Costa Rica: Getting wild and wet

Costa Rica's capital San Jose is huge. The city isn't pedestrian friendly and people depend on public transport while tourists like me, were discouraged from roaming by myself. So i had to be dropped off at an agreed spot and picked up at an appointed time. The rest of the adventures were at the courtesy of organised sightseeing trips which were touted by the many tour agents around town. I didn't go looking for them, in fact the hotel conceirge thrusted a few brochures into my hand while he helped us with the luggages.





We stayed at the relatively decent Radisson hotel. The staff were friendly and breakfast spread was generous. Gallo Pinto- the national dish made of slightly spiced rice and black beans, enchilladas, casado featured in the buffet spread. That's important because i always like to know the local delights. Plus I liked the adjustable beds fitted with an air pump to regulate the hardness of the mattress.


Each morning, i got my freshly roasted Costa Rican coffee with hot milk. I am certain to load up on these heavenly beans.

Sights of coffee plantations dotted the way up to the mountains. The air is fresh, the pasture is unpolluted and the cows are happy resulting in some of the best tasting milk i've ever had. Ahhh... its pura vida all the way..


Stopped by the Pre Columbian Gold Museum which is part of the Central Bank Musem located in downtown San Jose. The collection traced the history of gold and had nice pieces of jewellery i'll love to have copied. Next to the museum is the Gran Hotel Costa Rica, this is where the ladies who lunch go to have lunch. It is like one of the typical "grand hotels of the world" you find in Singapore aka Raffles, Hotel Metropole in Hanoi... that gengre. My interest was further piqued by the sovenir shop inside the lobby. I was eyeing some of the best looking wood crafts found in Costa Rica.
Close by is the Teatro Nacional which i nipped in to have Costa Rican coffee and slice of rum cake. It was listed as one of the place that offered the "old world" feel and it did. With old fashioned stools and a marble bar top with displays of cakes.
















The following day i booked myself on a tour to the Poaz Volcano and Sarapiqui Jungle trip. It's a whole day out and worth every penny. Along the way, we did the obligatory stop at a coffee plantation, not to view the plantation but to stop at the shop. I guess, this is where the guide gets his tips when his charges purchased coffee. After a free trial of fresh roasted coffee, we set off for Poaz. We didn't get a chance to glimpse into the crater because most of the time it is cloud covered... so says the tour guide. I'll content with pictures of it taken when it wasn't cloud covered. Next up was La Paz Waterfall, this is definately a picture stop. We got as close as we could to the falls and got drenched inevitably. On the way out, meandering through the mountainous region of Baurilo Carrillo National Park, the guide pointed out a waterfall and asked if we knew what that was. It was the spot where Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park was filmed. Wow..


The Hummingbird garden and Butterfly farm was another nice way to admire God's creations. I've never seen a hummingbird up close and personal. These speedsters are really amazing. We stopped for buffet lunch in the park, i must say that the offerings were pretty good.

The last adventure was the boat ride down Sarapiqui river. The river is fast flowing and we saw several species of birds, bats, howler monkeys but missed the crocs. I tried filming but the clouds were heavy and the poor lighting didn't help.

















We visited the Teatro Nacional de Costa Rica to catch a concert one evening. The concert wasn't really spectacular but the teatre was.





Dinner was to be taken at the Gran Hotel de Oro, this is one grand lady of a restaurant. I could imagine women dolled up and men in their tux mingling and dining. Menu was extensive and very good. For dining with a view, then visit Le Monestere, an elegant converted church set above the hills of Escazu. In the evening, the shimmering lights below is one act hard to beat!
Hanging restaurants are known as miradores because they built vertically up the sides of volcanoes.
There was another trip lined up for me the next day which i would have enjoyed tremendously but unfortunately the weather wasn't nice. It was to see the live Arenal Volcano and enjoy its hot springs. That'll be for next time. Instead, we went to another area were souvenir shops lined up end to end. Lots of things to fill one's suitcases. T shirts, fridge magnets, ceramic homeware, wooden salad bowls, cigar boxes etc..