ANOTHER TRIP TO COSTA RICA PART II

 

The next day of our trip was Sunday.  I was very happy to have a day of rest but we realized the night before that church would be starting at 9am in Orotina which was at least an hours drive away.  We skipped our breakfast that morning (it was fast Sunday) and drove over to Orotina.  We found the church but to our surprise no one was there.  We were a few minutes early but we thought it strange that no one was there.  Rick was able to get a little service on his phone and called the branch president who told us that they were still having meetings remotely due to Covid.😐  So our early morning was for naught.  At that point we decided to drive back to the hotel and listen in on the Deseret Peak Ward Sacrament Meeting.  They still have theirs broadcast each week.  It was a good meeting:)  I was secretly happy to be able to have a meeting in English, one that I could understand the proceedings.

Our Sunday was very laid back.  We spent most of the time in our room studying, napping, or talking.  We did take a little drive to get out a bit and then came back to an early dinner at the hotel's restaurant.  It was a nice day to unwind after a busy few days.

                                   The passion fruit smoothies are sooo good!

Here's a picture of the sunset from the "widow's peak" at the hotel.

Monday morning after our breakfast we drove across the highway to a place called Los Suenos Adventures.  We had signed up for a three hour 4-wheel expedition.  The day was really beautiful and the ride was so much fun!!  After going around the practice course a couple of times to show our adeptness of riding a 4-wheeler, we headed up into the hills.  Our guide, Christopher, showed us a very nice time.  We were able to go up the mountain to a nice overlook.  We could see down into Herradura Bay and even over into Jaco a little bit.  

Christopher took us through the rainforest, through huge muddy puddles, through river streams and he even stopped to show us a few trees and told us a little about them.  When the leaves of the week tree are rubbed together it creates a red dye.  The indigenous people used the dye to pain their faces.  He also showed us the heart of a palm tree and how it is edible.  We even got to taste it.

At one point as we were driving down a river I looked back and Rick had gotten pulled over to the edge.  He was able to back out and get our on his own.  For me, there was one point where I was going up a steep hill but was in the wrong gear and I could not make int to the top.  I tried lowering my gear but my wheels just kept spinning.  Christopher ran down to me (he was ahead) and helped to pull me out of my rut.  Other than that we did very well at handling the ATV's on a muddy, tree filled terrain.

Lastly, we stopped at a waterfall and enjoyed some time in the water.  The water was running very fast and made me a little nervous.  There was a lower falls and an upper falls and we were able to get in  both of them!  The water was refreshing and cool!

After our nice ATV tour we went back to the room and got in the pool for a bit and then I enjoyed reading poolside for an hour or so.

That evening before dinner we wanted to catch the sunset at .  We were just a few minutes late to see the sun actually going down into the water but we did see the beautiful after effects of the sunset.

The next day was another day to just kind of hang around.  We enjoyed a nice breakfast, drove over to Tarcoles Bridge to see the crocodiles again, spent some time at the room and in the pool, read, watch the birds and iguanas and just had a nice relaxing day:)

Here is another couple of pictures from the "Widow's Peak" at the hotel.  These were taken in the morning on a clear day and the view was just incredible! 

Something fun about this particular stay was that our room attendant, Mayella, would leave little towel animals for our fascination and enjoyment.

For our last dinner of the trip we had to go back to Guaramos!  It was the third time we had eaten there but it had the BEST food.  We sat back in the patio area next to the rainforest.  It was a wonderful way to end our last night!

The next day we woke up with the birds.  Rick went on a jog and I went on a walk.   On my walk I was able to see a Yellow Headed Toucan up in a Palm Tree eating some berries.  I watched him for a good 8 or 9 minutes and then got back on my walk.  I came back about 15 minutes later and he was still there:)  Kinda cool!  After getting back to the room I hopped in the pool for one last hurrah and Rick got back and joined me.  After our refreshing swim we went over for our breakfast and then came back to get everything packed up.  As we were walking out of the hotel we were blessed with there view of a full rainbow!  That was a nice way for Cosa Rica to say goodbye!!

We drove over through Tarcoles and stopped to get a few trinkets for family members and then headed back to San Jose.  We wanted to find the temple.  Rick did very well at following the GPS and maneuvering the roads of San Jose and we found the beautiful it.  We could not get into the grounds because the temple is under renovation but we were able to get a picture just outside the front gate.  I love how the Costa Rican flag is captured in the picture!

