Saturday, April 3, 2010
Feb 23 Day 56
Border Crossing Day! Always confusing, too much traffic, too long lines, too hot! Today's crossing took 3 hours 47 minutes... We need to get the drivers and vehicles out of the country, then the passengers. Then some official comes along with our staff in tow to check the licence plates and vin numbers against the paperwork that we fill out. If and when it all matches, we get inspected, sometime verbally and sometimes literally. Then we are fumegated. And the process is repeated to get us into the next country... So now we are in Panama! Camping tonight in a "Price Smart" parking lot.. We got guest cards and were able to shop. Bought a bottle of Jack and a pizza!
Feb 22 Day 55
Free Day! No traveling, no tours....a good day for just hanging out, visiting, reading, swimming , and crafting. Lu Ann, our wagon mistress, continued to teach some T shirt and scarf techniques to dress up some of the T's we had purchased.... adding beads, fringing and braiding the hems. Got to see it to love it!
The resturant was featuring a Japanese theme and the food was fantastic! Served by a guy dressed in appropriate costume.
The resturant was featuring a Japanese theme and the food was fantastic! Served by a guy dressed in appropriate costume.
Feb 21 Day 54
Left San Jose today.... 8 am on a Sunday morning driving through the city should have been an easy cruise thru town but....we ran into the middle of a 10K heading in the same direction we were going. So with the spectaters, the water stations, and the traffic control folks we were in the middle of a mess! When we finally cleared the city we started a 40 mile climb to 11,000. ft and guess what....we encountered bicyclers out for a Sunday ride up hill...we passed 52 as we wound our way up the mountain. The downhill ride was 9000 ft in 40 miles...really hard on the heavy rigs but only one had braking problems.....
It was a beautiful drive...winding roads, great vistas!
Arrived at our next campsite, a soccar field behind the Hotel del Sur, in San Isidro late afternoon to find a fair in progress in the fairgrounds next door to the hotel. And the heavy medal music and gales of laughter continued well into the night!
The hotel is lovely-swimming pool, dining room, and game/ craft area, all outside but shaded. After all we are back in hot, humid air again!
It was a beautiful drive...winding roads, great vistas!
Arrived at our next campsite, a soccar field behind the Hotel del Sur, in San Isidro late afternoon to find a fair in progress in the fairgrounds next door to the hotel. And the heavy medal music and gales of laughter continued well into the night!
The hotel is lovely-swimming pool, dining room, and game/ craft area, all outside but shaded. After all we are back in hot, humid air again!
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Day 53 Feb 20
We didn't start out too good today.... our 2 drivers had something for dinner last night that did not agree with them so they had a lousy night. The driver of my car had fallen in the night and hit her head so she had a blooming headache. After medicating and breakfast we loaded into the vehicles and headed to the hot springs..... a fellow traveller at the hotel told us how to get to the free hot spring the Costa Ricans go to instead of paying the $70 tourists get charged. And did we have fun..... then we split up and drove home on our own......
We had a craft class this afternoon...how to decorate a T shirt by cutting into it and adding beads or braiding the sleeves and hem....Walked to a Chinese resturant for dinner with a few others and spent the evening writing. Now I am caught up with the blogging.
We had a craft class this afternoon...how to decorate a T shirt by cutting into it and adding beads or braiding the sleeves and hem....Walked to a Chinese resturant for dinner with a few others and spent the evening writing. Now I am caught up with the blogging.
Day 52 Feb 19
Today was a free day and we, 6 of us tookoff to see the Arenal Volcano We had 2 vehicles and stayed together. Drove through a cloud forest, couldn't see 2 feet in front of your face. Arrived in La Fortuna about noon and decided to find a hotel before sightseeing. The Arenal Volcano Observatory Lodge was our first choice and after 10 killometers of washed out road we found they were full up....so back down the same washboard road halfway to a turn off to Another place that fortunately had 2 rooms left so we grabbed them...one for the girls and one for the guys! After driving those horrible roads we decided not to sightsee. We lunched and swam and hiked and read and prayed the evening would clear so we could see the magnificent Arenal Volcano. It didn't and We didn't!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Days 49,50,and 51 Feb 16,17,and 18
We have had a very busy and long 3 days....
Tuesday we were picked up by the bus at 6:30 and taken east across the mountains. While riding along we learned a new greeting-Pura Vida. It literally means Pure Life but it's used as a greeting similar to Hi, How're you or How are things.....
We stopped at a favorite eatery and were served a typical Costa Rican breakfast of rice and beans, fried eggs, sausages, fruit and coffee.....then back on the bus and off the tarred roads, for a 2 hour drive, through Banana Plantations to get a boat to take us up a canal into the Tortugero National Pk, to an exclusive resort for a frog and butterfly walk and lunch. We were introduced to some amazing toads....a tiny(baby finger nail size) red toad and a bigger (thumb size) green toad that sits on the under side of a leaf, completely invisible, until he moves and then you see his red eyes and red toes....so cute!!! Another froggy is called a blue jean frog because he has blue hind legs and an orange upper half. As you might have guessed, I like frogs and toads....
The boat ride was long, about 1 1/2 hrs but there was lots to see...monkeys, alligater, many birds....warblers, egrits, and heron. We didn't get back until 8 pm.
