Hola, and Buenos días! Our schedules have finally slowed down a bit here in Heredia. Last weekend we didn’t have an excursion or trip planned through Sol, so the girls and I planned our own trip, which was a lot more complicated than it sounds when you are just learning the language and you don’t know where to necessarily stay that is cheap and clean. We ended up going back to Manuel Antonio because we are at least somewhat comfortable with the area and kind of know some tricks on how to save money.
None of us has a car here, or would even want to attempt to drive, so figuring out how to get back to Manuel Antonio was a bit complicated. We not only had to find the best and most economical way to the beach, but we also had to decide on the best way to get to, in our case, the bus stop. Once we arrived in Quepos/Manuel Antonio, we had to decide how to get to our hostel and how to get from there to the beach.
We took the bus (which was sort of like a Greyhound) because it had the most options for departure, and a direct ticket to and from Quepos were only 4000 colones each (about $8 USD). But, we made the mistake of buying our departure ticket when we arrived in Quepos. Because of this, we couldn’t buy a ticket for the departure time we wanted, so we had to choose between leaving at 12 p.m. or 5 p.m. instead of 2:30. We didn’t want to arrive back in San Jose at 8, so we had to take the 12 bus, which didn’t leave us much time for the beach on Sunday, but now we know that we should try to buy our tickets ahead of time.
We were pretty lucky because Anna’s host dad had a van that was big enough to fit all of us and our weekend bags. He agreed to drive us to the bus station the morning that we left, so that saved us money on a taxi or trying to catch a bus in the morning. It was also nice because none of us really knew where the bus station was (we had been there to buy tickets, but we had gotten lost on our way there so it would have been almost impossible to find it again).
After arriving in Quepos, we found a taxi-van to bring us to the hostel where we were staying (I’ll talk more about that in a minute). We were lucky that we found a van because car taxis refuse to drive with more than 4 passengers because it’s a pretty big fine in Costa Rica to be caught with more passengers in your car than seatbelts. Then, for the rest of the trip, we took the public bus that ran from Quepos to the beach and made a stop near our hostel. It was only 240 colones per bus ride (about $.50 USD), so it didn’t cost us a lot of money and we ended up taking that bus back to the Quepos bus station on Sunday when we went home.
The five of us (Toya had other plans for the weekend, so she didn’t come along) had a tough time deciding between whether we wanted to stay at a hostel or a hotel. Since it was only one night, it really didn’t make much of a difference, but it was a hard decision. We knew of a hotel where it would have been $35 USD per person to stay for one night, but we found a hostel where we could rent a private cabin for the night for $20 USD per person. It was a draw either way because the cabin was a longer walk to the beach, so we would have to take a bus to get there every day, and the hotel was right across the street so we would be able to get there really quickly. We ultimately decided on the cabin because we would have a kitchenette and we would all be in one place instead of having two separate rooms at a hotel. The cabin was actually really nice, and we went to the grocery store to buy pasta and sauce and we made dinner instead of going out, which saved us some cash. We also bought materials for lunch the next day and some water, because you can’t drink the water at the beach, only in the Central Valley.
Even though we loved the cabin, I think we all wished that it had been closer to the beach. It was a neat experience, but I think that if we return, we will be staying at Coco Beach Hotel, which is just that much closer and that much more convenient. It’s too bad that Coco Beach doesn’t have a kitchenette because if we could stay there and be able to cook our own meals, the $15 difference would really equal out.
All in all, we spent a lovely weekend at an incredible beach for about $65 USD, which I think anyone from the States can agree, is a pretty sweet deal. Since it went pretty smoothly, I think now we have more confidence in planning trips to new places. Plus, Janiva can always help us with details like hotels and tips on saving money. She really is a pretty invaluable asset.
When I arrived home on Sunday night, I was greeted by a birthday party for my host mom. The entire family was over, along with her sister, sister’s husband, and their two children. It was a fun night and we had a really delicious dinner of what I more or less can describe as seasoned tenderloin tips, a vegetable called yucca which is kind of potato-y, and tortilla shells. We also had an incredibly delicious birthday cake that had three layers, chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. We also watched the Costa Rica/Honduras soccer game and sat around and talked. It was nice meeting some more members of the family.
Organic Coffee Farm
On Wednesday, we went to an organic coffee farm, where we learned about the difference between organically grown and chemically grown coffee and fruit. Being the coffee-fiend that I am, it was really interesting to learn about the process and the different growing methods. The farm we went to was a small coffee farm owned by a Costa Rican professor who specializes in organic growth. We were lucky enough to have the opportunity to actually go out into the coffee forest and pick coffee beans from the trees.
After harvesting some coffee beans, he brought us back to the main house and we all had some coffee, including Anna, who doesn’t usually like it. We learned about the traditional Costa Rican method for making coffee, which involves no electricity, which is why the coffee tastes less bitter, and why Anna actually didn’t mind it. Basically, there is a stand, either metal or wooden, that has a small cloth or netted bag at the top where you put the ground coffee. Then, you place a pitcher or cup underneath the bag and pour boiling water over the grounds. The coffee is filtered through the cloth and you get a pot of piping hot coffee. It was really interesting to learn about the traditional method, and it is cost effective if you want to spend less money on electricity (not that a coffee maker really requires that much electricity).
I know it’s taken me a while to get this posted and I’m sorry! I’ll include everything from Friday, Jan. 28 and on in my next post!
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