through town we noticed a bank and we were running low on calones so that was our first stop. It was open! Yahoo and right close by. I went to get $500 on my m/c and had to show my id. I pulled out the copy I'd made and it had deteriorated to the point of no face. Not that that's a bad thing but it's the only one I've got. It got soaked yesterday from persperation while we were hiking. I kept it in my fanny pack with the camera and the orig. passports which now no longer have the C.R. stamps in them. I finally got the money. $500.00 is 215,000 calones! now that's a lot of dinero. Jo's got half of it in a pocket she made in her bras. She's now a 38ddd on one side.
We checked out then to find a hotel. The first one was booked solid and this is scarey. I don't want to spend the night in an open ditch cause I know what's in the ditch! Better to go to jail maybe. Well we got one of the last two rooms in a place across the street. It's got tv and air so that's ok but no electrical outlets that I can plug this thing into. There's an internet place right across the street but my laptop doesn't work there. (I think it's a dial up thing) Now this really pissed me off cause I dont know how to access my hotmail account on a different computer. Jo managed to send a couple of emails but guess I'll have to wait. I was hoping to download all my pics and it was so handy. Just too good to be true I guess.
The manager of the hotel didn't recommend paying for a tour guide in the park tomorrow. The bus there is only .23 so he said take that and follow a tour so we'll know where to look and save $45 ea! Nice guy. Hope they've got another room here for us tomorrow. We have to check with the lady on the desk at 7 a.m. tomorrow. If not we can't go to the park as we'll have our backpacks. We'll see what happens.
LINK OF THE DAY http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28366&l=84ec1&id=680056043