Looking back on my time in Costa Rica I can't help but reflect on it's wild side. From the exotic beauty of the country itself, to it's active volcanoes, crocodile infested rivers, waterfalls, rainforest and rugged beaches to the big city life of SanJose.
Unfortunately, as is usually the case when I travel, I didn't have enough time to discover as much of the country as I would have liked. I always have to have a few days of pure relaxation when I travel. Just hanging out at the pool, meeting people, wandering around the beach and soaking up some sun! But with the responsibilities of life comes limited number of vacation days.
This only means that I plan on returning to make sure I see more....
The people that visit Costa Rica are as diverse as the country itself. You have the back-packing, bohemian types, honeymooners, retirees and even the rich and famous. The lodging is as varied as the people that require it.
Part of the reason I feel that I saw so little of Costa Rica is the time it takes to do things. Any excursion you want to take requires at least half a day and may take 10-14 hours of your day. Fun, but lots of driving. The best way to see more of the diversity of CostaRica, is to split your time between the cloud forest and the beaches. Being from Montana and having roughly 3 months of summer every year, it is a bit hard for me to spend more than a day of my tropical vacation in a cloud forest and even worse to spend most of it in a car getting there. But I am determined to go back and spend some time there and also conquer my fear of the volcano.
We had some really fun experiences....I think the most memorable was our cruise down the Tempisque River in the Palo Verde National Park.
Capuchin Monkey
Coming on Board our boat
Looking for something....Hoping he doesn't leave anything!
Big Croc's! We were told there are 200 crocodiles per square mile on this river.
Howler Monkey, aka...Lazy Monkey. They sleep most of the time, but they rise early in the morning, as we found out on one of our first nights in a different hotel. We awoke to what sounded like, as the words to the old Jethro Tull tune say "Bungle in the Jungle" Howling, screetching, chirping, craziness. They could be heard through closed windows and doors with air conditioner on. Had I not been so tired and wanting that last couple hours of sleep it may have been really awesome. Looking back now it was another memory of Costa Rica that I won't soon forget!
Riding the 4-wheelers to the zip line was half the adventure. I didn't get any pictures of us when we got to the zip line, but wish I had. We were, filthy dirty, dusty, HOT and disgusting by the time we arrived and then there was just a SHORT 350 or so, stairs to climb. But then the fun began!
This line is just a prelude to the larger zip line that I plan to go on next time I am in Costa Rica.
Back at the resort... It is pretty wild when one of these rambles out of the bushes onto the sidewalk in front of you!
So much more to do in Costa Rica, if your feeling brave and adventurous. White water rafting, volcanoes, rock climbing, the BIG zip line, world class sport fishing and much more. Costa Rica is an adventure lovers dream!
