CR Travel

The trip was awesome, but the flight was brutal! I would suggest the most direct flight as possible. We had 2 layovers for over 7 hours and it really makes it longer than it has to be. The old body clock was out of whack.

Costa Rica is a lot like Hawaii. The plants are the same, and the weather is a little more humid and a little hotter. It’s the animals that make you know that you are not in Hawaii. Flocks of pelicans skimming the wave tops, ospreys hunting the surf, monkeys eating from the guava trees. All types of crabs, hermit and shelled, land and sea.

The beach is an art work every morning, with the crabs making strange tracks in the sand. As you drive the rough and pot holed roads, you will see iguana's rushing across. The iguanas are everywhere.

We met quite a few Canadian's and people from all over the U.S. down there, seems to be a place to go.

Alan and Kathy's B&B is in the perfect place right on the beach. We would wake up early. By 6am. at the latest. No T. V. or radio or other distractions, (computer), they have it but we didn't have the need.

We drank coffee while we decided when to go in the water. Surf was best in the morning. By afternoon the winds would turn and mush out the waves. Greg went out everyday. I actually body surfed a few times, (and wow, what a nice rush..), but didn't want to hurt myself, so I kept the session short and mostly swam around. Watched the other surfers and took pictures when I felt like it.

I went in the ocean everyday. It is warm and mostly friendly. There is also the pool to take a dip in when walking across the beach seems like to much effort. It is also easier to drink a nice cold Pilsen beer in the pool and easy access to more!

Kathy made us a wonderful brunch everyday and dinner every night. We would be upstairs to watch spectacular sunsets and dine alfresco. We watched the birds dive for the last fish of the day and listen to the cicadas screaming all around.

Alan and Kathy get there groceries delivered once a week. Every Tuesday and Friday, the truck from the German Bakery came to the gate where you can pick out the pastries and bread that you want. Our favorite was the chocolate croissant. On our second day, a Nicaraguan guy selling pottery came to the gate beach-side. We bought a couple of cool pots. Several more guys came by but we had to turn them away. Wow, you don't have to leave unless you want to.

We learned on our first visit to Tamarindo that May 1st is Labor Day in Costa Rica after we went early to go to the bank. After asking a fellow American when the bank opened he said "he thought about 9:30". We had some time and a little money, 4000 colonies, 8 U.S. dollars. We found a little place that served coffee and smoothies. We shared a fresh mango/orange smoothie, and banana bread. We even had enough left over for a souvenir of a 12 ounce coffee in a burlap bag. Went back to the bank only to find out that the banks will not be open until tomorrow. Well, we were out of money so we headed back to Ville De La Roca.

On Tuesday, Kathy, Greg and I headed out to Flamingo to do a little sight seeing and another shot at a bank. The bank was open, but there were a lot of people waiting inside and out. Greg and Kathy were let inside by an armed guard, who wanded them and went through their bags and locked the door behind them.

They braved the line and I decided that there were enough people stuffed in the bank. So I walked around for about 1/2 hour and took some pictures and checked out the hotel across the street. I went back to the bank to find that they were still way back in the line. Greg was let out to give me some money and cigs (they had no problem if you had to leave for a moment, your place in line was respected). It was very hot outside in the sun, so I decided to check out the monkey bar at the hotel I visited earlier. Ordered a pina colada. Oohh Yea! Fresh pineapple and lots of rum, blended to perfection. Back to the bank; they have barely moved after 2 hours. Finally they are at the teller. Greg is out fairly quick at this point, but Kathy is still doing her business. It seems that the computers kept shutting down every five minutes or so. I told Kathy to meet us at the Monkey Bar. So off we went for more pina colada's and a beautiful view of Playa Flamingo harbor. This is were we had our close encounter with an iguana. The bartender fed the iguana cherries and banana bits. Really cool! It was 3 feet away from us and was about a foot and a half long. After a snack and 3 pina colada's later, Greg had a blast avoiding and skimming over pot holes on the way back to Playa Grande.

Wednesday we stayed at home and enjoyed the surf and peace of Villa de la Roca.

