Costa Rica - where to begin! I can see why they came up with Pura Vida as the national motto/greeting/ /even apology (if you break something: "Pura Vida"; if you step on someone's foot "Pura Vida"...). It seems to capture the essence of the cultural stewardship for nature and respect for life in general. It might seem flippant but CR has consistently among the highest happiness indices, 98% renewable energy, very high freedom of press, general tranquilidad about the politics - and, of course, 6% of all life on the planet. Not being naive, Pura Vida is, of course, used as a brand to attract NGOs, investment from China (interesting to see it got a football stadium in exchange for regognising Taiwan as part of PRC) and sell yoga retreats and fridge magnets. But overall, I've not come across a less-economically developed country as 'pure' and unspoilt as the Rich Coast.
REWIND I've jumped ahead. The start to my 10 days in Costa Rica was far from sloth-like. Thanks to a piece of Guatemalan ladder embedded in my foot, I spent a long day in San Jose Hospital Catolica. The day before, I'd cancelled a night at the Radisson Guatemala City to bed down in a charity-run guesthouse I'd heard about that donated guest funds to help women and children impacted by a landslide. To cut a very long story short (there's a potential whole separate blog on the weirdness of what turned out to be a bible distribution mission with VERY questionable motives), I fell off a ladder during an electricity blackout climbing up to a bed in the rafters. I thought all was ok until my foot started going black at the airport (where I had an 8 hour delay in El Salvador). After 2 hours' sleep in San Jose, I jumped in a taxi to the nearest private hospital and, again, long story short, left sin madera and $1,200 in the tarjeta de credito red. My main priority was to be able to join my Intrepid tour group for nine days' travel around the country. After all, this was meant to be the EASY bit of my travels. I made it - just 12 hours late!
I've never actually travelled as a tour but my research had shown that it would be a very complicated logistical effort to see everything safely and efficiently on my own. The below pictures tell the rest of the story much better than my rambles. In summary, an absolutely fantastic experience with some lovely people from all over the world! The art of compromise and patience were definite tests but I do love a 'growth opportunity'!
Homestay North Costa Rica
 |
| Sophia my lovely host in a VERY humid village near Nicaragua border |
 |
| Village hall - typical of most villages |
 |
| Cocoa bean pestle and mortar that most homes have |
 |
| Mini waterfall after first sloth sighting (pics are too rubbish to share - better ones below!) |
 |
| The standard cafetiere approach of CR |
 |
| Helping to make tortillas (and many other dishes we enjoyed that night) |
La Fortuna: Sloths in the Mist
 |
| Pink bananas |
 |
| Ullswater? No Lago Arenal (under the volcano we never saw) |
 |
| Coatis everywhere - but where are the sloths? |
Monteverde cloud forest
There's not many cloud forests left in the world so this was such a treat. The weather cleared as we arrived and we got our first taste of the fauna big guns!
 |
| Rainbows everywhere in a cloud forest! |
 |
| Hard to capture the vistas en-route to Monteverde! |
 |
| CROCS!!! (see below) |
 |
| First of many multi-coloured and sized hummingbirds (not taken by me)! |
 |
| Sunset from our hotel |
 |
| Armadillo by the road |
 |
| Red Macaw |
 |
| Our gang of Canadians, Spanish, Americans and Brits |
Tribute to Guatemala - finally saw the Quetzal
|
|
|
 |
Maritime-meandering!A long old ride took us back the heat and humidity of Manuel Antonio - probably the most famous part of Costa Rica where sloths, monkeys, birdlife and sealife abound.
I couldn't capture THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BEACH IN THE WORLD (rated again and again by National Geographic) so the last one above is plagiarised to give an idea of how amazing it is. I'm so grateful to have swam and walked this beach surrounded by monkeys, pelicans, iguanas - Robinson Crusoe!
Local cooking class
Back to civilization
Last coffee stop at Teatro National back in San Jose
And now....I'm writing this at SJO airport having had to buy an early last-minute flight to UK (another long story!) but reflecting on the last month I'd say Central America has been a 'grower'. I've felt increasingly at home here - my tour group even described me as 'the translator' so defs progress on the Spanish. It's been easier than many places I've travelled in but it's also reaffirmed my heart is in Africa as I don't get the 'feels' in the same way. Very much out of my comfort zone and felt like I've not relaxed much as always thinking logistics, staying safe and on top of things - but that's what I look for in life generally - a bit of risk and adventure! Video extras!
|
Comments
Post a Comment