Costa Rica Part 1

Ok, so this is really late in coming but better late than never, right? I've had critiques to get caught up on and this novel that keeps knocking around in my head even when I'm not actually writing it. Plus, I may have knee surgery looming in the not-too-distant future. But enough excuses! Here is part 1 of the Costa Rica trip report.-----Stephan and I had a wonderful trip to Costa Rica, a place we've decided we need to get back to within the next five to seven years. We went for the cloud forest, active volcanoes, wildlife, beaches, and we were not disappointed! We also discovered great food, great people, terrible roads, a helpful GPS, and had some fun and unexpected adventures along the way. I'm writing this a few days after our return.Day 1—Arrival in AlajuelaAs we approached the airport, the peninsula containing Santa Rosa National Park on the northwest coast came into view just like on a map. We saw the foot of a tall mountain, its head shrouded in clouds, that might have been the large volcano in that area. We also saw a city on a high plateau that could have been San Ramon or something else in the area. Then, we were in the clouds.At the Dollar Car Rental counter, we picked up a Suzuki Jimny and also rented a GPS that we later named "Elvira." This turned out to be a very good decision, as we probably could have found our way around without her, but this way meant far less time and irritation.Traffic in Alajuela, the city where the airport is located, is terrible. There are far too many people trying to drive down 2-lane roads or wider roads with no lane markings at all so people just drive in bunches. But it wasn't long until we got up into the hills around the city, the site of our first hotel, the Orquideas Inn, shortly before sunset. The grounds are nicely landscaped with flowering plants and trees. Our room was spacious and comfortable with a view of the hills. By the time we went to dinner, it was dark enough that we couldn't see the surroundings very well. We sat in the deserted restaurant for a while before the other couple there checked and found that dinner was in the bar instead. I can't recall at the moment exactly what I ate but I think it was some sort of fish. We had some nice pina coladas as well and an enjoyable dinner in a bar with more pictures of Marilyn Monroe than I'd ever seen.Day 2—The trip to NicoyaThe next morning, breakfast was on the porch near the pool, a buffet with a delicious assortment of food including my new favorite breakfast, gallo pinto, a mixture of seasoned black beans and rice. We also had some little corn cakes wrapped in leaves that we had to untie, plantains, and other usual breakfast food like eggs and sausage. The fruit is the real star in Costa Rica, and enjoying tropical fruit at breakfast is a treat.The sounds of a macaw and a toucan sometime intruded on our breakfast, and after we ate, we took a short trail where we got a better look at these birds in their caged enclosures. A dog who seemed to be in charge of the hotel accompanied us and had a couple of "fights" with the macaw through the cage.We next set out for Zoo Ave, a zoo containing mostly birds, as the name would indicate. I love birds, and thought this would be a nice first stop to see some of them in captivity so later if we saw or heard them in the wild, we might have some idea what they were. This didn't entirely pan out as most of the birds we later saw in the wild were not the ones we had seen in the zoo, but it was still quite worthwhile. We also saw various other animals including peccaries, monkeys (we got our closest look at monkeys here, though we later did see some in the wild), and took lots of video footage. The thing I like about the video camera for things like zoos is you can capture the sounds of the animals. The birds of Costa Rica have a special place in my heart and it's nice to have some record of their sounds.We hit the road for the Nicoya peninsula, pleasantly surprised to find that according to Elvira, it would take less time than we thought. Apparently, a new road has been completed. We stopped for lunch at a roadside place right opposite the ocean and each had the "casado" with chicken—a mixed plate that usually contains white rice, black beans, plantains, and other local items along with whatever meat you order. This was delicious and quite filling. Ordering this frequently on the menu probably led to the weight gain I was expecting upon return, but I managed to make up for it later and can thankfully still fit into my clothes. Costa Rican food is relatively simple, but tasty and filling. Did I mention filling?The drive was scenic and pretty uneventful, with nicely paved roads. Stephan started to say that the roads here weren't nearly as bad as Jamaica. "Wait," I said. "We haven't taken the road to Monteverde yet." Yes, later, he was forced to eat his words.The Nicoya peninsula is covered with pastureland and dry pacific forest, so, guess what? All the luxury resorts are popping up there because people want a beach but no rain. Then they get disappointed when they get there in the dry season and all the trees are brown. We were there in the wet season, so everything was green and lush.Elvira directed us right to the Villas Sol resort, where we were staying for four nights all-inclusive for a pretty low price. The catch, of course, was that they wanted to sell us a timeshare. All-inclusive and large resorts are not usually our preferred mode of travel, but that's why we planned to rent a car, travel, and stay other places in the country as well.Villas Sol is on a steep hillside overlooking the beautiful gulf of Nicoya. Our room did not have a view of the gulf, but a small balcony overlooking the opposite hillside and the road. It was an ok room, but really they could have done more with the space. With a tropical climate, I'd rather have a smaller room, a bigger window (the only one was on the door to the balcony), and a bigger balcony! Developers who build cookie-cutter resorts have a few things to learn. All the restaurants are open-air except for roofs and shades to roll down to keep out the sun or rain when needed. So why build a an air-conditioned box with barely a window and a tiny balcony? But I digress. The location was great. We didn't make it down to the beach that afternoon, but wandered the resort and swam in the pool, which had a nice pool bar. Unfortunately, we learned that they stopped handing out towels at the towel desk at 6:00, the same time as they stopped serving drinks at the bar. So we were forced to enjoy the pool sans towels and sans drinks. Ah, the injustice!The buffet dinner was adequate, though what passed for red wine was a little bit reminiscent of Welch's. But hey, we were in Costa Rica, we had a splendid view, and really, Villas Sol is a pretty nice place in most ways. We went to bed eager to explore the next day.---So that's it for the trip report so far. I'm in the process of posting a few photos to Facebook (friend me there if you want to see them). And I'll close by saying that 1 tray of ice + 2 bananans + 3 big shots of dark rum + 1 big shot of Grand Marnier in the blender = 2 nicely dry banana daquiris!