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mg.bigadventure

September 2016 - May 2017
A 255-day adventure by mg.bigadventure Read more
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  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 150

    Last day in Tortuguero

    February 3, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Today we got up early and went on a wildlife boat trip at 5:45am. It was worth it as we saw a lot of animals and birds, including more 3-toed sloths (the 2-toed variety has eluded us so far), . Here are a selection of photos from the trip, howler and spider monkeys, iguanas, baslisk lizards, parrots, more species of toucans, and the highlight was a caiman (S.American crocodile). Solana really wanted to see a caiman and she was not too happy about getting up so early, so it made her happy! This afternoon Laura and I borrowed a kayak from the hotel and went on our own little boat trip - I was so busy trying to concentrate on staying afloat in the kayak that I didn't spot much wildlife but the scenery was great! Thanks to all of you who have asked about Laura - I am pleased to report that she is now fully recovered.Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 150

    More Tortuguero wildlife

    February 3, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    A few more photos of the Tortuguero wildlife. This really is an amazing place to spot wildlife. We love that Solana is interested in the wildlife too - most of the time (although I will confess that on one boat trip she requested to play C-Beebies on Mummy's phone instead - I think maybe she is getting a bit wildlifed-out at times...). You can see from the pictures what attracts people to Tortuguero but it has some down sides too - it takes a while to get to, trips here can be expensive and it is bloody wet! We got off lightly as far as the rain was concerned but both us and all of our things felt covered in a layer of permanent dampness whilst we were there. How anyone ever gets their washing dry here is beyond us! Wildlife in these pictures includes a parrot (difficult to identify which type, as they're nearly all green!), a spider, green kingfisher, a spider monkey, a trogon bird and a collared aracari (like a toucan).Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    1
    Day 152

    Going Caribbean

    February 5, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    We left Tortuguero on Saturday, after finding a hummingbird nest in the hotel grounds that morning – an amazing thing to see. Hummingbirds are tiny, weighing just a few grams each, so I can’t imagine the size of the eggs... Everyone’s luggage was all loaded onto a separate boat from the people – it looked very laden and somewhat precarious but thankfully all made it to the other end intact and dry! We, on the other hand, only just made it – the waterways here are pretty low & difficult to navigate in the dry season (Dec-April) and our boat got stuck on the sandy bottom...they had to call for a backup boat to help, unload half of the people from our boat, then move the rest of us to the front of the boat to rebalance and eventually we managed to clear the sandbank and make it to the port – intact and dry too! Along the way we saw a boat containing a family....and a fridge-freezer – I hope that one made it too. After 4.5 hours of travel (boat and bus) and still a way to go, we chickened out of the public bus and did the rest of the journey in an (expensive) air-conditioned minibus. We drove past a lot of banana plantations along the way – Chiquita, Dole, Del Monte – many of the UK’s bananas come from Costa Rica – the man from Del Monte definitely says yes here!

    We arrived in Cahuita on the Caribbean coast late afternoon, where we plan to spend most of the rest of our time in Costa Rica. Laura and I came here when we were travelling in Costa Rica in 2005; we only had a couple of nights here and felt it wasn’t long enough. This place is very different from the rest of Costa Rica – it has a much more Caribbean feel about it, the people, the food, the vibe. Today our activities were limited by the rain. We explored the town, which didn’t take long (it is basically just a crossroads by the sea!), walked along to the black beach to the West and to the National Park entrance on the East side, which we plan to go into tomorrow. We also had to find new accommodation, as the place we stayed the first night is now full; we’ve ended up in a cheap but OK place across the road – pleases me as it means we’ve come in under budget today for the first time in about 2 weeks, so we had an extra beer to celebrate! We’re looking forward to a few days of Caribbean sun (or rain as it seems so far!), sea, more wildlife, tastier food and cold beers – oh, and WiFi, after nearly a week of unreliable connections and tortuously slow blogging...    Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 153

    Cahuita National Park

    February 6, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Today we had a leisurely breakfast whilst sitting out the rain (we are virtually in the rainforest here, after all I suppose!). Once the sky brightened a bit we ventured out and had a walk in the nearby Cahuita National Park. This is one of our favourite National Parks in Costa Rica - it is easy to get to (you can walk here in just a few minutes from the town), the rainforest trail is an easy walk and best of all, the rainforest is literally just a few feet from the beach. When we visited in 2005, I remember there being a lovely cooling sea breeze that made the rainforest more pleasant to walk in. Today, after all the rain the past 2 days, it was pretty hot and humid but we still saw sloths (including one with a baby), racoons, lots of lizards, a bright yellow snake (turned out to be an eyelash viper - the 2nd most poisonous snake in the country!), ghost crabs, howler and capuchin monkeys, all followed by a paddle in the Caribbean Sea. Howler monkeys are apparently the loudest animal in the world - their calls can be heard up to 3km away! It is lovely to be able to step out of the rainforest into the sea and vice versa - a very special place.Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 154

