Oh boy, what a day its been..... but let me backtrack to leaving Arenal only yesterday - it already feels much longer ago than that.... Firstly, we never saw the whole volcano - it was cloudy all the time, especially over that specific volcano. A few times we made a dash for the camera when it seemed as if the wind would blow it clear, but no luck. Maybe its just a myth? Just kidding. Soon after breakfast the van came to pick us up for our "jeep, boat, jeep" ride across the lake to Monteverde. It was not a jeep that we got to ride in, but one of the many tourist vans that are continuously buzzing around here, fetching and carrying tourists everywhere and anywhere. Most of the vans are ......well, their wheels turn, the doors close (mostly) and they are all legal and licenced. There are others that are much newer and clean and all, but those are for the Rich Tourists. Its much more fun in 'our vans" :)
So off we bounced, jostled and careened around a bunch of new corners for about 30 minutes until we jarred our way down a slope to Arenal Lake and the boats that were to take us across. Two of the young ladies that were also on this ride, took out their ipod ear pieces just long enough to ask very concernedly whether their luggage would get wet! It took some convincing before they even let the bags on the boat.... Now just what type of boat did they think they were going to get for that price? A yacht?? The boats were just fine and everyone stayed dry, unless you sat at the back, like we did, and then the wake kinda spilled over - a lot. But it was fun to be out on the water and I found a seat right at the back in the middle where the flying water did not reach and happily snapped away with my camera for the forty minutes we screamed across that lake. We had a view of the illusive Arenal Volcano - but it stayed shyly behind its skirt of clouds.
And then we arrived on the opposite shore and were told that "we need to wait here because........ because we need to wait here". Ok then. We waited. And waited. Until another van jiggled its way down something that was a cross between a river bed filled with rocks and a mud patch - in other words, a 'road'. A bunch of tourists fell out of the doors as it opened, relieved to be there in one piece and we were told to jump in. And so started the most incredible drive through the countryside. Rolling hills of brilliant greens, dotted with tiny houses, shacks, huts and cows all over the place stretched for miles and miles on each side. The narrow, horrendous road wound itself through this like a little brown river. Monkies played in the trees, toucans yelled at us from the tree tops and we all hung on for dear life, continuously twisting our heads around for the next view. Well, apart from ipod girls who be-bopped their way through all this with their eyes closed! I can just hear it one day in about 20 years time when they tell their children that they 'were in Costa Rica'! ha.
The drive went on for about two hours and we made two stops along the way where we bought some local snacks, petted the local dogs, watched the kiddies walking all on their own, in school uniform (blue and white) down the roads. Again, these are not roads as we know them - just dirt roads made up of endless potholes,no sidewalks and its absolutely common to be jarring our way around a blind bend, only to find a taxi reversing at full speed towards us..... no problem - throw up some dust, pass him with millimeters to spare and a wave from driver to driver. Just today Frank told me my gray hairs shine beautifully! No wonder.......even they are sweaty!
And so we were dropped off at Poco a Poco hotel. I just love that saying.... Poca a Poca means "slowly, slowly we will get there". Like a tortoise - just keep plodding away, keep going, never give up. You get the idea. Poco a Poco........
The first thing that hit us as we got out was the wind... Oh boy did that wind blow and howl and whistle and blow some more! We were put in a room up on the 4th floor. No elevator, very sore muscles still from all that climbing and walking etc the past two days and faced with these steps just did us no good. We got there though and were immediately greeted by the most insane wheezing, wailing, screaming of the wind...a tree branch was hitting the balcony and the balcony roof had lost a nail or three and was happily and loudly making that fact known. We looked at each other with desperate wide eyes and agreed that there was no way at all that we could get any sleep in that room...... so down those steps we went again to change rooms. While we were waiting for the new room, we had gone walk around in the town.. This town is built on hills........ to get anywhere you need to go down and up and down and up endless hills, and we did. We also went to a cafe where we bought something small to eat and some coffee and contemplated the next hill down. The coffee here is very good. After a good long walk and stretching of the protesting leg muscles we headed back 'home again', chanting "poco a poco, poco a poco" all the way. The new room is much quieter but that wind still whistled like I have not heard in a very long time. I think we were tireder than we thought, because we were quite ticked off with life in general (how incredibly spoiled!) and swore not to stay long at all. So we made a pot of coffee, I tied online for a while, the tv was put on and we watched it rain sideways as the rain and wind blew all possibility of doing anything not only out the window but sheer out to sea, I bet!
