Searching for Garifuna.

  Cahuita, Costa Rica
Friday, June 22, 2007

Lake view from town of Arenal.

We awoke to a chilly morning on June 22, 2007. Since we were at a higher altitude, it had cooled off considerably during the night. It was refreshing not to wake up sweating. Unfortunately, parking on the street does not allow us regular use of bathrooms, so we quickly ate breakfast and headed out in search of facilities.

Lago Arenal.

The logical stop was the German Bakery. Our senses went into overload as we walked though the door. The smells were wonderful and we walked around the small shop gleefully admiring the assortment of sausages, cheese, buns, tarts and muffins that were for sale. Unfortunately, our pocket book was not felling the good vibe as the prices were out of this world. As we were browsing, the owner, Thomas, came out to greet us. He was most friendly and we chatted briefly about our trip, his many trips and the sights to see around Lago Arenal. Thomas had to get back to work, but before running off, he was kind enough to offer us coffee, wireless internet and the use of his washing machine if we so desired. This was a most generous offer and we could tell that as a seasoned traveler himself, he was keen to help other travelers in any way he could. We graciously declined his big-hearted offer and hit the road.
 

Lake trees.

Before heading out of the small town, we once again stopped in at Lago Arenal in order to snap a few photographs.

A calm lake is unusual here.

We had hoped for a sunny day with blue skies and were not disappointed. The brilliant blue sky reflected off the water to create an overall gorgeous scene. There were still clouds in the sky, however they chose to lay low and play with the rolling hills that surround the lake. Thankfully, we arrived early to the lake as the clouds were not content to stay out of the way and before long, they had covered nearly the entire sky. There was only one small strip of the blue sky left by the time we drove away from the lake.
 

´Nilla at Lago Arenal.

The drive around Lago Arenal was windy and slow going. Of course we did not speed up the process by stopping for photo opportunities. Along the highway, we spotted a single man sitting under a small white tent on the side of the road. 

The Guys at Lago Arenal.

Intrigued, we stopped to chat and learned that he was a tour guide. There were several canopy tours, a butterfly farm, National Park, gondola rides and rafting offered in the area and we thought we would enquire about pricing. Needless to say, it remained strictly an inquiry as the prices were so exorbitant that we did not even take time to consult each other before thanking the guide for his time. There was a tour that for a fleeting moment Geraldine considered going on. It was for a Serpentarium tour (Snake tour) and the thought of facing her greatest fear head on was tempting, but she kept the thought to herself until they had driven at least ten kilometres down the road. The last thing she wanted to do was let her feelings be known to Michael and have him immediately buy the tickets and make her go through the insane process of having a boa constrictor wrapped around her neck. No thank you.
 

West side of Lago Arenal.

As we left the information booth and headed toward 'Nilla, we were greeted by a friendly couple on bicycles. Rachelle and her husband were originally from Switzerland and were doing the same trip we are doing. The only difference being that they were riding bicycles; we thought we were being adventurous. They had started in Alaska and were on month fourteen of their trip. They were expecting to finish in another ten months. It was hard to imagine that we covered more ground and had reached the same spot in only six months. We briefly exchanged travel stories before wishing each other luck and heading our separate ways.
 

Michael the Monkey.

We arrived in La Fortuna and stopped just long enough to get some cash, fill up the gas tank and make sandwiches for lunch. We had been warned about the sky high prices in La Fortuna and were not interested in experiencing them first hand. The major attraction in La Fortuna is the active Volcan Arenal. Although hiking the area is not permitted, tours are taken out on a daily basis to watch the red hot lava flow down the side of the volcano. We had a quick look at the cloudy sky above us and decided that visibility would undoubtedly be poor, so we passed on staying in La Fortuna any longer.
 
Back on the highway, we decided to head for the town of Cahuita on the Caribbean coast. In order to get to the coast, we had to travel across multiple roads that a resembled a spider web on the map. We both took a deep breath and put pedal to the metal.

Volcan Arenal from a distance.

We just prayed that there would be a few road signs along the way to keep us on track. Surprisingly, we found our way without much hassle. We only turned around three times, which is about par for the course on any driving day.

Brahma Bull Ride!

When we reached the main road, Costa Rica Highway 32, we were set on heading to the Caribbean Coast to the port city of Puerto Limon. After hitting the roadside vegetable stands to pick up a few essentials, we passed a massive concrete Brahma bull and Michael could not resist jumping from the van and starting climbing on it. Wow, the child inside him is alive and kicking. After demanding a few pictures with his new friend, Michael finally agreed to climb down and get back to driving.

Mud River.

The highway to Puerto Limon was well paved and extremely busy. There were shipping yards filled with crates along both sides of the motorway and transport trucks outnumbered cars considerably on this stretch of road. We fell in line with all the other cars as passing on this windy two lane road is just asking for trouble. When we finally reached Puerto Limon, traffic came to a grinding halt. We inched our way down the main street and figured the slowdown was due to the tangled mess of transport trucks and buses that continually changed lanes jockeying for position. After nearly forty minutes of barely moving we reached our turn off toward Cahuita and it was here we discovered that the entire traffic backlog was due to minor car accident. In Central America, cars are not moved in any way following an accident until the police arrive. So, backed up traffic for miles in four directions was the result of following the rules. 
 

´Nilla on bridge over river.

We fuelled up at Texaco in Puerto Limon and cleaned off 'Nilla with the hose provided. It was nice to get some of the caked on mud and rain scum off the vehicle to get her shiny again. Back on the road, we got our first glimpse of the Caribbean Sea only five minutes outside Puerto Limon. The waved filled water rolled into the coast line steadily. A fine mist rose above the water and made it appear as is if it were raining from the ground up. The open air road quickly turned inland and we were behind the shelter of a tropical coastal forest. As the road followed the natural shape of the coastline, we got short sneak peaks of the changing beach and water scenery when we peered through the tall thin stalks of palm trees. There was little traffic and we cruised ever so slowly to take it all in.
 
