On the way to Manual Antonio we crossed this crocodile filled river Tarcoles.

Like at Arenal Volcano we arrived at Manual after dark and as a result were disoriented as to the direction of the ocean. Mike and I walked down along a poorly lit, asphalt road with no sidewalks and lots of blind curves to get the beach. It was definitely not the safest mode of transit; but I was really excited to see the Pacific Ocean for the first time and I wore Carrie’s really cool headlamp. When we got to a restaurant with palm trees and tables on the sand we took off our shoes and walked across the smooth sand to the sea. Warm waves gently splashed our ankles as we took turns using my headlamp to follow movement on the beach and discover little crabs and other critters. After about an hour we strolled back up the risky winding road to our Hotel up on the bluff. I love going to sleep listening to ocean waves and smelling salt.

This is the view from our hotel room when I awoke the next morning.

Mom had had aspirations of rising with the sun at 5 AM and searching for monkeys but we didn’t get up until about 6 AM. Our hotel advertised having more monkeys than people. But I think that this claim is more of a gimmick. My mom was a little disappointed.

Instead of spying monkeys we went bird watching. Mom bought a guide and I had fun teaching her bird calls like that of the Great Kiskadee (sp?) and other species.

I really enjoyed sharing what I had learned. We saw various hummingbirds, blue-gray Tanagers, parakeets, a Blue Crowned Mot Mot and other birds. I’m excited that she is going to use what she learned in Costa Rica to teach a week long Rainforest themed summer camp. I’ve been collected art and ideas for her feel free to post any of your ideas for fun projects.

After breakfast, we ventured into Manual Antonio National Park where we saw critters like this raccoon who was licking his chops after stealing a tourist’s lunch. Mom snapped this adorable shot.

Though I wanted to slowly mosey through the park, Mom was a woman on a mission: On a mission to see a monkey! I was really nervous that we wouldn’t find any because we had not seen any thus far and she was disappointed about missing the Quetzels. I was really glad that she got to get so close to the munching raccoon. I stole the paper bag lunch away from him and put in the trashcan because wildlife are meant to be wild and not eat processed fatty food. Autopsies of monkeys that died earlier than normal revealed excess fat deposits in their livers that were probably a result of the burgers and other food they are given by tourists. PLEASE DO NOT FEED THE MONKEYS!

Midway through the National Park we decided to stop and enjoy this beautiful beach that was still empty of people. Photo by Mike.

Though the Pacific Ocean is not as clear as the Caribbean, it is still astoundingly beautiful. We hung our bags and towels up on driftwood under a palm tree and starting exploring. We wore goggles in the water because unlike back home in Ocean City, Maryland you can actually see your feet when you stand in waist deep water. At one point a school of little yellow fish swam around Mike and me. On the beach everyone had fun catching hermit crabs. Mike picked up the largest one he could find to go show my mom but after taking 5 steps he was only holding an empty shell. The crab had decided to abandon ship.

This is hermit crab crawls across my Dad’s shirt after jumping out of its shell.

After soaking in the sun we decided to tackle another trail. Along this one we found what we had been waiting for! Monkeys!

This older female White-throated Capuchin meandered around breaking off dead bark to eat the bugs underneath for about a half hour. Photo by Mom –yes I should have brought my camera!

It was thrilling to stand and watch her ignore us and just go about her own monkey business. I love how her hands look just like ours and how she uses her tail to balance and grab hold of branches. The capuchins have such lovely faces. They look like little old men. Further down the path we ran into a family with three babies. It was so cute watching them jump through the trees and chase each other around. While there I met another American Undergrad who was spending a semester in Costa Rica researching the monkey’s relation to people. She has been following the family around and recording their various behaviors. We were both very jealous of each others experiences. I should have gotten her contact info but Mike was getting anxious about being late for horseback riding.

Mike rides his horse Pajaro.

