My feet and hands are swollen- puffy, fat and veiny. it's gross. It's a glimpse into a future of cankles I hope to avoid. I'm assuming this is all heat related. It's funny, this heat. It is so hot, yet there is constant shade from the jungle trees and a breeze from the ocean. We haven't really needed the A/C that we aren't paying for! The heat isn't the oppressive kind where you can't move or think as I expected it to be.
Today we went to Cabo Blanco Nature Reserve in the southern tip of the Nicoya peninsula. But FIRST we moved to a new hotel. It is above our price range of $20/day. Hotel Aurora is beautiful, airy, in town and has private bathrooms AND towels! No worries about the camp of gypsies stealing them! The room is twice the size of the last with balconies, outdoor dining tables for each room, lounge chairs, and an indoor fountain.
Immediately, we were in a better mood and felt completely rejuvenated for the day, knowing we had left Hotel Lys and its hippie commune behind us!
To the reserve! We took a 30min bus ride over terrible roads to the entrance of the reserve. I think forrest gump rode this bus to school in the 50s. Oh, and there was a hatchet thing hanging on the wall. Not sure why, as the windows don't even close. to kill a predator?
Of course on our trek we met tons of Germans (we have met more Germans than anyone else!). We planned to hike to the beach in the reserve and had a backpack full of towels, hats, books, sunscreen, etc. oh, and of course, water. But the 2.5 mile trek took over 2 hours and we would not have been able to make it back for the last bus (and I dont think in Costa Rica "last bus back" is something you mess around with!) At first we raced through the hike (Olympic qualifying hiking we called it). Within minutes we were soaked. Our legs wobbled by the end of the first hour. So we stopped, had our typical lunch of cliff bar and water, and continued at a slower pace. We really wanted to see a monkey!
We saw the most amazing HUGE trees and vines (it was hard to not swing!), blue, yellow, black, orange and red butterflies, lizards of all sizes, flowers, and FINALLY Reg spotted a MONKEY! The jungle is very very quiet. You hear every bird wing flap, every twig break. So when you hear a monkey call- you know! The howler monkey is terrifying. It makes a low, eerie roar that echos throughout the entire forest. We never saw a howler but met other travelers who said the cries woke them in the night. I would much rather that than El Capitan and his cowbell! The capuchin monkey doesn't howl, but you can hear it swinging through the trees. This is the first one that we saw. We were so ridiculously excited!
by the end of the hike, monkey's were old news. They were everywhere! swinging from the trees, racing around the paths. It was a little bit creepy to have them so close, have them make eye contact with you. Hello, cousins!
We hiked for about 4 hours then caught the bus back to Montezuma and spent the rest of the afternoon on the beach. We decided we deserved a nice dinner and went to an amazing gourmet beachside spot. We drank wine, had a spinach, papaya and hot pepper salad, fish marinated with peppers and grapes then chilled and served cold, and quiche with leeks and ricotta. The food was incredible! So today blew the budget but was much needed after the fiasco at Hotel Lys. Reg had predicted that I wouldn't make it "roughing it" but I promise it wasn't the communal bath or bad bedding but the people and general atmosphere at the first hostel that I couldn't take!
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