On Thursday we headed off to Playa Tamarindo to cash more travelers checks and buy some souvenirs. When we arrived in Tamarindo around 10:30 a.m., we were surprised on how busy the town was, it was really quite last time. The place was crawling with tourist checking out the outdoor vendors, shops and restaurants.

Kathy and I went in the bank to grab a number, they were at 33 when we went in. A lady also waiting had an extra number from someone who got tired of waiting. It was 66, better than the 89 that was next in the machine. So we took our number and went to find Greg. We did some window shopping, while popping into the bank to see how close we were getting. In about an hour they had gotten to 58, so I sat down and waited, and waited. As little old ladies and men kept going to the head of the line, I thought, What's going on? The custom is, elderly people, pregnant women, women with small children, and the handicapped go first. Nice , but it made the 8 people that were in front of me, more like 15. Eventually I cashed my checks. A reinforcement to bring cash. We had a nice lunch and pina colada's, (not as good as in Flamingo). A young girl with hand made necklaces came by the table. I bought Melanie, (my daughter), a nice necklace. Fortified, we were off to buy treasures to bring back home.

On Friday, Greg was invited on an excursion to Witch's Rock. It was about and hour and a half by car to Playa del Coco. Greg, Don, Tom, and Larry, had breakfast there before the hour and a half boat ride to Witch's Rock. The guy's had left about 4:45a.m. and arrived back around 8:00p.m. tired and happy with their day. I took the opportunity to relax and read some. Also, I went to Huacas to replenish the beer stock.

Saturday after breakfast we went off to the Monkey Park, about 30 minutes away. What a cool place. They rescue animals that have been abused or injured. All money they receive for admission and souvenirs go to the park. Well maintained pathways led you to the various birds and animals that are there. Parrots, toucans, scarlet macaws and others. There was this really cute peccary pig, that had a iguana for a lunch companion. It was very friendly, and made sure we had the opportunity to pet it. Its fur was so course. Like quills almost. There was also 3 ocelots, some coyotes, deer, howler and capuchin monkey's, coati mundi (like a big raccoon), a raccoon, caimans (small crocodiles) and others I can't name. There is also a butterfly habitat with many different types of butterflies and plants. Couldn't get a good picture of most of the butterflies, because of the way the flit around. There was these really beautiful butterflies with the most incredible, vibrant blue wings. Unfortunately, when they land they close their wings. It was impossible to get pictures of them. Went back home to hang out with the family and try not to think about leaving the next day.

On Sunday, we went for a last play in the ocean. Said our final farewell's and headed off to Liberia. A lot more people were on the road and the dust was really bad even with the windows closed. After an hour or so we hit the main paved roads with strips down the middle. Smooth sailing. It had rained up there since we had arrived in Costa Rica. The fields were greener and the gardens more bountiful.

We got our car back at 3pm when we said we would. Got a ride back into Liberia and got dropped off at Burger King. It was near our hotel, the El Sitio Hotel and Casino. After our Burger King dinner, we had a couple of beers and watched TV in bed. Hadn't done that in 11 day's. We tripped out on the movies with the Spanish subtitles. Or the Simpson's in Spanish. Fell asleep early knowing we had a 4am wake up call.

We woke up a little after 4am. Good thing, the wake up call never happened. We checked out and grabbed a cab. We arrived at the airport about 5:30a.m. Got into the first line to check our luggage through customs, (they really go through your bags), and check in with the airline. Good thing we were early, the lines got long behind us. Next, you have to get in line to pay the exit tax. $26 USD each. Once they opened that went quick. We had breakfast, (Greg said "no thanks" to the beans and rice that came with most meals), before going through the final custom check. All went well and we took off for the U.S. on time.

We arrived in Honolulu on time 8:45p.m. I won't bore you with the 18 hours of travel time. My wonderful daughter Melanie, greeted us with orchid leis, and an update on what's been happening in the islands. Except for our luggage not leaving L.A., the vacation was amazing!

Special THANKS! to my family Alan and Kathy Snitken, and animals for making our honeymoon so very memorable. They shared their beautiful house with us. And gave us the opportunity to really kick back and enjoy.