That said, while waiting for these medical supplies to show up in Quepos (and never did), we visited Manuel Antonio National Park-- my first and only park visit-- twice. This park is beautiful-- a green mass of jungle reaching to the sky. A tour guide persuaded us to pay for his services while we stood outside the park entrance at 6:45 a.m. His powerful telescope and trained eyes were worth paying for. We would have missed many wonderful sightings. Native, green parrots, and a pygmy owl feeding it's baby with a lizard, were right outside the park entrance.
While on tour, we caught wonderful views of two- and three-toed sloths, Jesus Christ Lizards (aka Basilisks), a rather large black and blue hummingbird, red-legged crabs, giant light blue morfo butterflies (their official name escapes me)-- as big as a man's hand outspread.
Also a rarely seen Squirrel monkey, a so-called "Stick Bird", which Loic and I swear was stuffed and placed on a branch for the tour guides to "spot", a killer bee hive with the bees swarming around it, two kinds of bats, and most significantly, beautifully-colored Toucans.
The next day we went back with the goal of going to one of the park's beaches, and encountered a family of white-faced monkeys, or Capuchin. I felt like we were inside the monkey cage at the zoo, surrounded by them.
Leaving Quepos, which is actually below sea level, we traveled inland and to a higher elevation--into the Central Valley as it is known. We found a hotel in Alajuela, which shares a border to San Jose. Alajuela is actually a charming town, and San Jose International Airport is technically within it's borders. If you're smart, you'll stay in Alajuela instead of San Jose, before or after your flight. Even though the town is five minutes from the airport, the airplane noise was entirely minimal during the four days we stayed there.
I almost felt like we were staying in a European town, and not nearly as dirty as other towns I've been to in this country. There is not so much humidity and the weather is more temperate for more hours of the day. We unwittingly spent our time here during "Semana Santa" or Holy Week, some of the most religious days of the Catholic year, so much of the town was closed at one time or another. We heard that it is against the law to sell alcohol on Ash Wednesday through Good Friday. We watched the effigy of Jesus with the cross over his shoulders being carried into the cathedral.
Loic came with me to see me off safely, for which I am grateful. I didn't want to beg him to come home with me, but part of me wishes he wanted to. I am very grateful for the experience of Costa Rica, the natural world, the wild life, the nice tan.
I am building up my strength again so that I can enjoy myself in France and Austria, mid-June through early August. At home I can cook in my own kitchen, be with my cats, exercize and learn, and connect with my dearest friends. I hope to earn income, too. These are all so important to me.
I have learned so much from Costa Rica: 1) Never rely on one guide book or one point-of-view, for example. People who write guidebooks are always going to be biased towards convincing you to visit a place, right? 2) Always trust your own intuition about a place, and test its "waters". If I had relocated to Costa Rica without visiting it first, I would have been in a deeper mess.
My impression of Costa Rica right now is that it is overrun with tourists, yet in an economic decline. "Se Vende", or "For Sale" signs are everywhere-- including huge hotels that weren't even finished. The nature and wild life IS amazing-- especially if you know how to look.
And with all the active volcanoes, shifting tectonic plates, and intense, near-equatorial heat, Costa Rica definitely has a special energy to it, for those who can enjoy it.
That's all for now, more to come when Loic and I start visiting Europe!