While we were waiting to board our flight to Dallas Rick got a message on his phone saying that our flight from Dallas to SLC was cancelled.  They had rebooked us for a flight the next night.  We wished we had known that before or we might have just spent one more day in San Jose.  We decided that we would find some fun things to do in Dallas since neither one of us has spent any time there.  We booked a hotel near the airport and got on our flight.  

When we got to Dallas we couldn't land because of bad weather not the ground.  We circled the airport for an hour and a half and then we started running low on fuel.  The captain came on the intercom dn told us we were being rerouted to Houston.  We flew the 40 minutes to Houston and landed but could not get into a gate. By this time it was super late so Rick found us a Marriott close to the airport to stay in.  Jus after that occurred we got a notice that American Airlines were going to put us up for the night in a budget hotel close to the airport.  So we cancelled the other and finally deplaned.  There were only a few people in Customs so it took a while getting through that line.  We were able to pick up our luggage then we had to find our way to the hotel shuttles.  That was a nightmare!  We had no way to know which way to go.  This airport is NOT clearly marked.  We finally found the shuttles with about 50 other people waiting.  The shuttle came and only about ten people could fit inside.  I could see that this was going to be a loooong process so I checked into getting a taxi.  It cost about twenty bucks but we were able to get right over to our hotel and get checked in.  It was definitely a budget hotel but we just needed some rest.  We got to sleep around 2 AM.  It had been a long day!

The next morning an Uber driver took us back to the airport where we rented a car for the day.  Our plane was not scheduled to leave until 9:00 that night.  We found a Cracker Barrell and had a nice breakfast and then drove and hour and a half South of Houston to Galveston.  I had seen a brochure and thought it would be a fun place to go.  

We first stopped at the Bishop's Palace, a turn of the century home.  While Rick took a nap in the car I toured the home.  My goodness!  It was so beautiful!  It had a very nice floor plan, a beautiful staircase and the home had many stained glass windows which added to it's beauty!  There was even a catholic chapel full of stained glass windows of the apostles.  It was added when the original family sold the home to the catholic priest who's church was just next door.  I love touring old houses.  This was one of the most beautiful I have seen!  Here are just a few pictures.  I knew taking pictures would be futile because the majesty of this home could not be captured through the lens.

Next we drove over to Pleasure Pier.  This was the real draw to Galveston....only to find that it was CLOSED!!  We were hoping to go on a few rides and eat some fun fair food but alas our plans were changed yet again.  We walked up to take a couple of pictures and then walked down to the beach.  We then grabbed a sandwich from Chic Fil A and then made the drive back to the Houston airport.  

While the stop in Houston was unexpected, we were able to make a nice day of it.  I think it would be fun to go back to Galveston during the summer months when the Pier is open.  It would be a fun place to spend an afternoon.  

We were able to catch our plane and other than being a little late we arrived and Gary picked us up and drove us home.  It is always so nice to walk through the doors of the place we call ours!

Our trip to Costa Rica was filled with adventure, love, tropical birds, crocodiles, swimming and delicious food!  We will be back!

ANOTHER TRIP TO COSTA RICA PART I

Sometime in the summer I saw some cheap tickets to Costa Rica on Flights From Home.  I mentioned it to Rick and we concocted a plan to go back since we loved our trip so much earlier in the year.

We planned to travel the first part of February.  We flew out early (6AM) on November 2nd to stay for eight days.  We flew through Dallas on American Airlines and arrived in San Jose mid afternoon.  We picked up our car from Thrifty and headed toward Los Suenos in Herradura Bay.  The drive was beautiful.  Costa Rica is just coming off of their rainy season and everything was so green and beautiful!  

We drove over a couple of deep valleys where we couldn't even see the river bottom.  The mountains were so beautiful!

Before getting to the hotel we stopped at a restaurant called Vista Mar.  We both started out with a Pina Colada and some food!  Our dinner was delicious!  We had some coconut shrimp and Rick had something (I can't remember what?) that he loved.  It felt good to get some good food into our bodies! 