By the time we rolled into Cahuita, the sun had started to set. Now it was time to find a camping area or essentially just a parking spot. We tried a few hotels; however the cheapest we could find was $5 without electricity and no use of bathrooms or showers. Making a complete loop of the small downtown core of Cahuita, we ended up back at the first hotel we had enquired at. Cabinas Palmer had agreed to let us use their parking lot, however did not have available bathrooms as their rooms were all fully rented. Thinking we could make due without facilities for one night, we rolled up to the man at the front door and agreed to take his parking spot. Before pulling 'Nilla in, we quickly asked if there was a chance we could connect to the hotel's electricity. We were thrilled when the answer was yes and even more thrilled when he told us that there would not be a charge for us to stay there. This was completely unheard of and we were floored by this kindness.
 
We parked 'Nilla as close to the building as possible and got to work finding an electrical outlet. Once that was located, we inserted our circuit tester. Neither one of us knew what to do when the red light lit up and told us that the hot and neutral were reversed in this outlet. After thinking about it for a while, we decided to plug in anyway. The proprietor was right on track with us and was convinced that it would all be fine. As Michael was in the process of plugging us into the outlet, the owner yelled out "NO!" Geraldine got wide-eyed and Michael immediately yanked the plug back out. We both looked at the man standing between us and were not too pleased to see that he was laughing uncontrollably at his great little prank. We did not hold this joke against him as it was rather funny and he did get us pretty good. Instantly, we all started laughing. After calming ourselves down a little, Michael continued to plug in the van and we were all happy to see that there was no explosion or fire as a result. Seeing as we were not being charged to stay at Cabinas Palmer, we thought we would support his business and use his internet café for an hour before retiring for the night. It was wonderful to have electricity as the van was hot and muggy and our Fantastic Fan provided us with much needed reprieve from the heat of the day.
 
The hunt for bathrooms began early on the morning of June 23, 2007. Luckily, it ended p being a very short hunt as the coffee shop directly across the road from Cabinas Palmer was open for business. We headed over and purchased a cup of coffee and glass of juice. For roughly $1, we each had a beverage and were able to use the facilities. Not a bad deal.
 
It was still early in the morning and not many shops were open yet, so we headed to the internet café and worked on replying to email. Once that was completed, we started our quest to find a laundry service that charged less than the $14 a load that was standard in La Fortuna and other areas around Lago Arenal. As luck would have it, we found a do-it-yourself service. Unfortunately, the shop was not open. A passer by informed us that the owner had gone to the weekly Reggae Party the night prior and was hung-over this morning. We were told to try back later in the afternoon. This would be a perfect time to have lunch and relax a while.
 
Having waited several hours, we wandered back to the laundry facility with dirty clothes in hand. The shop was now open and extremely busy. There were three computers on one wall that were all occupied by teenagers playing video games. There was a definite smell of laundry detergent in the air. We introduced ourselves to the French Canadian owner, Sebastian, and as we looked around, we saw that all three washing machines were in use. To boot, each machine was flanked by several baskets of laundry waiting its turn in the wash cycle. Obviously, Sebastian was a tad behind due to his unproductive morning and he asked that we return later in the day. Not wanting to drag our dirty laundry away, we simply piled it on the floor and departed from the laundry shop one more time.
 
Once again needing to occupy ourselves, we decided to stroll around Cahuita. The town is a major tourist destination and there were travelers here from everywhere. Cahuita is super laid back and locals and tourist alike leisurely strolled down the hard pack dirt streets. The little restaurants and coffee shops called 'Sodas' all seem to eek out a living even though they are plentiful in this small village. The bar scene is mellow on most days, however Saturday nights the speakers pump Reggae tunes loud enough to be heard in neighbouring villages, yet still the vibe remains friendly and sociable. Lining the village are numerous beautiful white and black sand beaches, however the water can be turbulent at the best of times and the rip tides are unforgiving. Some high-end gourmet restaurants have popped up along the main drag, however mainly serve to appease the appetites of the tourists staying at the four star hotel in town. The prices were high enough to keep us on the outside with the locals.
 
We happened across a dilapidated building with a weathered painted exterior for a tourist information man named Mister Big J. We simply figured his business dried up over the years, however as we walked further, we ran into the new and improved site for Mister Big J. Big J was a large man with a jovial and pleasant demeanour. The services he offered included hiking guides of Parque Nacional Cahuita, snorkelling and horseback riding along the beach and into the tropical forest. The prices were reasonable, however we learned that hiking with a guide was not mandatory and we opted to check it out on our own if the rain would let up. Still further along on our walking tour, we happened upon a sign indicating surf lessons. Michael was still keen on trying his hand at this water sport, so we ducked in and enquired about pricing. The instructor seemed very knowledgeable and the price was right, so we signed Michael up for his first surf lesson. Michael arranged to meet Renny first thing in the morning to catch some crazy waves. Hang Loose.
 
Before going back to the laundry shop, we stopped off at 'Nilla and had some dinner. We arrived at the laundry facilities around 7:00 pm and were pleased to see that the washing machines were all empty. We filled the three machines and sat back. The washing cycle took thirty five minutes each, however due to the humidity in the air; the drying process took much longer. It was not until 10:00 pm that we had washed, dried and folded all of our laundry. Feeling rather drained, we headed home and dozed off to the wonderful smell of fabric softener.