    Cahuita

    February 7, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Another day spent in Cahuita. This is a lovely, friendly and chilled out place to stay - but if you want anything in a hurry, forget it! This place doesn't just work on "Costa Rica time", it works on "Caribbean Costa Rica time" - i.e. unless you have the time and patience to wait, you will be very frustrated! This morning we went to a restaurant for breakfast and when we'd waited well over half an hour just for a cup of tea (never mind the food), chased it up a couple of times and still no sign, we decided to go elsewhere... we ended up in e French-run café that had marginally faster service. After breakfast we went out to "Tree of Life", an animal sanctuary that rescues injured/orphaned/inappropriate pet animals, treats and rehabilitates them, releasing back into the wild where possible. It was an informative tour and we enjoyed seeing the animals up closer than Is possible in the wild. Our favourites were the 2 baby sloths - so cute - and we finally managed to get a picture of the elusive sloths' faces!

    This afternoon we moved back to our original hotel in Cahuita, Casa de las Flores - a very friendly and relaxed place to stay, run by an Italian family. After a hot morning out (no rain today), we enjoyed a swim in the little pool. This evening, we went out for cocktails - great mojitos and a pineapple "cocktail" juice for Solana, followed by delicious Caribbean curry. Tomorrow is our last day in Cahuita, then we travel back to San Jose on Thursday before our flight on Friday....    Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 155

    Reflections on Costa Rica

    February 8, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Today was our last day in Cahuita and our penultimate day in Costa Rica. We walked into the National Park again this morning. We saw white-faced capuchin monkeys - they come down lower in the trees than the howler monkeys, so they're easier to photograph; they also seem a bit more curious and cheekier! We saw a couple more sloths, including one very active (non-sloth- like!) one, and some racoons (including 2 baby ones up a tree). This time we spent more time on the beach - Solana loved dodging the waves and body surfing with Laura and we all enjoyed walking along in the surf. A heron came by at one point to join in - you'll see it in the photo! This evening our dinner plan didn't quite work out and we ended up having to put Solana to bed early (she was tired out) and having a "dinner" of microwave popcorn and beer! We're now doing some sorting of all of our stuff, ready for the onward journey - boring but necessary.

    There is lots still the same about Costa Rica as it was when we first visited nearly 12 years ago but some things have changed. The internet is an obvious change - and that has changed the way people travel (more people seem to book ahead at accommodation, rather than just turn up and look around - which means if you do the latter, it is harder to find somewhere - as we found to our peril in Alajuela!). There seem to be a wider range of people travelling here - last time we came it was mostly young Americans whereas now there are more Europeans, French Canadian, more older people and more families with children. There are a few more surfaced roads I think but still plenty of bumpy unsurfaced ones, and more people hire cars or travel in air-conditioned minibuses than by public bus than there were before (including us as it turns out!). The country seems more ecologically aware and into trying to protect the environment, animals and recycling than it was 12 years ago too. More people speak some English than we found before. The food is much the same (still rice and beans heavy!) but and more menus are bilingual (Spanish and English). The national currency is Colones but US dollars are far more widely accepted than they used to be - almost everywhere. But the most noticeable thing is how much more expensive everything is - it is not far off European prices and our nightly budget of US$20 from 12 years ago would barely buy us a pillowcase now!

     We have thoroughly enjoyed our visit here and would highly recommend visiting Costa Rica if you ever have the chance. The wildlife in particular is absolutely amazing - if you have even a passing interest in wildlife, add it to your "to visit" list. We have managed to spot and identify 10 species of mammals, 15 species of reptiles/amphibians and 71 species of birds, even though we were without a guide most of the time. Solana has now decided she'd like to be a wildlife guide when she grows up! It has some of the most accessible rainforest, cloud forest and volcanoes in the world. The beaches are good, the weather is warm and it still feels like a pretty safe country. It is more expensive than we'd expected (bargain on similar prices to mainland Spain I'd say) but that wouldn't matter as much for a 2-week holiday and the experiences we've had here have been amazing. Maybe we should have asked for commission from the Costa Rica tourist board to help make up our budget deficit?.....!    Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 156

    Last day in Costa Rica

    February 9, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ 🌙 20 °C

    Today we left Cahuita and travelled back to San Jose, the capital city. The journey was not quite as smooth as we' d hoped but we made it eventually. We planned to leave on the 9.30am bus but it was full, so we had to get the 1.30pm bus instead. The journey was supposed to take 4 hours but it ended up taking closer to 6 hours, as the traffic was bad in a few places and also our bus got stopped by armed police and we all had to get off and have our bags searched.... We finally arrived around 7.30pm. Solana was too tired to go out for dinner, so we ended up eating crisps & cake instead! Just done some budgeting and realised we've withdrawn 956,000 Costa Rican Colones whilst we've been here - almost millionaires but not quite.... Apparently we'll hit the heights of "millionaire" status when we get to Vietnam. Hoping for a good night's sleep tonight as it may well be the last one we get for a while... Tomorrow (Friday) we fly out of San Jose, via Atlanta and Amsterdam, arriving in Glasgow on Saturday afternoon. Then we have 2 days staying with Laura's family, before flying out to Vietnam on Tuesday. Sounds tiring just writing it - I somehow don't think the next few days will be the finest of our trip... We're looking forward to a few home comforts before we fly out of UK again though - top of the list being the washing machine!!!Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 160

