Random Beaches of Costa Rica

I feel the calling of the Caribbean, so my time on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica has come to an end. Prior to leaving I thought I would post some pics of the beautiful beaches I was able to visit and surf. 

 Tomorrow I am heading out for a long ride to the opposite side of the country to a little town called Puerto Viejo.  

Playa Nosara

Playa Samara

Playa Flamingo (near Tamarindo)

Playa Conchal (near Tamarindo)

Playa Flamingo

Playa Flamingo

Finding inner peace puts me to sleep

 Do people really read this stuff!

I have realized that finding inner peace may not be for me. I have started to read a book that millions have read and it just keeps putting me to sleep (give me my suspense and fiction novels any day). I really do not know where the author was leading to as far a meaning goes. And it looks like I will not find out as I have left the book in the hostel for another to discover. 

This easily could of happened to me if I did not put the book down in time. 

Instead I believe I will try and put myself in a good place by surrounding myself with 

tranquility

beautiful scenery 

and calmness

 But I am starting to realize that being somewhat in a state of inner-turmoil has its benefits.  It allows you to feel alive and prevents you from settling. 

And that suits me just fine!

Is someone trying to tell me something?

Shake, Rattle and Roll

It seems natural disasters are following me and I am not sure if these are signs I need to heed or just shit happens. I thought the last natural disaster I would need to deal with was my marriage, but it seems I have a few more left in the bag.

I have been away for only five months and I have already been evacuated from an Island in Belize for a hurricane. Had a volcano blow up on me in Antigua Guatemala, and now my first major earthquake in Costa Rica.

On Oct 23 the United States Geographical Survey reported the 6.6. magnitude earthquake's epicentre was 38 miles south of Liberia, at a depth of 11.8 miles. The earthquake occurred at 6:45 p.m. local time...

I have never been through an earthquake before, so at first I was not quite sure what it was. Originally it felt similar to when a large vehicle or train passes by and you can feel the ground shake. But then the ground started to shift violently back and forth. The best analogy I can use for this is when you were a kid walking through a fun house at a fair, and they make the floor shift back and forth so it is hard to keep your balance.

Interestingly enough none of these experiences have dampened my enthusiasm to travel. In fact it has had the complete opposite effect, as there is nothing more exciting then waking up everyday and not  knowing what is coming around the next corner! 

And I was worried about sharks

Well it seems I need to do better research of potential hazards when starting a new sport. From all the movies I have seen I always thought it was the shark that a surfer needed to worry about. 

Lets me just say that there is a new guy in town. 

Say Hello To The Saltwater Crocodile

Now they only reason I bring this up is because guess what I got to see swim by this morning while surfing with some friends at the river mouth of Tamarindo.

Mr. Croc decided to make an appearance at about 150ft away! I was just sitting there on my board floating looking out to sea and waiting for a set of waves, when at the top of a roller I see the back of the crock (which I now know are called pikes) and a quick swing of the tail. 

The first thing you need to understand is I really did not believe it at first because I swore crocodiles do not like salt water (guess who was way wrong)! After a bit of research and talking to locals it seems they can go out into salt water, but do need to return to clear there glands.

The above picture with the crocodile is from the internet, but you will notice the similarity of terrain to the picture I took below of the river mouth that we are surfing in Tamarindo.

Tamarindo River Mouth

I also found this excerpt from the tourism guide for Tamarindo and it explains why we are seeing them. From the below article it seems we are surfing exactly where they are and during prime crocodile season. 

The irony of it all is that is exactly where the best waves are. And we are not alone as others surf there as well.

On the other hand during the rainy season crocodiles tend to head towards the river mouths in search of food, mating or simply because the strong river currents drag them to the sea. Being highly territorial animals crocodiles are more aggressive than any other maritime life. The most important guideline to follow to keep you from being eaten by a croc is to avoid the surf spots, near the river mouths, during the rainy season. Surfers should also check for scutes (pikes) in the lineup before paddling out, never surf in a dangerous spot alone and in the case you see a croc (or shark) in the vicinity get close the other surfers, try to form a shape that appears as a bigger animal, remain calm and catch the first possible wave to get the hell out of there!

I always said the trip was going to be an adventure.

It's a dogs world

Being a huge dog lover I was concerned when I left that I would see a lot of dogs in despair throughout my travels. But the total opposite has occurred with the majority in fine shape. I have seen all kinds of wild roaming packs of dogs in towns, but you can almost see the smile on their faces as they do what they do best and that is be dogs.

The above two dogs are from the hostel I am currently at and as you can see they are living the dream! What better way to kill another rainy day then chill out on the couch. Pitbull's are not prohibited in Costa Rica as they are back home and Marie (the grey Pitbull) proves the statement that it is not the breed of dog that is dangerous but the owners themselves. Marie is the friendliest and cute as hell one year old dog with not a vicious bone in her body.

What has come as a complete shock to me is the lack of cats around? Before leaving I had made the assumption that I would see a lot of feral cats. I think I have seen a total of five cats to date so far! Seems it is more of a North American problem than Central America.

Crazy Costa Rican Colonies

$10,000 bill

One thing you need to prep for in each country is the exchange rate of your dollar versus the current country. By far Costa Rica wins hands down for the craziest exchange rate! Up until now I have had rates at 2:1, 7:1, 20:1 etc, but nothing as nuts as 480:1! It is like using monopoly money the rate is so far fetched. The largest bill I have had to date was a 20 MIL ($20,000 Colonies) which calculates to about $40 CDN/US 

Here is a prime example of how weird it is to use their money. This is one of my ATM machine withdrawals for $100,000! Even the transaction fee seems odd at $1513.00. I wish I had that much cash and credit limit.

Whens the last time you bought a beer at the bar for $2000!

Exiting customs in Nicaragua and entering Costa Rica was once again fairly easy in Central America terms, but you just shake your head at how inefficient the system and logistics are. To enter Costa Rica it took me about an hour and a half to be processed mainly due to all the running around they make you do. 

And because of this inefficiency you understand why you come across 3km of semi trucks lined up at the border waiting to be processed. If you order anything from Central America do not expect it anytime soon.

Fred catching some rays by the pool

Well after leaving San Juan del Sur in Nicaragua I did not have to travel far in Costa Rica to find another great place to chill for awhile. I have now landed in the town of Tamarindo where I found a great hostel called La botella de Leche (The bottle of milk).

United Nation Meeting

As mentioned in the past the best thing about staying in a hostile is the diverse crowd you meet. The best hostels have common areas where guests can interact and talk. The above picture was taken Friday night prior to the group heading out for a night out on the town. At this table alone we had the countries of Switzerland, Germany, Israel, Canada, USA, France and Costa Rica represented.

Even though all spoke English, it is great fun to sit back and listen while three or more foreign languages are being spoken at the same time.