Though the horses had chipped hooves and some cuts which made me question their treatment, we still went for a wonderful ride. First we road passed a white faced monkey as we descended on a steep path just as wide as the horses feet. Then we padded across the beach. We had to put up quite a fight to convince my Mom to come along because she kept claiming to be too old. Baloney. Because of her fear we only traveled at a slow walk. But it was still breathtakingly beautiful. We saw Pelicans in the surf. After traveling the length of Manuel Antonio public beach we ascended into the tropical rainforest. I picked a hibiscus and stuck it behind my ear. One of our guides said, “Que Linda!” (which means, “How pretty!”) and plucked one and tuck it into his mare’s mane. Above in the tree we saw a three-toed sloth and to our right we saw Howler Monkeys. We also saw another Blue crowned Mot Mot and I taught our guides some wildlife names in English.

I think it wasn’t very sanitary that they just left the horse manure on the beach, but I had such a great experience. Upon descending back down from the rainforest, we saw a sunset wedding on the beach. I asked our guide if it was ok if we went a little faster. He smiled and said, “Si.” Mike and I raced down the beach as the sun set over the Pacific. Unfortunately, Dad’s Pinto didn’t want to miss out on the fun so he joined in on the race. We heard him shout, “Woah, woah!” and thought he was having fun, until his yells became more frantic so then we stopped and his horse followed suit. Dad had quite an exciting ride.

While heading down the beach a beagle ran in front of his horse and started barking. To stop the dog from pestering his Pinto my Dad tried to squirt it with ice cold water from his bottle. Accidentally, he shot his horse and out of surprise it bucked up on its back legs. I’m so glad Dad didn’t fall off. Mom’s horse was the both the fastest and the gentlest so she luckily had a calm ride.

Walking back from horseback riding we encountered this charming little crab.

There were many of these crabs flattened to the asphalt road. Mike tried to scare it away from the road and the little guy aggressively snapped his claws as he was fleeing backwards into the drainage ditch.

My parents and Mike enjoy the sunny weather at Manuel Antonio beach.

While we played in the water, dozens of Nicaraguans roamed the beach trying to sell homemade pottery. My mother bought two and Mike bought one from a 14-year-old teenager who said his name was Manuel Antonio. I’m not sure if that was a coincidence or a half truth. He was very charming with his broken English. We got a kick out of when he told us “Hasta la vista, baby!” Arnold style after we purchased his wares.

There is a tense situation between the Nicaraguans in Costa Rica similar to that of the Mexicans in the United States. Poor Nicaraguans cross the border into Costa Rica in search of work. Though, they will fill jobs that many Costa Ricans won’t deign to take such as picking coffee and working at banana plantations, Costa Ricans see them as a threat to their job security. The Nicaraguans are looked down upon because they have a tendency to be crasser and more violent than the peaceful Costa Ricans. They are also considerable more aggressive in selling their wares. Several vendors came up to our breakfast table and interrupted our meal. In contrast, the Costa Ricans wait patiently at their stands and only address you if you have a question or make eye contact.

After Manuel Antonio we traveled back “home” to Atenas where everyone stayed in Ana’s Place, a hotel owned by my host mom’s sister. Everyone had fun holding and playing with the gentle parrots. Before dinner we all stopped at my host mom’s house. She served fresh watermelon, pineapple, and papaya which we graciously accepted. I loved playing translator. Miriam, my host mom, speaks no English so when she asked what everyone thought of Costa Rica my Dad used body language to signal that visiting Arenal Volcano, Monteverde, and Manuel Antonio was like sampling each of the three fruits; he enjoyed his small tastes but was not full. The funniest moment of the night was when I was trying to communicate to Miriam that Poas Volcano where I was supposed to stay for my directed research had had a small eruption. She didn’t understand my explanation until my Dad summoned forth a mighty belch. Then she laughed and knew exactly what we were talking about.

Before heading back to the hotel we stopped at the neighborhood Pulperia (convenience store) to buy drinks and Snickers bars. I didn’t tell them until after we finished our purchase that the woman who ran the small stand was mute. She was born deaf and as a result never developed the ability to speak. Because of the language barrier they never even noticed her handicap. She can now hear with the help of an electronic aid. If she had gotten it when she was younger, she wouldn’t be mute today. Technology can have some powerful impacts on the quality of people’s lives. It amazes me how people can express themselves in ways other than words. Burps, props, and body language can say a lot. But for me language and communication are power. I strive to improve my Spanish and now I really want to learn Japanese.

As always, thank you for reading.

Pura vida,

Tammy