We drove into Herradura Bay and the Los Suenos Marriott around 6:00 and was able to get checked into THE SAME ROOM that we stayed in last time!  This was so fun for us because we LOVED our swim up room from February where we were there last.  The front desk clerk was very nice to us and gave us FULL breakfast buffet coupons, as well.  That was super nice of him because the buffet was fabulous and saved us about $400.👍

After a good night's rest we enjoyed lounging around our fun room and enjoying the beautiful view!  It was a rainy morning but it was so fun to see and hear the rain coming down.  By late morning the weather had cleared so we drove over to Tarcoles to secure a spot on the Crocodile Man Tour for the next day.  We reserved a ticket and then took a drive up into the mountains.  Last time we came to CR we found a scenic road that led to a little town called Bijuagal.  I kept searching the map to see if we cold go past the town and have the road bring us back around to Jaco.  It looked like there was a road but I couldn't tell for sure.  When we got up to Bijuagal we asked if the road continued.  They said that it did but it was not paved.  That mad me a little nervous because it had rained pretty hard that morning. wE decided to go as far as we could.  We were delighted to find the road was fine.  There were a few spots that were washed out but the road was passable.

On top of the mountain we got to see such beautiful views.  The valley was covered in thick foliage and just amazing!

The drive took about an hour.  We passed over a couple of streams and at one point found a beautiful little waterfall.  It was such a nice drive!  We came out of the mountains on the main highway just outside of Jaco.  We loved our driving adventure!

It was time for dinner so after stopping at the room and taking a small dip in the pool we drove fifteen minutes over to a restaurant called Guaramos.  We had passed it on our way into Herradura and thought we'd give it a try.  The drive was TREACHEROUS! (for me, anyway)  The rain was really coming down hard and the highway is not lighted very well.  There was a lot of traffic and big trucks!  I was glad to get to the restaurant in one piece.  It was absolutely pouring so we ran from the car to the open air restaurant and got wet:)  I'm glad I brought my sweater for the chill in the air AND the mosquitos:)

We ordered chips and guacamole and this is what we got....

It was super delicious!

And then we ordered the traditional Costa Rican casado and we loved it so much!!

It came with THE BEST grilled chicken, rice and beans, seasoned potatoes over corn tortillas all topped off with a fried egg.  Also to Rick's delight they served up a whole cooked plantain!  He raved about how good it was!  We loved this place so much that we came back two more times!

 

                                             Me eating casado with the rain pouring down!

The next morning we got up bright and early to get to our 8AM appointment with the crocs.

We were captained by a man named Santiago and a guide named ??.

It was so fun because it was just Rick and I on this huge boat.  Other times we have come there have been at least ten others.  This time it was just us so it was personalized for us:)

We got to see a lot of crocs (we counted about 40) and Santiago even got out to feed one (named brad Pitt) some chicken!  The croc came all the way out of the water so we got some good video footage and pictures of him!  (Our grandkids loved seeing the video)

Here we are holding the tail of Osama Bin Laden.  He's the largest crocodile in these waters.  He had a harem of about five females in his area.  The guide said he was 16 ft long and around 60 years old!

We got to hold his tail!   Well, Rick got to hold his tail!  I just gave it a little touch with my finger:)

Another crocodile!  It was about a 90 minute tour and we saw a lot on the banks and in the river!

We also saw a lot of birds.... spoonbill, egrets, herons, and many others.  Pretty cool!

Here we are at the end of our tour.  Santiago wanted to be sure and get int he picture:)

The car we rented was one that we had never had driven before.  

While on the crocodile Man Tour, Santiago mentioned to Rick about the Casa de Manos.  (The house of monkeys)  A woman feeds the monkeys so they stay around her house and tourists come to feed them as well:)  He gave Rick directions so we thought that it would be fun to see.

Our GPS told us it was a 45 minute drive and it was!  It was further out than we were expecting but it was a fun time.  We stopped at the Tarcoles Bridge and got a few munchies...some banana plantains (that were so good) and a little bit of chocolate.  Rick got a pineapple, passion smoothie.

We finished our snacks and then walked to the middle of the bridge.  We saw NINE crocs on the sandbar in the river.  One male and all the others female.  So cool!

