San Jose, Costa Rica

 Well all good things come to an end they say and this was our last day of what had been a fantastic trip.  We were heading to San Jose, the capital city of Costa Rica, where we would catch our flights home.  But the trip wasn't quite over, we still had some sight seeing to do.

First off we were going to a restaurant and cooking school to learn how to make empanadas which we would have for breakfast. The restaurant was in a very pretty tropical spot and the lesson was a fun activity.

Making empanadas for breakfast (Photo from Marina)

Our journey then continued over winding roads, through thickly forested hills and valleys and past well maintained farms. We stopped briefly at a cafe high on a hill where much to my delight they had an uncaged pet toucan sitting on the counter, close enough to touch.  This was the only one we had seen on the whole trip through Costa Rica.   

 When we arrived in San Jose 2 hours later we were met by massive traffic congestion and it was only 1.30pm. We crawled into the city, dropped our luggage at the very smart Hotel Autentico and then were driven into the central city for a walking tour with Nestor, our guide.  Nestor had warned us that this was a dangerous city with prolific pick pocketing, muggings and a huge crack drug problem.  He spoke from the experience of past trips and asked us to stay very close to him and remain as a group. We all felt a bit anxious.  I don't know whether it was the warnings from Nestor or my imagination but I really did not like this city and would never want to return. We did see some attractive buildings and statues and found a very pleasant cafe for coffee but there just seemed to be an edgy vibe to the place.

The National Museum of Costa Rica

  

We walked the 3ks back to our hotel, relaxed, showered, repacked our bags before heading to the restaurant for our farewell dinner.  Marina, one of our group, had prepared an excellent speech and we all felt a bit sad to be saying farewell to our new friends who in all probability we will never see again.  The next morning, very early, I left for the airport and by the end of the day so had all but one of our group.  This was my third trip with Intrepid Tours and I highly recommend them.  Everything went like clockwork, our activities were great and we were particularly blessed to share it with a lovely group of people.

Our last night together with the flags of all the countries we visited
Photo by our guide, Nestor

So  this was a wonderful trip visiting countries that were new to me.  I enjoyed the generosity and warmth of the people, the culture, the history, the scenery and the food of Central America. My favourite country was El Salvador and my favourite location was the town of Suchitoto in El Salvador. I hate to say this but I'm being honest here, my least favourite country was Costa Rica and my least favourite town was San Jose. My reasons being that Costa Rica is very touristy, the famed wild life is hard to find, the weather is cold and rainy in the mountainous areas, well at least it was while we were there, and the people seem to lack the warmth we had found elsewhere.  But please don't take my word for it, this was simply my experience.

Costa Rica - We get to see Wildlife

Photo by Marina Weidner

 On our second morning in Monteverde we went to the Ecological Cloud Forest Park for a guided tour.  It was drizzly at the start of our hike but soon stopped raining and became a thoroughly enjoyable walk through this pristine, tropical, cloud forest covering 10,193 acres.   We had an excellent guide who pointed out all sorts of  plants, wildlife and trees, including an enormous strangler fig.  Along the way we spotted a variety of bugs, lizards, a tarantula in the undergrowth and a couple of venomous snakes lurking on branches overhead. Some of the trees were massive and ancient and the bush was lush, dense and aromatic.

The pathways are well marked, easy to negotiate with one track leading down to a pretty waterfall in a valley.  We enjoyed the ambiance by the waterfall and were reluctant to make our way back out of this beautiful park.   I would recommend this tour and suggest that if you have time to do only one Cloud Forest walk  do this one, that is unless the idea of the suspended bridges appeals to you.

Our happy crew and forest guide at the waterfall.  

At the exit of the trail is a humming bird sanctuary.  I had never seen these tiny, busy birds before.  What a delightful and mesmerising sight they were as they flitted about and drank nectar from hanging feeders, their emerald green feathers glistening in the sun. With wings that beat 50 times per second and the ability to fly forwards, backwards, sideways, up, down and even upside down they are a fascinating bird.

It was then time to head off to our next destination, La Fortuna.  The drive offered us magnificent vistas of verdant hills and valleys but the road was terrible, pot holed and winding with very steep downhill sections.  The last part of our drive was especially bad, a rutted, deeply pot holed gravel driveway which lead us to the tiny ferry which would carry us 40 minutes across a  man made lake to our new transport waiting on the other side.  