On Wednesday, we hopped on the bus at 8 and had a bit of a city tour, the main attraction was the Opera House and a Museum that is housed in a fort that has bullet holes in the outside walls from some seige.... the museum was very good...explaining the history of Costa Rica. Then we were off to the rainforest and lunch(beans and rice, chicken, and fruit,) and a tram ride over the canopy.....pouring rain and wonderful...each buggy had room for 5 passengers and a guide. The guide was great and pointed out all the plants that are used for medicinal purposes as well as the multitude of other indiginous plants.... There were not too many birds because of the rain but we did see one hummingbird...blue and purple, and a bunch of warblers flitting in an enormous tree. It's amazing but our entire group was laughing and completely saturated at the end of the ride. We ended the trip to the rainforest unexpectantly by taking a small shuttle bus to the river and then walking across a swinging bridge to another small bus to get to our large coach bus. Because the river had risen so high it was over the road......that's how hard it was raining!!! We stopped at a grocery store on the way back into the city and I bought bacon.....the first we've had since Texas! So ofcourse Supper was bacon and eggs.....next it'll be BLT's!
Thursdsay, we were back on the bus at 8....this time on our way to the coffee plantations for a tour and a chance to buy coffee beans and other souveniers. We are spending too much time on this bus! Next we were hurried off to see the Poas Volcano, ofcourse it was pouring rain and we hiked about 30 minutes round trip to see the place where we should be able to view the second largest active volcano. We are now cold and wet and back on the bus to the LaPaz Waterfall Gardens. The trip was very exciting because part of the road had washed out and was very curvy and we are in a very large motor coach.....at one point we were hussled to the back of the bus so the driver could raise the front up enough to get around some boulders. The rain continued to pour while we ate lunch and then we had 45 minutes to either hike to the waterfalls or to walk thru the animal and insect section....I chose the animal walk and the cats, panther, oselot, cougars were beautiful, the frogs, snakes, and birds were great but best of all was the butterfly room! Butterflies of all colors everywhere...flitting all around, over and under us. You had to be careful not to step on one. Back on the bus and the long ride back to the campground.... The trip was too much to see, or not see, in one day and the wet and cold didn't help.... and then we got scolded for not keeping to the time schedule...Whose schedule??? Oh well!
Tuesday we were picked up by the bus at 6:30 and taken east across the mountains. While riding along we learned a new greeting-Pura Vida. It literally means Pure Life but it's used as a greeting similar to Hi, How're you or How are things.....
We stopped at a favorite eatery and were served a typical Costa Rican breakfast of rice and beans, fried eggs, sausages, fruit and coffee.....then back on the bus and off the tarred roads, for a 2 hour drive, through Banana Plantations to get a boat to take us up a canal into the Tortugero National Pk, to an exclusive resort for a frog and butterfly walk and lunch. We were introduced to some amazing toads....a tiny(baby finger nail size) red toad and a bigger (thumb size) green toad that sits on the under side of a leaf, completely invisible, until he moves and then you see his red eyes and red toes....so cute!!! Another froggy is called a blue jean frog because he has blue hind legs and an orange upper half. As you might have guessed, I like frogs and toads....
The boat ride was long, about 1 1/2 hrs but there was lots to see...monkeys, alligater, many birds....warblers, egrits, and heron. We didn't get back until 8 pm.
On Wednesday, we hopped on the bus at 8 and had a bit of a city tour, the main attraction was the Opera House and a Museum that is housed in a fort that has bullet holes in the outside walls from some seige.... the museum was very good...explaining the history of Costa Rica. Then we were off to the rainforest and lunch(beans and rice, chicken, and fruit,) and a tram ride over the canopy.....pouring rain and wonderful...each buggy had room for 5 passengers and a guide. The guide was great and pointed out all the plants that are used for medicinal purposes as well as the multitude of other indiginous plants.... There were not too many birds because of the rain but we did see one hummingbird...blue and purple, and a bunch of warblers flitting in an enormous tree. It's amazing but our entire group was laughing and completely saturated at the end of the ride. We ended the trip to the rainforest unexpectantly by taking a small shuttle bus to the river and then walking across a swinging bridge to another small bus to get to our large coach bus. Because the river had risen so high it was over the road......that's how hard it was raining!!! We stopped at a grocery store on the way back into the city and I bought bacon.....the first we've had since Texas! So ofcourse Supper was bacon and eggs.....next it'll be BLT's!
Thursdsay, we were back on the bus at 8....this time on our way to the coffee plantations for a tour and a chance to buy coffee beans and other souveniers. We are spending too much time on this bus! Next we were hurried off to see the Poas Volcano, ofcourse it was pouring rain and we hiked about 30 minutes round trip to see the place where we should be able to view the second largest active volcano. We are now cold and wet and back on the bus to the LaPaz Waterfall Gardens. The trip was very exciting because part of the road had washed out and was very curvy and we are in a very large motor coach.....at one point we were hussled to the back of the bus so the driver could raise the front up enough to get around some boulders. The rain continued to pour while we ate lunch and then we had 45 minutes to either hike to the waterfalls or to walk thru the animal and insect section....I chose the animal walk and the cats, panther, oselot, cougars were beautiful, the frogs, snakes, and birds were great but best of all was the butterfly room! Butterflies of all colors everywhere...flitting all around, over and under us. You had to be careful not to step on one. Back on the bus and the long ride back to the campground.... The trip was too much to see, or not see, in one day and the wet and cold didn't help.... and then we got scolded for not keeping to the time schedule...Whose schedule??? Oh well!
Day 48 Feb 15
Free day today... I took off with another couple in their small rig for a trip to the west or pacific coast. It was a beautiful drive on very narrow winding roads with great vistas right and left. At the coast we made our way south toward the town of Jaco and found a free beach so we played in the huge waves....quite a strong undertow. Had a picnic lunch and decided to drive north to find another beach. We checked in at the Best Western about swimming at their beach but they wanted $30 american per person which included lunch....we thought that was a bit steep. And we checked on another resort, Puerto Leona and they wanted $50. each. Continuing north, we arrived at the Port of Caldera, there were tankers and a cruise ship sitting in the harbor. We found a nice swimming beach, stopped and enjoyed some time there in the water.....arrived back at the campsite after dark, exhausted.
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