Day 4...from Puerto Viejo

Day four brings an update from the far south east of Costa Rica. The Jamaican feeling town of Puerto Viejo to be exact. We arrived here earlier today after an interesting boat and bus ride (more later) from Tortuguero (far north east). As far as great places go, Tortuguero is one!

Nestled in the middle of a national park, Tortuguero surroundings boast an amazing array of animals, from the Manati (sea cow) to howler monkeys, from humming birds to tiny red frogs. Our accommodation was one of those places you can only dream about. On the river banks, hammocks a plenty, a self service bar, dinner and breakfast served every morning; what more does a person need? The tours through the national park made it the perfect place to spend a couple of relaxing, yet fulfilling days. We spotted all kinds of interesting animals, of which a dead manati and a oselot will stick to my memory the best (because they are the rarest to see I guess). Although the tours made at the park were great, the boat ride to the park was equally amazing. In the hands of Alexi (aka Carlos) we speeded down canals for a good 4 hours, occasionally stopping as Alexi pointed out some interesting flora and fauna along the way that only he could see till we were a meter away from it.

This morning that same boat ride brought us back to the town of Moin. Although no one probably knows it, it looked like it hosts the largest Dole banana handling center in the world with hundreds of trucks full of fresh bananas standing ready to be shipped to (probably) North America. That aside, from Moin we caught a van to Puerto Limon where the driver dropped us at a wayside road convincing us that this is where the bus to Puerto Viejo departed from. And sure enough, 20 minutes later, there was a bus filled with locals heading down south. There was still ample space in the bus and even Lucas with his 2+ meters could take a seat... half an hour later though, we all were ushered off the bus. A few weeks ago, a storm had destroyed a bridge and we now all had to walk across a log to get to the other side. The moment I was across I started hoping one of my travelling companions would fall off, but no such luck. On the other side, continuing busses awaited and a half an hour later we were on our way to this town. In a lot of aspects it reminds me of Byron Bay about 5 years ago; for those of you who have never been, the hippy mecca of Australia. It looks interesting so far, tomorrow will show more with a trip to the national park nearby.

More to come, dont know from where yet but it will be somewhere in the center of the north I imagine.... La Fortuna or so...

Take care,

Sam