Right:  Clambering aboard the tiny ferry bound for La Fortuna

It was an hour and a half to our accommodation on a surprisingly excellent road. We passed the active, but quiet at the moment, Arenal volcano (1633mtrs - 5358ft) and the myriad of luxury hotels clustered near its foot.  These were the most glamorous hotels we had seen anywhere on the trip, but we weren't staying there.  Our accommodation was at the very pleasant Hotel lavas del Arenal, a bit further out of town than we had hoped to be.

Many in our group were longing to see sloths never having seen one before, me not so much because I had seen them before, nevertheless I thought it would be good to see them in the wild.  I was a bit taken aback when the next morning a guide led us through people's backyards in the middle of town searching for sloths, not at all the forested area we expected. He did find a few but they were so far up tall trees they were hard to see, fortunately he had a magnifying scope which we all used in turn  to get clear views of these slow moving, sleepy creatures. As we were ending the tour we were lucky enough to spot a baby sloth nestled in a tree close to ground. So totally cute, it made the search worthwhile.

Right at the end of the main street of La Fortuna was a grassy area where a number of large iguana were dining on fruit and vegetables left by park keepers. I suspect these large lizards had been transported to that site for the benefit of tourists. So we did get to see some of Costa Rica's famous wildlife  albeit not where we expected to see it.

La Fortuna is a pleasant enough town, although very touristy, more expensive and without the charm and culture of many of the other places we had visited on this trip. Back at our accommodation we enjoyed great hospitality and a generous barbequed meal put on by the hotel.  Plate after plate of meat, plantain, chicken, salads etc were laid before us amid an evening of great conversation.  This was one of the best meals of our trip.  At $20US each it was extremely good value.

  

Costa Rica - Cloud Forest

 Costa Rica is famous as an ideal place to view unique wildlife so we were all keen to sample what it had to offer.  For our first foray  we booked a two hour walking tour of the eight swing bridges in the cloud forest. We were hoping to see some of Costa Rica's famed wildlife.  To be honest we didn't see as much wild life as we expected but the walk was enjoyable and interesting nonetheless. 

High above the forest floor

Cloud forests are an unusual phenomenom.  They occur in high altitudes where there is constant humidity enabling the vegetation to capture water from the clouds. The humidity occurs when warm air combines with cool mountain temperatures making the forest the ideal place for orchids, ferns. mosses and bromeliads to grow.

Photos above: Left, believe it or not that is a well camouflaged insect. On the right one of many tiny orchids.  Both photos by Thomas Bauer

Our guide showed us various plants and insects along the way.  I found the strangler fig vine fascinating. We were shown several examples of its malicious work.  The strangler fig wraps itself around a perfectly healthy tree and literally squeezes it to death. Seeds of the strangler are dropped into the canopy of the tree and the fig grows downwards entwining the tree in a latticed cage. The tree rots away and the fig remains self supporting. Despite its dire work the strangler fig is valued for its fruit which is a source of food for bats, reptiles, mammals and insects.

Above: Two photos of the Strangler Fig.  On the left the intricate framework it uses to strangle a tree.  On the right looking up through the centre of where the tree used to be

The beauty of this walk, and one of its key features, is the eight bridges you traverse high in the trees enabling you to experience the cloud forest in an intimate way. Some of the bridges are as high as 164ft (50mtrs) above the forest floor and the longest bridge is 984ft (300mtrs) long making it  a really immersive experience.  The 1.7ml (3k) walk is generally flat and not strenuous so it is suitable for most levels of fitness. 

 We paid $55US for a guide but you could just as easily do the walk by yourself.  If you do you may not get to see some of the finer details we were shown, though.

Costa Rica - Well That was a Border Crossing!

 Another early start and we were off to the  Costa Rica border, passing farmers busily working in their banana, sugar cane and  crop plantations. Occasionally we passed loaded horsedrawn carts and large groups of workmen tidying the well groomed verges. 

We made a brief stop at a small beach, Playa la Virgien, it was dismal with black sand, lots of litter, grey seas with choppy waves rolling in and vultures on the beach eating dead birds.  Not pleasant and a shame that this was our last stop in Nicaragua, a country we had all enjoyed. 