    Home comforts in Scotland

    February 13, 2017 in Scotland ⋅ ⛅ 5 °C

    After 26.5 hours of travelling we arrived safely in Troon, Scotland, at teatime on Saturday. It was lovely to feel a breath of icy cold air when we stepped off the plane in Amsterdam! The relative lack of trees in Britain compared to Costa Rica was striking too... Returning via UK before the next leg of our travels made the flights nearly £2k cheaper and has enabled us to visit Laura's family too. Backtracking like this seemed daft when we were planning our travels but we are all enjoying a couple of days of home comforts - comfy bed, home-cooked food, the space of a house and most of all the much-needed washing machine! Yesterday we want for a walk in the woods and we were all a bit chilly to say the least! Seeing a blanket of snowdrops made up for it though. Species count in Troon - birds 4 (crow, herring gull, starling, oystercatcher), mammals 1 (Laura's Mum's dog, Toffee)! Oh, and the gaudy model parrot we saw in the fairy garden!!! Today Solana got to spend time with her cousins, Finlay and Emma, which she loved.

    Things we've particularly appreciated being back here are good cups of tea, "normal" food, clean clothes, not having to plaster ourselves in sunscreen & DEET, not having to calculate money conversions in the 1000s and having clean feet! Tonight's task is to finish the re-packing, ready for our 2 long flights to Hanoi via Dubai....    Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    Day 163

    Good morning (or is it night?) Vietnam

    February 16, 2017 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    After travelling 14,900 miles, two journeys >24 hours and visiting 7 international airports in just a few days since San Jose, we are now in Hanoi, Vietnam. We arrived on Wednesday evening and have spent a couple of days exploring the city and trying to recover from our jet lag. The jet lag is proving more difficult than Costa Rica - our own fault for arranging a schedule that traversed 13 hours of time zones in 5 days I suppose (UK is 6hr ahead of Costa Rica & Vietnam is 7hr ahead of UK)....

    On our first day in Hanoi (after having woken up at 2.30am) we wandered around the old quarter, exploring the streets and learning how to cross the road. I have never seen so many mopeds in my life (it makes Italy look positively tame!) and you need some nerve to cross the road, especially with a 4-year-old in tow... Every street has a theme, with shops mostly selling the same type of thing - so far we've seen silk street, toy st, moped repair st, jewellery st, jade st, light st, hardware st and noodle st, amongst others. Our hotel is near Hoan Kiem Lake, so we walked along the lake shore and also visited Ngoc Son Temple, which is on an island in the lake and you get to it by walking across a picturesque red bridge. The temple gardens were small but a lovely tranquil haven from the bustle of the city, with beautiful bonsai trees. We sat by the lake eating a snack after the temple, when a group of local secondary school children asked to interview us about New Year for a school project (see picture). They found it hilarious that we don't wear any special clothes or eat any special food at new year! It was interesting talking to them. In the afternoon we went to see the water puppet show, thinking it would be a great thing to do with Solana. Unfortunately she fell asleep in the sling on the way there and when we woke her up to see the puppet show, she was scared and didn't like it! A shame because it was actually quite good and I ended up missing most of it... Solana fell asleep again later in the afternoon; we tried to wake her for dinner but she was so tired she was unrousable, so we ended up taking her out asleep - she slept through dinner and the walk back!    Read more

  • mg.bigadventuremg.bigadventure
    1
    Day 164

    Hanoi

    February 17, 2017 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    We started the day at 1am when Solana woke and couldn't get back to sleep - we all finally managed to drop back off around 5am, only to struggle to get up again at 7... We got a cyclo taxi (like a rickshaw) to Ho Chi Minh mausoleum site in the morning. The ride itself was fun, if a bit hair-raising with traffic coming at us from all angles at intersections! We got to see Ho Chi Minh's house on stilts, the one pillar pagoda and some lovely gardens with plenty of bonsai trees and koi carp swimming around. There was a nursery trip visiting at the same time too, which was cute to see. We have seen a bit of wildlife so far in Vietnam, although nothing on the scale of Costa Rica - bird count now about 7 and mammals 3 (black squirrel, bat and rat!).

    In the evening we went out to the night market, where we enjoyed wandering round the stalls (with Solana in the sling on Laura's back so she didn't get lost - it was pretty busy!). We invested in a neck pillow for Solana, to help her sleep on buses, trains, etc - hoping it will be a good investment of 100,000 Dong (about £4)! We also ate at an open-air restaurant there - tasty fried beef noodles, cooked on a little burner outside - 2 dishes plus beers for about £6.50 (which would have barely bought us a piece of cheese in Costa Rica!). Solana managed to stay awake until around 8:30pm and we re-packed, ready for our trip to Halong Bay.    Read more

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