Last days in Tortuguero

I had a mixed couple days here at La Rana Roja the last two days. Two nights ago I got to do one of the turtle tours and see the giant sea turtles come up on the beach and lay their eggs. It was an absolutely magical experience and there was something so prehistoric about it. The turtles were ENORMOUS, weighing almost 600 pounds. I'd never seen one so big in real life. It was a fantastic experience. The next day was different. It literally poured rain all day yesterday, and while it was a warm tropical rain it didn't really leave me in the mood to hit the beach or even the pool for that matter. As a result I spent most of the day reading and hanging around the lodge. As relaxing as it was, it got lonely and boring pretty quickly. Today was much better. The weather was better for one, so I got to spend the morning sunning myself by the pool. After lunch (chickpeas, beef, rice, fried plantains and potato salad) I made it a point to get myself over to the town of Tortuguero, since my lodge is not actually in the town. I had to wait on one of the lodge's docks for my water taxi, which is what I'm doing in the picture below.

It's not far to Tortuguero, less than five minutes by boat. If the water wasn't full of crocodiles and caimans I would have loved to swim there, but I chose to not be eaten instead.
Tortuguero is a tiny, poor town that thrives solely on the tourist industry. This is the "main street." I asked a woman in a souvenir shop how to get to the beach and she pointed me in the right direction.
Which is how I came upon this...
This is probably my favorite beach I've ever been to. I've never experienced Caribbean water before, it's SO WARM! The water was almost warmer than they air outside because of a light breeze. I stood with my feet in the water for close to half and hour just soaking it all in. Then I went and found a piece of driftwood to sit on.


"Pura Vida" is the Costa Rica's motto. It means "pure life."
This house was facing the ocean. It's crazy to me how poor the people here are, and yet if this kind of property existed in California they would have to pay millions to own it.
One last look out at the river from the pueblo before I boarded my water taxi home. Fabulous day.

Costa Rica So far (Days 1-3)

After twenty-four hours of traveling (13 of which were spent sitting in the Mexico City airport) I finally arrived to Costa Rica. As soon as I got off the plane I felt the temperature change. It’s the dead of winter right now in Santiago and they are experiencing record low temperatures. While it is technically winter here as well, you would never know it. It’s balmy and warm from when the sun comes up at 5:30AM to well after it sets. It was late when I got in so I immediately found a cab and headed to my hostel where I collapsed into bed without so much as brushing my teeth.

The hostel in the capital city of San José was perfectly nice. I shared a 6-bedroom dorm with a few German girls. They had a pancake breakfast in the morning that was quite good. I didn’t do much in San José, partially out of exhausting and partially out of a lack of stuff to do. The hostel wasn’t in the downtown area and it was in a smaller residential part of town. I found a couple of good restaurants for lunch and dinner but for the most part hung around the hostel, reading in the sunshine and Skype chatting with friends. I spent one more night there and then the following morning set off for Tortuguero, a city on the Caribbean coast.

To arrive in Tortuguero seemed easy enough. Take a cab to the bus station, take a bus to another bus and take that bus to a boat. What I didn’t count on was the heat and the fact that I am carrying 6-months worth of luggage with me everywhere I go. The first bus ride was fine and beautiful. This country is so lush and green. When we arrived at the spot to pick up the next bus we had to walk to another bus station, and while it was only a few blocks away it turns out that a few blocks in blazing sun lugging close to 100 pounds of luggage with you is quite a feat. By the time we were at the second station I felt dizzy and sick and had to sit down immediately. The women at the food stand in the terminal noticed I was looking ill and were so kind and helpful. They brought me ice for my water and turned one of their fans to face me. They also brought me a cup of warm milk and sugar, which they said would help balance out my equilibrium. I sat there and ate a $3 plate of rice, beans and chicken and sipped my water. After an hour or so I began to feel better. Now all there was to do was wait another hour and a half for the next bus.

The next bus was not quite as “luxurious” as the first. In fact it appeared to be an old school bus. I sat in the front with some Costa Rican guys and chatted in Spanish for most of the ride. This bus ride took us through banana , which were really cool to see. After about an hour we arrived in Pavona where we would be taking a jetty into Tortuguero. We boarded little boats and set off down a beautiful river. It was exactly like the Jungle Cruise ride in Disneyland, except that it was real. We saw turtles and birds and they told us there are crocodiles and caimans in the water, although I didn’t see any. The boat ride was a little over an hour long but I could have stayed on it for longer. All the views were breathtaking. The boat actually brought me right up to my lodge where I disembarked with the help of one of the guides.

Okay, now this lodge, I was under the impression that it was something like a hostel. What it actually is is a jungle resort. As we walked through to reception I saw a giant pool and a restaurant. At reception I was greeted with “You must be Melanie” and a glass of cool guava juice. My guide took me to my room, winding through the trees and other cabins. I saw spiders as big as my hand and I could hear howler monkeys above me. I requested a single room but it seemed they didn’t have any instead I was put in an enormous room with my own bathroom. I took a shower and went to find the wi-fi. It’s next to the other pool, the bar and the other restaurant. I can’t believe this place. All for $25 a night. Of course there’s no where to eat except in their restaurants and buffet hall, and I expect that’s where they get you. Guess I’ll just have to be careful how much I eat.

Today I spent the morning sunning by the pool and tonight I’m going to do the turtle tour where I get to see turtles laying their eggs along the beach. It’s the beginning of turtle season so I’m very excited. I’ll let y’all know how the rest of the trip goes!

(View from my room!!!)