Vultures on the beach at Playa la Virgien

At the  Nicaragua/Costa Rica border we unloaded our luggage from the bus and towed our bags to the border check point. We had been told we would need $1US to pay a bureaucrat there but he was absent that day so there was nothing to pay. Hmm, interesting! 

From the checkpoint it was a couple of hundred metres walk to the Nicaragua border control where we had our passports stamped and paid the $3US leaving tax. After having our luggage scanned we set off to walk to the Costa Rica border control. It was at least half a kilometre towing our luggage along the foot path. We looked like a bunch of illegal immigrants attempting to enter Costa Rica on foot! The Costa Rican passport control office is smart and modern, and it didn't take long to be processed  and then, would you believe, another long walk to our new bus and driver for our Costa Rica part of the trip.

Right above and below:  We trudged and we trudged                                                       Both photos by Amanda Schofield

Phew, that had been a good work out so were grateful to finally  board our bus and set off into Costa Rica. It was immediately obvious that this is a more affluent country than the other Central American countries we had visited. The farms are large and well maintained  and there are more good quality houses but I couldn't say the same for the road we travelled. There are speed limits in  Costa Rica but  our driver seemed to have his own ideas as to what they were, belting over potholes and careering around the corners of the winding, hilly road. It felt a bit like being on a roller coast as we bounced over bumps,  so much so that my FitBit was registering them as steps. It didn't take long for a few of us to feel decidedly queasy.  

At last we stopped  at a cafe on the top of a hill with a magnificent  view out over lush rolling, green hills, fields and valleys and stayed there just long enough to settle our stomachs.

Verdant Costa Rica    Photo by Thomas Bauer

When it's wet and windy, play cards.

Our accommodation was in the small town of Monteverde.  Monterverde was established by a group of American Quakers fleeing the US draft for the Korean war.  It is a plain little town full of tour companies and, to be honest, not particularly attractive, but it is the starting point for many of the wild life tours Costa Rica is famous for. The weather had turned wet and windy and, being in the mountains it was much colder than the other countries we had been to.  Our group, which had become like a harmonious family got together to play cards. Our patient fellow traveller, Amanda, tried to teach us an Australian card game called Rickety Kate, suffice to say we were useless and never got the hang of it but there was lots of laughter and fun nevertheless. 

Later we headed down the long steep hill for dinner in the township.  The restaurant was very attractive, built around a large tree it is aptly named The Tree House.  We had a very enjoyable evening eating good food and listening to live jazz before heading back up hill to sleep our first night in Costa Rica.

 

Granada, Nicaragua - a Pretty Colonial Town

 Two things stood out on our bus trip from Leon to Granada.  Firstly the number of farmers we saw working their land, which, to be honest looked pretty tough, scrubby land to make a living from, and secondly the large number of furniture shops lining the road, side by side for at least a kilometre, all selling exactly the same furniture.

Apoyo Lagoon Photo by Thomas Bauer

We stopped briefly at Santa Caterina for a panoramic view of  Apoyo Lagoon, a spectacular volcanic crater lake, beside the Mombacho volcano.  We also took a stroll through the large craft market nearby although the stall keepers seemed more interested in sleeping than selling!

Hard at work

Granada is pretty and colourful.  Founded by the Spanish in the early 1500s it has a colonial feel to it.  The buildings are  painted in an array of bright colours, even the huge cathedral is a vibrant yellow, which gives the town a joyful feeling. We enjoyed a wander around the town and through the lovely main square before dinner.

Antonio Prieto

The next morning we were booked on a day tour and our first stop was at an amazing facility run almost entirely by the deaf.  We met the founder,  Antonio Prieto, a truly good and inspirational man, who gave us a talk about how he arrived as a visitor from Spain and on seeing how little was offered by way of assistance to the hearing impaired set about providing that assistance himself.  He set up a workshop to teach them the useful trade of weaving hammocks and other woven objects, he also set up a school and a cafe which the hearing impaired run and where we had breakfast.  Antonio is a very special man who came to Nicaragua simply as a tourist and has stayed there making this his life's work. This was a most uplifting start to our day.

Sign language on the cafe wall to help you order.

