Yesterday was our one day of exploring Costa Rica beyond the golf course and resort. We’re on the opposite side of the country from the things I’d wanted to see – Monteverde Cloud Forest, Arenal Volcano – so we picked the nature trip that was only an hour away, rather than three hours. It was a boat tour on the Tempisque River in Palo Verde National Park. We knew the trip might be kitschy, and I more than half-expected it to be like our swamp tour in Louisiana with “Alligator Annie.” Our friends Deb and Steve will remember that trip – more memorable for what we didn’t see than what we saw. Annie would shout over and over, “There used to be a lot of alligators here…a lot of birds…a lot of xyz…” She called the few remaining alligators by name and summoned them to the boat with hunks of raw chicken.
For yesterday’s trip, we picked up the boat’s ‘captain,’ Felix, at his house on the way to the river. Our driver/guide had advised an afternoon tour since the river would be less crowded with tourists, and he was right. It was just us, our driver and Felix on his boat, and one more boat in the river. The excursion did have some of the same flavor as our Louisiana swamp tour – there is a large crocodile named Solomon that was the target of our hunt. Apparently other tour guides use chicken to call him to the boat, but ours follow park rules that prohibit feeding the animals and don’t use that ploy. We got close enough for comfort to the big guy without the chicken.
And Solomon was by far not the only croc we saw. There were plenty of others, as well as birds, monkeys and iguanas. Definitely worth the trip.
Next it was off to Coco Beach to see a Costa Rican beach town and have dinner. In this case, it was your typical beach town – lots of tacky souvenir shops and restaurants with similar menus; super-tanned beach bums with glassy eyes; kids on skateboard or playing volleyball. But the ocean was gorgeous, and the beers and the food was cheap – it was a nice change from the hotel. We had a simple grilled fish dinner at a local joint (called a “Soda” in Costa Rica) at a total cost of $27 and then took the longish ride back to the hotel – about 45 minutes along winding dark roads. We were happy to have a driver rather
than drive ourselves.
than drive ourselves.
So here comes the travel agent wannabe in me. If I were planning a Costa Rican vacation (not just using points for a warm weather getaway), I would stay in the eastern part of the country for the first half of the vacation and do lots of nature-touring and hiking. Then I’d head over to where we are, in Guanacaste, for R&R and almost guaranteed good weather.
But this trip was for the latter – which we’re getting in abundance.
It's What We Do 
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