Puerto Viejo,
Costa Rica
Monday, March 24, 2008
Puerto Viejo was a really cool place, very Caribbean feeling, really beautiful beach and lovely people but quite busy. On our second day there Nat and Julia arrived and, only because we were on the internet at the same time, managed to meet up, we got a cabin together for two nights, prices are doubled during semana santa which is really annoying but it is so nice to be all together, our cabin has a little terrace with chairs and a table on the beachfront, and a kitchen so we cooked food last night to save money and sat chilled and talked about all our travels so far, it was so nice to be with people you know. Meeting new people all the time is such an interesting and exciting thing to do but being with friends again and not having to make an effort with people makes such a nice change, we had kind of forgotten what it was like. We went swimming in the sea in this natural pool created by the reefs of shore, there are loads around here, it was really cool. The coastline here is so different, it is forest right up to the beach and is far more humid feeling than the places we have been on the pacific. Last night and tonight because of semana santa the country is supposedly dry for two days, however the caribbean coast being slightly more liberal there are a few places open at night selling just beer or wine, we went out for a drink last night and becuase bars aren't generally open everyone was partying on the streets, all the locals had reggea blaring from their cars and people were selling beers out of the cool boxes in their carboots, 2 guys started doing poy -(fire dancing thing we saw in the jungle) right outsied the bar we were sitting in, it was wicked. Today its raining again but still very warm, we are going to hire bikes (everyone seeems to have them here) and ride down the coast towards manzanillo, about an hours journey, apparently one of the most beautiful stretches of coast in costa rica. Tonight its really wierd, bars reopen at midnight and apparently everyone goes mad partying then, so we will probably chill at our cabin and then go out. Tomorrow buses go back to normal and we think we are going to try to get up to tortuguero national park for saturday and sunday night, then get the bus to san jose for monday night and have to be at the airport at like 7 am.
- The bike journey was pretty fun but nearely all were hired out, we got some wierd little things, natīs chain fell off every 300m metres which was funny at first but got less so as Calum and me got completely covered in oil from putting it back on so much. We found some cool little beaches and reefs but got really sore bums.