Our second stop was at the Iglesia de La Merced to climb up the tight, narrow winding stairs of the bell tower for a view over the town.  The climb was worth it, the views were excellent.

A drive through town led us to the lake's edge where horses and cows were grazing freely.  We were going on a cruise on Lake Cocibolca. Our small boat threaded its way through pretty wooded inlets, under shady trees and around a number of islands. It is said that there are 365 islands on this enormous lake.  Some are home to the large, ornate mansions of the very wealthy and some are home to small shacks owned by poor fishermen. Along the way we spotted a variety of birds and even some monkeys living on a tiny island.

Photos by Thomas Bauer

Laguna Resort was our location for lunch and there we had the option of kayaking or swimming but the day was closing in and the rain became persistent.   Fortunately they have a bar in a small cabana overlooking the lake where we sheltered, had lunch and drank rum punch.  We had the most brilliant time, singing along to the pop songs playing in the bar, laughing and joking and generally having fun.  It was great.  A man at the bar enjoyed our antics so much he gave us a tip and wanted his photo taken with us. Sometimes a change of plan can make for the best experience ever and this was one of them.

Fun times drinking rum punch and singing along to pop songs 
 Photo by Amanda Schofield

But we couldn't stay there forever, we had more to see and do, so we headed off to view an active volcano. After a walk on the lower slopes, and fortunately not seeing any rattle snakes or boa constrictors that live there, we waited an hour for the gates of the road up to the volcano to open. It was worth the wait, what a sight!  Staring down into the swirling red of the crater was like looking into the depths of hell.  Amazing and spectacular.

The fiery depths of an active volcano  Photo by Thomas Bauer

This had been a fantastic day packed with diverse activities but it wasn't over yet.  Back at our hotel, Hotel con Corona, we were treated to what I thought was the best meal of the trip beautifully cooked and served. 

Salsa Lesson at Hotel con Corona Photo from Video by Thomas Bauer

To top the day off the hotel had organised a dance instructor to come in especially for our group to teach us salsa. A small group of us took advantage of this and before long had mastered the few simple steps.  Some of the staff joined in and told us that they had never had so much fun on the job.  It was enjoyable but hot work so after 40 minutes we called it a day and headed off to bed, tired but happy after another great day in Central America.

We Arrive in Nicaragua

How do I complete
this form?

 No sleep and a 4am departure time made us a pretty exhausted group of travellers heading to the Nicaragua border.  We dozed on the bus as much as we could during the four hour journey, only waking for a breakfast stop along the way. The border exit for El Salvador was in a small office near the boat harbour at the city of La Union. We were all confused by the documents we had to fill out which were in Spanish only but with the help of our guide, Nestor, we managed to get the job done.

Documents completed and then a walk down the jetty to the boat which would take us across the gulf of Fonesca to Nicaragua.  The crossing took one and a half hours and, as luck would have it, especially after last night's storm, the sea was like glass. Our small boat skimmed across the water at high speed while we enjoyed the views of various islands along the way. 

 It was quite a strange entry into a new country.  Our boat pulled into a deserted bay at Potosi, anchoring off shore, so we had to wade in, no trouble to we Intrepid travellers, though. 

Wading ashore on arrival in Nicaragua (Photo by Thomas Bauer)

Fortunately a porter appeared to carry our luggage.  We were in awe of his strength as he carried three suitcases at a time. Apart from the porter there was nobody around.  Eventually a customs and immigration official sauntered out of a nearby office to complete our documentation at a small table by the beach. So now we were in Nicaragua, the fourth country of our trip.

After loading up a new bus we were on our way to the city of Leon, stopping briefly for lunch at a roadside buffet.  Hotel Real, was very pleasant and on a street within easy walking distance of the city centre and square.  Once settled in Nestor took us on an orientation walk.  I love the way all the places we have been to so far have vibrant city squares where people congregate just to chat and catch up. They sure are proud of their revolutionaries in Nicaragua, large portraits of them line the attractive main square and the street leading into it. 

