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Costa Rica 2017
  • DeanandLindasTravels
  • DeanandLindasTravels

Costa Rica 2017

A 15-day adventure by DeanandLindasTravels Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 25, 2017
    DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    September 24, 2017-arrival in San Jose

    September 24, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ 🌧 64 °F

    Dean has wanted to go to Costa Rica for years, so we finally decided to go. We had enough credit card points to pay for the airfare, and we exchanged timeshares for a two week trip. Our friend, Bruce went with us. He left from Phoenix airport around midnight, 9/23. We left the following morning.

    We arrived in San Jose in the evening and were picked up at the airport by a shuttle driver and taken to our unit, Villas Palmas. When we arrived, Bruce was in the unit, resting after his long day. There was a delay in Miami due to mechanical issues. Then when they finally flew to San Jose, they could not land due to weather (rain). After circling a while, they were getting low on fuel, so had to land in Nicaragua. It was not a friendly area, and the passengers were told, “Do not leave the plane!” He was so glad to finally arrive in San Jose!

    We took a little tour of our condo: two floors, three bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms. It is like an apartment! But we were surprised to see bars on the windows, even on the second floor!    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    San José

    September 25, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F

    We got up early (didn’t know that the time was actually an hour behind what we thought). It was a beautiful morning.

    Pic: Waiting for our free breakfast/tour package presentation–we look pretty rested, don’t we?Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Afternoon tour of San Jose

    September 25, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ 🌧 70 °F

    After lunch, we went on a sightseeing tour of San Jose. Although it was raining (it is the rainy season after all!) we saw the highlights of the city and learned about the economy, history, and culture. The main industry is tourism and there are many national parks for such a small country. Costa Rica is a socialist country. Everyone pays into the National Health Care system. There is no welfare. School is required until age 16. The utilities are all run by the government. Everyone has bars on the windows and razor wire around their property, so it feels strange, like maybe it’s unsafe, but it is considered a safe country. There is no military, but of course there are police. And the driving is crazy! They might be really nice, easy-going people, but not when they get behind the wheel. No one pays attention to stop lights, stop signs, or yield signs, and if there is a hole in the traffic, someone fills it. We were really glad to be transported around by the tour bus.
    See pictures: National Stadium, built by China, 2011
    National Monument - the five central American countries defeating US Citizen William Walker’s army, “The Filibusters”, who were trying to take over    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    National Theater in San Jose

    September 25, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ 🌧 70 °F

    This beautiful theater was financed by a tax on coffee, and completed in 1897. It was designed for everyone to access music and dance.

    See the statue in the lobby, the interior of Theater, first floor, and the Ballroom/meeting room on second floor with beautifully painted ceilings. The painted figures seemed to look in different directions as we walked around the room.
    The painting on the stairway wall was done by a foreign painter did not know the culture; coffee pickers wear the basket with a waist belt.
    After the tour, we went shopping for groceries. Rain was pouring down, but we had to go! Tomorrow will be an early start, so we need sustenance.    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Sarchi woodworking village

    September 26, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    We ate a quick breakfast of cereal in our condo, before we met the tour group at 7:15 for the excursion to Arenal Volcano. On the way, we stopped in the woodworking village of Sarchi, famous for its painted oxcarts which have become the national symbol. A craftsman was in the workshop and it was fun to talk with him. The souvenir shop had lots of beautiful items; we bought a trivet made of various woods including Purple Heart.
    See the oxcart, and paintings on the walls of the shop. Note the coffee pickers wearing a basket with a belt. The birds with the long tails are Resplendent Quetzels. We never saw one, so this is the next best thing.    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Afternoon at Arenal Volcano

    September 26, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    We stopped for lunch, and we could see the volcano from the restaurant. We ate a traditional lunch called Casado, which is beans, rice, fried plantains, sautéed onions and peppers, cabbage salad, and a choice of meat. We chose sea bass, and it was all wonderful!

    After lunch, Bruce went ziplining along with another couple in their 80’s! The rest of us went on a boat tour of Arenal Lake, where we got another view of the volcano.
    (See pictures of boat trip)

    Then we went to Baldi Hot Springs resort, which has about 20 thermo-mineral pools of varying temperatures, and a steam cave—all heated by the volcano. It was very relaxing to sit at the wet bar in the hot water and enjoy a beer! Then of course, it rained. We changed clothes and had a buffet dinner at the resort. Delicious!    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler
    4

    Tirimbina Reserve

    September 27, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 86 °F

    Tirimbina Reserve: Lunch was served here, and was delicious as always! Then we walked in the rainforest, including the longest hanging bridge in the country. We saw lots of wildlife, including the little poisonous frogs and a small, coiled viperous snake in the path.Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Morning Drive through the Cloud Forest

    September 28, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ☀️ 66 °F

    We drove through Alajuela and Heredia provinces where we saw coffee plants growing under canopies to protect them from the sun, and fields of tropical plants grown for export as houseplants. We had lunch, and then drove through a cloud forest to get to the park. There were some plants with huge leaves, nicknamed Poor Man’s Umbrella, which only grow in the cloud forests.Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    La Paz (Peace) Waterfall Garden

    September 28, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    This park in the cloud forest is a sanctuary for rescued animals and birds (many illegally kept as pets) that are unable to be returned to the wild: monkeys, macaws, and jungle cats etc. Here are some of the toucans and other birds we saw.Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Waterfalls

    September 28, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 73 °F

    There are three waterfalls in the park, which were accessed by a trail and stairs. Picture 5 shows the couple, Larry and Dorthy from North Carolina, who were with us on all the tours. They are so nice!Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Doka Estate Coffee Plantation

    September 28, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    On the way back to San Jose, we stopped at the Doka Estate coffee plantation. Christian used to work there, so he gave us the tour and explained the process of coffee making--very interesting! The gift shop had samples to taste and coffee for sale at reasonable prices. We tasted several kinds, and bought Peaberry to take home. We are learning to like our coffee black, as Christian says that’s how it was meant to be drunk. Here are some of the plants on the estate.Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler
    A line of leaf-cutter ants working.

