Monteverde

May 19, 2012

               Last night there was a wicked thunderstorm, better than any I have seen in years.  Enjoyable though it was, it was tough to sleep in so getting up and heading out early was a little more difficult today.  We chatted with Gingi, the hostel owner, for a while before we left.  He gave us directions to a local beach he recommended we check out and some advice on renting surf boards in our future travels.  We found the beach easily enough and it was definitely different from the ones we had seen before, so totally worth the side trip.  We spent probably an hour taking pictures and gathering rocks and shells to take home.

Playa in Santa Teresa

               











               After the beach, we headed to Montezuma to see a waterfall we had read about and have some lunch.  The first place we parked (and paid $2 for) we were able to see the lower part of the falls but with the rain the night before we were not able to go very far up the path.  So we and a couple from Northampton, MA who we met on the trail decided to drive a little further up the road to see if we could get a better view of the falls.  This path was longer, steeper, and very muddy.  The only things we had to use for support were roots along the trail (which was nearly  vertical) and vines hanging from trees, but overall it was a fun climb.  We also found an old zipline platform and another trail that led us just above the waterfall.  Unfortunately, being the start of the rainy season, the water is the color of a café latte and not very pretty to look at.

Top of the falls in Montezuma

 Rocks in the falls

Trail down to the waterfall in Montezuma

Hot, sweaty mess      











                The humidity along the coast in Montezuma was ridiculous, and Laura and I were both hot, sweaty messes by the time we got back to the car.   It just started to rain, so we headed into town to have lunch at a place we had read about.  Unfortunately, it was closed, so instead we looked in a couple of souvenir shops and hit the road again.  Along the way we stopped at a local super market and grabbed some snacks for the 5 hour drive to Santa Elena where we would be spending the night.

             

These things are like the fried Chinese noodles you put in chow mein covered in Dorito seasoning.  Sounds kind of gross, but they are delicious!








                Apparently we could have taken a water taxi across the Golfo de Nicoya and saved ourselves about half of the time and had a much easier road to traverse, but instead our GPS took us the long, hard way around.  We went over several mountains on roads that were steep, muddy, very rocky, and sometimes washed out in places.   It was quite the adventure, but, it provided for some really pretty views that we might not have seen had we gone the easy way.  The good thing is that everyone (especially our rep at Avis) told us the road from Monteverde (Sta Elena) to Arenal (La Fortuna) where we will be on the 21^st  was nearly impossible to drive without a 4x4 SUV, but our hostel owner in Sta. Elena says the one we did yesterday is much worse than that.  At least we are well prepared J.

View from the road to Sta. Elena

Another vista

               









               Upon arriving in Sta. Elena we stopped at the local tourism office to see what they would recommend we do/see/eat in the area, and then attempted to find the B&B we would be staying at.  About 20 minutes later, we finally found it!  Jose, the owner, was very helpful with recommending/booking our activities and somewhere to have dinner.  Apparently his mother owns the soda (what they call inexpensive places to eat in Costa Rica), so we stopped in there to try some of the comida typica (local food).

The porch just outside our room at Camino Verde

Comida typica - caseros (plates) with rice, seasoned black beans, salad, vegetables, fried plantains, and mine with a quesadilla, Laura's with beer-battered fish.  So good.  Oh, and a mango smoothie :)

             









                 We went back next door to do some research into the activities that Jose recommended and had him officially book them for us, and then went straight to bed.  Tomorrow we go bungee jumping, canyoneering, and on a night tour of the rainforest.