Pictures of Nicaragua's revolutionaries lining the street

The next morning we went on a walking tour of the city, advertised as free but requiring a $10US tip!  It was well worth it, though.  Our articulate English speaking guide told us of the revolutionary history of Nicaragua pointed out many things of interest and took us to the university where pretty much all of the country's writers, poets and historians had studied. Next it was on to the food market where for only $2US each we got to try a wide variety of traditional food and drink.  This was great and the food was nothing like the fried, greasy food we have encountered a lot along the way. As we were leaving a cafe where we had had coffee with others on the tour the skies opened to torrential rain flooding the gutters but it was a brief downpour.

Amanda Schofield made this fabulous collage of her photos
of our trip to the Leon Market 

Later that afteroon several of us went to the cathedral to climb up very narrow stairs to the roof for views over the city and great views they were too. A number of volcanoes could be seen in the distance.

On the roof of the  World Heritage listed Leon Cathedral. 
(Photo by Thomas Bauer)

On the roof of the Cathedral. Volcano in the background
Words say "God save our Church" Nicaragua has many earthquakes.

As we were walking to a restaurant for dinner Marina and I stopped to chat to a couple who were sitting in rocking chairs on their doorstep right on the street, watching people passing by. They were very friendly and keen to talk. We were invited in to have a look at their home.  It was absolutely magnificent, like a palace, furnished with beautifully carved Spanish furniture. 

Who would have thought that this would exist behind an ordinary door right on the footpath. A Catholic family, they had huge religious paintings and statues decorating the walls and ledges. The woman proudly told us she never cooks, their live-in maid does the cooking.  Such a lovely lady, well turned out, friendly and delighted to show us her beautiful home.  Meeting locals is one of my favourite things about travel and this was a highlight of our time in Leon.

San Salvador and the Pacific Coast

 Our driver dropped us off at Captain Gerardo Barrios Plaza, the main square of San Salvador,  and gave us three hours to explore the central city.  The square is bounded by an enormous new library, funded by the Chinese, (they are everywhere), the Cathedral of San Salvador and the Presidential Palace.   Our first stop was at the library where we were amused by the fact that bags are searched for pens, apparently a banned item in the library.  Very strange but they must have their reasons.  The library is impressive with a vast central atrium and many areas for community groups to gather.  There was a preschool area, a childrens reading area, meeting places for a wide range of groups, computer areas etc.  We particularly enjoyed the views of the city from the high library balconies.

Library of San Salvador

Across the square we visited the Cathedral, busy with worshippers in the late morning, and then descended into the crypt to view the tomb of Saint Oscar Romero assassinated during the El Salvador civil war.  It is a sombre place.  Near the tomb are a series of photos taken of his body in the aftermath of his murder.  They are graphic and confronting and a reminder of the futility and horrors of war. 

Tomb of St Oscar Romero, martyred for supporting the poor.

Out in the daylight and a walk through the very pretty Presidential Gardens beside the palace, followed by a quick stop at a modern air conditioned coffee shop for refreshments and we were on the road again heading to the Pacific Coast. 

The Presidential Garden and Palace

(Photo by Alina)

 It was only an hour from the city along a very impressive highway. We were going to spend the night at Surf City.  The name was the result of rebranding by a government tourism campaign in order to attract tourists. Originally it was part of the town of La Libertad. El Salvador is proud of this surf beach but, hey, I come from New Zealand, beaches are hard to impress me when our own are sublime.  Fair to say I wasn't particularly impressed by Surf City, although there were good breakers and a few surfers were enjoying them, the black sand beach was narrow and stoney and the town had that slightly scruffy look that often seems to come with surfing/back packing beaches. Nevertheless it was good to look at the Pacific Ocean 11,500 kms from where I look at it daily from my home in New Zealand.

Surf City beach ( Photo by Thomas Bauer)

We were to get up at 4am in order to reach the small ferry that would take us to Nicaragua so it was an early night for us.  The best laid plans etc.....Firstly my air conditioning was turned to freezing so I got up to adjust it then there was an incredible thunder storm which seemed to last for hours.  I'd never heard anything like it, lightening, thunder and torrential rain, sleep was impossible.  No sooner had the thunder and lightening stopped than cars stuck in the flooded streets started tooting their horns.  I gave up and got up at 3am.  Safe to say I had no sleep.  Part of the fun? of travel I guess. We loaded our bus in drizzle and at 4am  started the long drive to the border crossing and small ferry that would take us to Nicaragua.