    Carara National Park

    September 29, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F

    Today's tour took us towards the central Pacific coast, with a breakfast stop along the way. A very common breakfast consists of Pinto Gallo (Spotted Rooster), a beans and rice dish with vegetables and Costa Rican salsa and fried plantains. Fried cheese was good too.

    Our destination was Carara National Park, where we took a nature walk and learned about much of the biodiversity of the country: birds, plants, flowers, insects, etc. We even saw a golden spider web. Can you see the parade of leaf cutters on the sidewalk? Find out more here: https://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/blogs…    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Tarcoles River safari

    September 29, 2017 in Costa Rica

    Next, we had a boat trip on the Tarcoles River, to see some huge crocodiles (one was named Mike Tyson) and lots of birds including herons, toucans, hawks, ibis, and the clay-colored robin, the national bird of Costa Rica.

    We then had a late lunch on the way back to San Jose, and said good bye to our guide, Christian. He certainly taught us a lot, and in a very entertaining way.    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Rainforest Adventures Canopy Tour

    September 30, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F

    We had planned to go to Manuel Antonio National Park, but decided that we didn’t want to take another long bus ride, so we opted for a canopy tour at Rainforest Adventures, on the Caribbean side of the country. Mark, the owner of the company, took us on the tour, accompanied by his daughter, who is 10 years old and very chatty in English and Spanish. We drove through the cloud forest again to get to the park. Then we boarded a tram that took us up into the tree canopy for a different perspective than from the ground. The locusts were singing and our guide told us they do this all the time!Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler
    This is a tiny orchid!

    Rainforest Butterflies and Orchids

    September 30, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 81 °F

    We had a great lunch in a beautiful restaurant with a roof but no walls. Then our guide took us through a butterfly enclosure, showed us frogs, snakes, and a collection of orchids, from large to miniature sizes! In addition, we finally saw some sloths up in a tree—sleeping of course. They sleep most of their lives and rarely come down from the tree.Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Playas del Coco

    October 1, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 77 °F

    We checked out and took a Greyline bus to Playas del Coco (Coco Beach), where we’d planned to stay in another timeshare for a week. It was a long bus ride, about 5 hours. The scenery was beautiful, but we couldn’t get good pictures while the bus was moving! We stopped about half way for lunch, and there were Scarlet Macaws in the trees. It was fun to see them in the wild.

    We checked into our timeshare, a beautiful, modern, 3 bedroom-2 bathroom unit with all the equipment needed: coffee maker, dishwasher, washer and drier, and a patio. We took it easy, had a rotisserie chicken for dinner, and washed clothes.    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Playas del Coco

    October 2, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 79 °F

    Dean and I went to a timeshare presentation (why, I don’t know, except we thought, “Oh well, it’s worth it for a free breakfast”), but it wasn’t worth it! However we did receive a $50 voucher for a beach restaurant at the neighboring town.

    For lunch, Bruce came with us to a “Soda”, a small local café, usually run by a family. The food was good and inexpensive. We had a Casado again: beans, rice, meat, salad, and vegetables for about $8. The timeshare office arranged for a rental car for us.

    It's raining so we stayed in for the evening.    Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Liberia Costa Rica

    October 3, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    We picked up the rental car and drove to Liberia for groceries. Dean had trouble with the brakes, so we got a different one.

    It’s still raining. I am re-reading a book because I don’t have anything else to do and the TV is still not on. Good thing it’s a funny book. Wish we had some cards so we could play a game!Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Storm: No power or water!

    October 4, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ 🌫 75 °F

    It rained all night and the electricity went off around 3 a.m. We attempted to go for a drive, but couldn’t due to the river of water running down the street. The grocery store was open, so we went there to look around—bought a cake for a treat. Around 3:30 that afternoon, the electricity came back on so I made coffee and we ate the cake with it. Then the electricity went off again. We also had low water pressure, and at last, none. We tried collecting rainwater to flush the toilets, but finally Dean went to the swimming pool and got some. And it continued to rain. In addition to no electricity or water, we had no internet or TV. It was dark and we couldn’t read either! So we just went to bed.Read more

  • DeanandLindasTravelsCosta Rica 2017Traveler

    Playa Hermosa

    October 5, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ 🌫 73 °F

    We found out that the deluge of rain was a result of Tropical Storm Nate. We tried to drive somewhere to see the damage, but we didn’t get far. The River Tempisque on the way to the airport is very high, almost reaching the bottom of the bridge. Normally there is a drop of about 35 feet from the bottom of the bridge to the river.

    After lunch, the rains were letting up, so we drove to a neighboring town to look around. We had a voucher for a restaurant on the waterfront (received for going to the timeshare presentation), but they were closed at least for several more days to clean up. We were able to exchange the voucher for one at the Hard Rock Café. The beaches are very wild, with rough water, and high tides backing up the rivers. We saw some howler monkeys in the trees—they don’t seem to mind the weather. We talked to an expat who lives nearby, and she said we’d had over 20 inches in the past 48 hours, and the last time there had been this much rain was in 1992. She showed us an internet video of an apartment high-rise collapsing in San Jose.    Read more

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