Monteverde to Manuel Antonio
We check out early and head straight for the local Monteverde Cafe of the same organisation where we did the tour, since we liked what they were about. We grab a light breakfast of granola and yoghurt and fruit and the coffees that go with them are the best of the trip.
We fill up the car (about $65 for 3/4 of a tank) and aim for Manuel Antonio which is down the Pacific Coast. We have no idea what to expect from the roads, but our guess is it could be tricky. Google maps is talking about a flood zone or something. We can see that one road has a red block cross through it, saying its out of action.
The trip down the mountain was beautiful, but yes, some of the roads were shocking. There were even some raised eyebrows from the road workers (dealing with landslides and potholes) as we crawl past. We're thinking "how the hell is this the main road between two tourist towns?". We have to stop for about 15 minutes at a major bridge which is down to one lane.
We pull off the main highway (the roads got better in the end) and into a small town know for its crocodile viewings. We can see why, we've entered a swap. It's the hottest part of the day (mid morning while the sun is still up) and we're baking. The roads are borderline unusable without a 4x4 and we're wondering where we've ended up here. And is there going to be a soda we'd want to eat at? We realise the answer is "no" and back out of this backwater town. As we're leaving someone is trying to sell us a boat tour - "we can leave right now, tell me how much you want to pay". It's the first hint that we're in the "low season", other than the afternoon rains.
We stop at Jaco, a large resort looking town on the coast which reminded us of Da Nang in Vietnam. It seemed pretty quiet. We had a nice fresh lunch at a place where you can make your own poke bowl.
We drive by about 20kms of palm plantations (lets assume it's all sustainable and above board...) as it starts to rain and we get to Quepos, the small town at the foot of the mountains where we are staying which is home to Manuel Antonio National Park.
Every small town we've been through has a soccer pitch, usually in the middle of the town. Quepos is no exception. It's bleechers are right next to the roads running through the town. It would be cool to see what game day looks like.
We get to our accommodation which like all the rest has been impressively constructed into the side of this mountain and is surrounded by thick forest. We quickly realise we're the only residents at the place. The lady tells us she's off on a month holiday as of tomorrow, the kitchen closes tonight and the hotel shuts in a few days for a month. That's OK in our book, it means they gave us a primo room with 180 degree views. The money shot view is at the restaurant, which we will have to ourselves later on.
The lady also wonders how our drive was considering one of the main roads has been closed. Ah, that explains some things. Some guests who checked in yesterday took hours longer than us to make same journey, so we still got lucky.
We drop our bags and head straight back out. We're keen to see the beach at the bottom of our road (Playa Biesanz). We crawl down the mountain and park the car. It's a scrambley 5 minute walk to the beach and it's beautiful. A few people are hanging out but it's quiet. Two boys are fishing, water birds are dive bombing. Jeff doesn't feel the need to get in so we head back and over to a better beach for walking and taking in the sourundings.
Playa Espadilla is also quiet and it's starting to rain. It's not cold though so we walk towards the point. We grab a coconut for $3 from a vendor who is not doing a great trade today. We are proposed a surf lesson (in rainy 1 foot waves? Nar, mate). We reach the point and spot a surfboard with a sign on it. "No swimming, crocodiles". Well that's interesting.
We head back to the villa via the supermarket for morning breakfast supplies (we're up early for a nature walk tomorrow) and a 6-pack of Imperial (it's raining and our balcony has a view).
We park up and have a beer and enjoy the sunset and the forest from our balcony, spotting some scarlet macaws cruising aroud and landing in trees quite close to us. They are seriously spectacular birds.
We move to the restaurant and have a long chat with the only staff member. She gives us lots of information as we chat about anything and everything. She's off to Alabama tomorrow. First time she's been oversees in decades. Some guests who have stayed here a few times have paid for her to come visit. How nice.
The chef is doing his last meal for the season and he makes it a good one. Korean style pork tacos and his own beef burger with massive hand cut chips.
We say our goodbyes to the staff and call it a night.
