Roadtripping

Thank you for all the happy birthday wishes, it has been an amazing day, thanks to Rachele...but before I relive it, we have some catching up to do. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out how to get the pictures in chronological order so they bounce around over the past 3 days.

10/19-- We woke early in Manuel Antonio and rented a car in Quepos. The reason for renting a car was that there were two spots along the route to Puntarenas that we thought might be worth a drop in. First was the largest waterfall in Costa Rica, or so it was advertised this way. A 200m drop with some swimming pools around the base. Supposed to be a great view and a nice hike. We need a 4x4 to get up the 5k road that winds up a mountain. For me, driving was a blast in and of itself. When we arrived at the trailhead, the 'owner' told us that it was private property and wanted 20 dollars each for us to pass. This was not what we had in mind and after bartering down to ten each, decided that it would still be a bit steep for a quick look at a huge waterfall. So, one spectacle yet to be seen, but in the end it was a blessing in disguise as it led us to our second destination a few hours ealier. Rache and I have made a habit of landing in cities that have hotels belonging to 'Small Distinguished Hotels of Costa Rica'. Of the 8 hotels in the country, we have been in the cities that house 5 of them, all by complete chance. The resort we crashed in Turrialba was another of these. Well, the one called Villas Carata was on the way and looked the coolest of them all. It was set on the top of a mountain overlooking the ocean. They built an amphitheatre into the side of the mountain to watch the sunset. When you walk in it looks like you'll take one step and drop hundred of feet into the ocean. We figured that our luck crashing the last resort had been so good that we went to try our luck again, and again succeeded in having a beer and taking full advantage of all they had to offer. The pictures of the beers on the table and Rachele sitting at the table is directly in front of the amphitheatre. Since it is the low season there is no one at their fully staffed hotel and they gave us what we were told was the best seat in the house for the sunset. It was gorgeous.

10/20-- After spending an night in Jaco we took off early the next morning for Puntarenas. The idea was to take our car over the ferry and explore the Nicoya Peninsula for two days before returning. Along the way we crossed a bridge which had a bunch of crocodiles lying on the banks. They are fed by hand by tour guides so are meant to be fairly tame and well fed. We kept our distance. Once on the ferry and across the bay, we took the advice of Cousin Matty and shot for Mal/Pais/Santa Teresa, where we are now. The ride in is 11km of heavy four wheel driving. Our rental bottomed out a few times and some bumps were a little hairly, but in the end we arrived. This is a surf town that is on the up and up. There are real estate signs everywhere, but is still has the feel of being off the beaten path. We spent the day on the beach and when it started to rain, hung out at a hostel called Casa Zen. It is a Thai restaurant run by an expat from Kansas City. The atmosphere is great, really just and bunch of comfy cushions and surfers heavily into their respective books after a long day out in the surf.

10/21--I am not exaggeratting when I say this has been my favorite day in Costa Rica. It has been awesome. Rachele woke up with the sun because it was coming down so hard. She read on the hammock outside our room for 2 hours until I woke up at 830. We went right to Santa Teresa to watch the surfers. The waves were huge. I was trying to tell myself that I couldn't come to my cousin's favorite surf spot in the world and not get out there and give it a go, but when I saw some guys going into 15 foot barrells and coming out on the other side, I thought it could lead to a bad start of my 27th year. The sun was the hottest it has been and the beaches are white sand. Come noon, there were no surfers in the water, and we couldn't tell if it was from the head or that the tide was getting lower. But by one we were dripping sweat into our books and daydreaming of water. We walked around the town and ended up going for a long dip in the pool by our hostel. Then, what do you know, we read that we are in the town of another 'Small Distinctive Hotel'. Really, it is weird and completely unintentional. This one was called Casa Flor Blanca and is about 4km from Mal Pais. We figured we were 2 for 2 and so gave it a shot. The remainder of the pictuers are from the hotel. They, too, had zero guests but were fully staffed so we were waited on hand and foot. This time we had two drinks and a Cuban cigar each to celebrate my birth. What a time, sitting on the beach or by the pool with my beauful wife on our most beautiful day in Costa Rica, wow. We went from lounging over their pool, to sitting on the private beach overlooking the water, smoking our cigars. Then we had beach chairs to watch the sunset, all for the price of a few drinks (which actually wasn't that cheap, but still worth the time). I don't know if Rachele slipped the front desk some extra Colones, but when we came back our room (their most economical) was done up to the nines. They had rolled towels that looked like swans and put about 50 individual flowers all over the bed and room. What a birthday, it has been a blast.

After thinking about extending our stay here, we decided that we'll be moving on tomorrow, shooting for Monteverde, as we'll need to drop the rental car back in Puntarenas tomorrow. This marks the last beach day of our trip, but it was a great way to go out.

Thanks again for all the happy birthday wishes. Rachele has made it one I won't forget.

Kenton and Rachele