Prologue
......we travel, some of us forever, to seek other states, other lives, other souls....Anais Nin
.......
Leaving Samara...
......early one morning... there's a calm before the heat escalates for the day....howler monkeys announce the dawning of a new day....a few early risers walk or bike in the still, cool air... shopkeepers begin again for another day.....sweep and wash the sidewalk in front of their shop...
Our bus arrives, on schedule, and on to Nicoya....there we walk several blocks to another station and grab a bus going north towards Playa del Coco...the bus connections all work, we have seats and everything is clean and fast...we cross the Pan-Am highway and wait several minutes for the bus to take us to the beach town of Coco....a nun offers her seat to us at the bus stop....we graciously say ...no..
Playa del Coco
The trip north to Coco is a 4 hr hop on 3 buses. We have left the relatively quiet, small beach town of Samara and have landed in a busy, frantic Coco. The town/beach is an easy 45 minute car from Liberia town/airport to the north. From eastern Canada/United States it's a direct flight in.
Coco has all the feel of a town on the edge of the frontier. With several large, open area sports bars to serve the substantial expat community that winters or holidays here, there's a busy, boom boom feel along the main street.
Our small Hotel M &M is, however, quiet and across the street from the ocean for $55 US including a great traditional breakfast.
Life's a (few) Beaches
We connect with friends Linda & Paul wintering at (next beach over) Playa Hermosa... it's a quiet beach without all the odds 'n end development that Coco seems to have. They have a car and so we join them for a day of exploring some area beaches.
Flamingo Beach...
A gorgeous, rustic beach with development confined to each end, and a bit of a town site back off the water. We grab some lunch. Shayne jumps in the water.
Brasilito Beach
A beautiful hard pack beach that we can drive on... just make sure you don't get stuck as the tide comes in...
Conchal Beach
A few minutes south of Flamingo is the delightful Choncal Beach. Crushed shells form the 'sand'. As a result, the water is quite clear of sediment churned up by shore waves and visibility is excellent for snorkeling. There's even traffic control keeping cars and quads from crashing into one another as they crest a small dirt road to the beach.
Playa Del Coco Beach
We finally spend a day on our beach. Walking, snorkeling, discovering some of the local beauty. ..
Along the way, we start up a conversation with a couple on holiday from their work in Qatar. They're actually on the hunt for property to retire to. A few drinks later, turns into an afternoon of conversation ....then an invite to join them in their car the next morning as they drive to Liberia. New friends Paul & Sylvie....we'll stay in touch...!
You just Never Know.....
So many times during our travels, the simple fact of saying "Hello" has given us lifelong friends, a chance to go sailing for a week in Cuba, an invite to stay overnight on a private Philippine island, joining a family meal or getting our meal and drinks paid for by someone else. A smile and a simple greeting! Travel with kindness and an Open Heart....you just never know where it will take you..
Liberia
The last big city before the frontier with Nicaragua. It is delightfully untouristy. We arrive early and find a private room in the Pura Vida Hostel just a few blocks from the bus station.
Within minutes of unpacking, we find out there's a 35 metre waterfall just out of town. So, with some simple directions on getting there..."Get off at the 4th pedestrian overpass on the highway"....we head out with lovely views of the local volcanos and terrain.
A 2 km walk down a dusty road takes us to a wonderful oasis and swimming hole filled with locals.
Another dusty walk back out to the highway to wait for 30 minutes in 45C before our bus arrives...
The next day, we head out to explore the Parque Nacional Rincon de La Vieja, created to preserve the area around the Rincon volcano, which includes dry tropical forest, mud pots, hot sulphur springs and much more. We spend hours walking past these geothermal curiosities , wildlife and soaking in the cool waters.
Look at those temperatures!
Sulphur pools and what a smell they emitted!
Bubbling mud pits
This pit was roughly 8 metres across with some bubbles bursting 60 cm high.
Boiling water
In and amongst this deadly activity was the pure beauty of the jungle...
And what would a jungle be without its monkeys...in our case the white faced Capuchin and the spider monkey with its ever so long legs and tail...
After the geo-thermal hike, we cooled off in a part of the park that took us to this refreshing stream. Here we soaked while observing the spider monkey troops swinging from limb to limb and tree to tree in the canopy above us...
Our final stop in the area was to a hot spring where you can rub yourself in mud, sit in a cold stream and dip into varying hot pools . Unfortunately we ran out of time and could only walk through as they were getting ready to close for the night...
This small pool was bubbling hot!!
That's all from Liberia....and adios Costa Rica.....more to come...until next time...
Pura Vida!
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Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things......air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky.....all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it......Cesare Pavese
Shayne y Yvonne
Additional Random Photos