So the GPS took us into a beachside town called Caldera.  It led us to a place that was not the Monkey House so we pulled over to talk to the first man we saw to see if he had any info about it.  He wasn't too sure but he had heard of a lady who took care of monkeys and gave us directions.  Well, wha t a blessing it was that we found him because his directions sent us right to her house!

The lady of the house and her young son came out with bananas for us to feed the monkeys.  First she called over the alpha male and gave him a whole banana and he took off.  Then the other monkeys felt like they could come over to eat.  They were coming out of the jungle right to where we were standing with the food.  It was really fun because these monkeys were not shy of humans at all.  They crawled all over us to get their food.  A wildlife experience!

After visiting the monkeys we stopped by the beach on our way out of town.  It had a black sand beach, which was surprising to us. We walked out onto the sand and Rick went down to touch the water. 

 I just watched:)

There were a lot of food trucks near the beach but I was leery of eating at them so we found a nice restaurant down the road.  We both had casado again and it was very good.  It was a little different because instead of a grilled boneless piece of chicken it was a fried bone in piece...but still really yummy!  Rick loved the plantains.

It was a nice warm day so we drove into Jaco to do a little shopping.  Rick found a hat and I got some sunglasses for a couple of bucks.  We knew we wanted to schedule a massage for the following day so we did that and then drove back to our hotel for some rest.  We played in the pool and I enjoyed reading while Rick enjoyed making friends with an iguana or two:)  It was a great day!

The next day we had our massages scheduled for 11 am in Jaco.  We had a nice buffet breakfast at the hotel (rice, beans, bacon, eggs, fried plantains, omelets, meat, cheeses, pastries, waffles, potatoes, and waffles, and fresh fruit).  There was so much to choose from and so delicious!  We also had Passion juice/smoothies every morning with our meal, as well!

We arrived for our massage on time but found that the yoga class was just getting over and no therapist in sight.  We were able to have the yoga instructor get ahold of our therapist who rushed over to get things set up.  She had forgotten:(

It worked out well though because we had THE BEST massages.  Sochie was my therapist and she really worked on my knots, so much so that I had a headache later on in the day.

We had such a nice time a few days before driving up the mountain top that we decided to do it again and drive a little further into the jungle.  Although the little towns were beautiful, the roads were not that great and I had a terrible headache by the end of our drive.  It was not nearly as enjoyable for me as the earlier drive we had taken.  I think that Rick like it, though:)

By the time we got back to the highway it was just about dark.  We stopped at a roadside pizza joint called Pizza Pata and got some fod.  They offered an individual flatbread pizza and we really liked what we chose.  I also had some ice cream afterwards.  We enjoyed a quiet evening after getting back to our hotel.

The next day was another early morning.  We took a boat tour over to Tortuga Island.  The boat was really full of people but we were lucky enough to get a seat on the upper deck with the captain and only about ten others.  We had a nice view for our hour ride over to 

Tortuga Island.  

Here we are ready for the boat launch.

Before getting to the island the captain brought us over a cool hole in the rock spot.  Look how pretty the water is....

....and look how handsome this guy is!!

Here's our first shot of the beach that we would be spending the day at.  

We got on the beach and claimed our chairs and then immediately went out to get into the water.  It was super rocky (the tide was out) and we forgot our water shoes (again, sigh) So Rick just carried me around in the water and we had fun doing that for a little bit.

After the water we walked the beach to get some pictures and see what was there.  

It was quite a beautiful beach.

After a while those who wanted to could go on a snorkel excursion.  We boarded a small boat and were taken over to a small outcropping of land where there was a little bit of coral and some tropical fish.  It was quite disappointing to me because while there were a lot of fish the water was very murky and it was difficult to see the fish unless they were very close to you.  It was a good experience, though.

A cute couple that we had met on the boat (named Ray and Susan) from Florida, sat by us on the beach and we got to get to know them a little bit better.  I didn't get any pictures of them but they were a nice couple and it was good to learn about their life:)  Ray and Rick went on an island hike and I stayed and visited with Susan for much of the time.

 Here are some pictures from Rick's hike.  He got to see some beautiful vistas!

We left the island for our hour long cruise back to the Los Suenos Marina.

After getting back to the room we got showered up and ready for dinner.  We drove back to Guarumos Restaurant and had more delicious casado!

Part II coming up!