Our journey from La Pavona takes us through the capital of San Jose via a good, tarmac highway which climbs and climbs until our ears pop. From glimpses we think the views must be stunning, forested hill-and-mountain-sides, but they are obscured by cloud until we reach San Jose. After that, another good tarmac highway with tolls but very slow moving traffic: nowhere is the speed limit higher than 80 ks an hour and progress feels slow, if more scenic as the clouds clear and the sun comes out, and we drive through high rolling hills towards the pacific coast
We stop in Tarcoles at the famous “crocodile bridge” to peer into the murky depths of Rio Grande de Tarcoles below, and spot a couple of whoppers in the water, easily as big as their Australian cousins seen in Kakadu last August, and a few smaller ones sunning themselves on the bank
Our guide book says that feeding the crocodiles is strictly prohibited but locals keep them in this area – to support tours by boat and shops on the bridge selling souvenirs – by throwing them frozen chicken. This is a highly credible story from their size!
The standout moment on Tarcoles bridge however is two scarlet macaws flying between a couple of trees, screeching their presence. We are headed to a hotel on the edge of Carara National Park specifically to see these magnificent birds so we are very excited!
Our accommodation, a “luxury villa” in a hotel complex of a very few cabins/villas, is a delight, with a private pool and magnificent decks from which to watch wildlife. The effervescent owner Patricia, from Colombia but a local of 20 years, is an equal delight and tells us macaws are nesting behind the villa but she cannot point out where as she is “no good about birds”
The villa is up a steep hill, a good distance on foot from any restaurants, and has excellent facilities so we decide to self cater at least tonight. A supermarket shop and an evening of cooking, eating, drinking, swimming and star watching follows. It’s a good life!
The national park opens at 7 a.m. Caroline and Simon decide not to join us on a guided tour but rather check out the wildlife from the villa decks. Andy and I head off and as we pull up at the park gate six, then four, then two red macaws fly overhead looking magnificent in the early morning light against a deep blue sky – too quick for us to even attempt to photograph, but a great memory
We meet (perhaps more accurately are accosted by) a local guide, Maurice and agree to engage him to guide us through the park for a couple of hours. Our fabulous experience with Elberth has reinforced how helpful local knowledge is in showing us things we would not normally see. In fact we see no more macaws but what we do see, including bats, Mot Mot, woodpecker are all fascinating
Maurice in his past lived in Newcastle for eight moths and still supports the Magpies. He and Andy chat about their recent performance and exchange greetings in Geordie. Maurice is almost Julio Geordio . . . (with thanks to Paul Whitehouse for the original)
We return to our villa and meet Caroline and Simon carrying our breakfast up the hill, thoughtfully organized by Patricia as we were at the park during service. A beautifully indolent day sees us do little more than swim and have binoculars to our eyes, watching some howler monkeys in the canopy. Simon and Caroline saw macaws when they were first up but there are no further sightings
It is our 6th/36th anniversary so we have a celebratory meal at a fish restaurant on a nearby beach, with a magnificent sunset (thanks for driving Simon!)
The following morning Andy is woken by scarlet macaws screeching and sure enough there are two pairs who seem to be in nests (in tree-holes) outside the window of our bedroom. We wake Simon and Caroline and all watch them from the bedroom deck and then the living room deck as they fly round to the side of the villa from the rear. They are stunning and we are all captivated
While we are packing up howler monkeys – who knows if they are the same ones we saw yesterday – are in the tree tops near the villa
We head south along the coastal road, a few kilometres beyond Uvita, to an AirBnB house which is home for the next three nights.
It is an extraordinary place, the front elevation has glazing but its sides and rear are only netted above wooden walls of about three feet. There is one bedroom on the upper floor reached by a bridge from a mezzanine floor which provides two other huge, if public, sleeping areas. The photographs probably do not do it justice but give you some idea
It is located off a rough, unpaved road, with one other rental property and the caretaker’s house in an area of trees and has a boardwalk to the beach
Again, quite distant from eateries and in such a splendid location we self cater all three nights. Caroline is pretty much responsible for the excellent meals, Andy and I prep and cook a few bits; Simon clears up. It is great, eating on the terrace breakfast, lunch and dinner
We have variable weather, our arrival and first full day are hot and sunny but after dinner drinking on the terrace is interrupted by torrential and sudden rain and we rush to bring everything under cover
Our second full day and the morning we leave are overcast. But we read, walk, wildlife watch. We see many squadrons of pelicans flying over, watch frigate birds and herons, swim in the sea (or at least bob in the waves) every day
The beach is a magnificent sweep of sea and sand, the house is protected by a high pebble retaining wall which runs for a few hundred meters
At the northern end of “our” beach is a forested promontory and a footpath through it leads to the southernmost beach within the Ballena marine national park. The landscape is very different – the beach is backed by towering cliffs. There is a stark beauty to it. At other times of the year you can see whales migrating north
Francisco, the caretaker, calls in daily, we think because he so enjoys having Caroline and her excellent Spanish to ease his communications. I do not know how but we seem to get in a scriptures/saints/Catholicism loop. Simon and I disengage leaving Caroline and Andy to it . . . . It reminds me of Sanpath’s desire to educate us in the way of Buddha and Buddhism in Sri Lanka. Ah but of course, I haven’t yet shared that trip with you!
We have all grown fond of the beach house and could happily spend a few more days here but we need to move on, to San Jose as Caroline and Simon are leaving from there
We retrace our steps towards San Jose, stopping off in Manuel Antonio, really checking it out for a future visit (young, vibrant, surfy, full of bars and restaurants and home to many sloths which fail to reveal themselves to us) and then picnic on last night’s leftovers
The sun is out and the road still scenic, good and slow. We are staying in a charming low level small hotel in a district on the edge of the city: Escazu. The hotel terrace and pool overlook the city and as dusk falls it begins to twinkle. It is a good view
The security at the hotel is big: locked iron gates, bars on every window, a night watchman. And as we drive to it, Simon points out that every garden/compound/enclosure is ringed with substantial iron fencing/panels and razor wire. How bad is crime in this city?
A consultation with the evening receptionist, Ivan, leads us to dinner at a highly recommended local restaurant via Uber, which is alive and well in San Jose if not elsewhere in Costa Rica and is incredibly cheap. Dinner – and cocktails – are good and substantial (a doggy bag is taken for the hotel’s dog) but we are surprised wine is only available by airline – style individual bottles each of a glass’ worth. It is clearly not the local drink of choice
The following morning we Uber into the centre of San Jose, Caroline in the front seat conversing with the driver until the absence of control pedals renders her silent. There is a lot of loose lane-observance, cutting in and no-one seems clear about priorities at junctions (there are no give way signs) but we arrive unscathed. we have a juice and coffee at the cafe in the Teatro Nacional, one of San Jose’s most important historic buildings- based on the Paris Opera House. A group of men at the adjacent table were discussing and occasionally singing tango
After a mooch round the artisanal craft market we Uber back to the hotel for Caroline and Simon to prepare for their journey home to Downton, Wiltshire (not the one of the TV series)
It starts pouring with rain as they leave for the airport, our taxi service rendered redundant by Al, the day time receptionist, driving them there for $15, saving us a 90+ minute round trip through crazy drivers. We are sad to see them go, but happy not to be leaving with them
Until next time, hasta luego
ALISON
PS: this map shows our route from Arenal to San Jose, the subject of this and the preceding blog
Fascinating…take up travel writingfor a living!