After a little bit, Frank slid down the bed into a fully horizontal position, and shortly afterwards I did the same. This was around 5.30pm. I woke up briefly at 3am to take my jeans off and then again at 7am this morning! Frank too. Thankfully we woke with new attitudes, a smile and keeness to see what was out here. We anticipated a quietish day, sedate and almost relaxing. A day to catch our breath and unwind a bit. And it started like that. We were driven back past some of those lovely hills and valleys, to the Monteverde Hanging Bridges and other things. We had a tour booked for the bridges, butterflies and hummingbirds.. We chose to do an unguided walk through the forest and gently ambled along its pathways, which were actually much better than many of the roads around here! We did not see much life at all - well apart from gorgeous trees, flowers and other plant life...... we heard birds but did not see them and we thoroughly enjoyed standing in the middle of the hanging bridges looking down on the tops of the trees for miles around. Those bridges are on average about 150 feet above ground level. We could see a good many people zooting along on the zip lines above the trees and way above the bridges. A good many whooped and yelled and waved as they screamed by - it looked like fun. And on we plodded for about and hour and a half till we arrived back at the starting point.
We still had lunch, the butterflies and birds to see but nooooooo, Frank got a gleam in his eye and off we went to find out about the zip line tour! We quickly rented a locker, stashed everything but my camera and joined the line to do this crazy thing! They put us in a harness that went around each leg and then around our waist and had two big clips on it and clanged like a chain gang when we walked. We were the oldest couple by FAR, and, I noticed, were the only ones allocated red helmets... the others all got orange ones. They gave us a short lesson on how to work the 'brakes' and how to sit and all. You hold one heavily gloved hand behind your head on the cable, gently - no frantic grasping allowed.... bend your knees and hold on to the cord that strings you to the cable, with the other hand. They asked if anyone wanted 'taxi service' down the zip line.This is when one of the guys flies with you, and basically brakes for you. Well, I wanted to take photos and not worry about braking or hitting the platforms on the other end or whatever, so I got the taxi service - for the first 4 ziplines! They he said that I was on my own - and it was awesome!
We zipped along 5 lines and then had about 5 minutes of hiking higher up before coming to the next line. That was rough on us, walking with the extra weight and uphill and all, but we did it. And .....well, how can one explain what it feels like to be screaming down a cable on your own, sometimes over 200 foot up in the air and seeing forest for as far as you can see? How can I describe what that wind in my face felt like or how desperately I just wanted to stop the ride in the middle and just hang there for a while and soak the view up? And the joy and sadness of reaching the tiny platform again and again without anything going wrong with that whistling line still ringing in my ears. Oh it was all great. there were 13 ziplines all in all and I really could have done 23! On one of them, one of the guides told me that he would take photos of me as we were going down, and he reached for my camera. GULP! But I handed it over with a smile - Frank just stood there laughing at me! The guy got some nice photos, I must say :) I dont just hand over my camera to anyone at all, and here I did it way up in the air with only one second hesitation and to a guy who was ahead of me and going to scream away from me at high speed. Hmmmm.
And on one of the platforms, as I was struggling to get my glove off to take a photo - another one, yes... I felt my bracelet break.. its a small little thin bracelet and it fell onto that platform way up in the sky and started jiggling its way throught the holes.... but I nabbed it in time! I would have hated to have lost it there - no doubt some magpie would love the shiny thing for its home.
The zipline was absolutely fun and I will do it again whenever I can. It was tiring - well, the walking between platforms was, and we turned down the opportunity to walk yet another half mile to do the Tarzan Jump... we figured we were both secure enough with ourselves to know that we were better than Tarzan anyway, and we headed back to the lodge for lunch and the butterflies and reptiles. Oh yes, I changed the hummingbirds for reptiles. Lunch was great, the flutterbie's beautiful and the snakes were awesome! but nothing quite like the shower I had once we got back to our room.
What a lovely day that was. It would have been such a pity if we had not done the zipline. I would recommend it to everyone! I never really knew what it was at all, but now that I know.......... :)
We spent a good while at the front desk finding a place to head to tomorrow and finally decided on a place called Coca Beach Hotel, right next to the Manuel Antonio National Park on the Pacifica Coast of Costa Rica. Its about two thirds of the way down the coast and apparently there the monkeys play on the beach much of the time. There are long open beaches, palm trees and the room with all amenities cost only $50 per night. We plan to spend a good few days there. Its within minutes walk to the main entrance of the park and one can walk into the forest right from the hotel too. The bus ride there is about 5 hours, so we will be really ready to rest up for a while after that. The lady, Lilliana, here at Poco a Poco has been incredibly helpful and very friendly.
So, tomorrow at 8am we will be off on yet another leg of this adventure....everyone says its a bit touristy there, but the little hotel we will be in is small and a little bit away from the big, expensive ones. We will see, but those long open beaches with their palm trees and quiet are really calling us loudly.
Till then...
love, light and laughter - and Poco a poco..... :)
Annie and Frank
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