Part 3 of 4
February 6, 2023
Day 9 & 10: Carara National Park, an Evening at a Beach Bar on Jaco Beach, and Traveling Back to San Jose
Today we will do our final activity for the group portion of the trip. The group is headed to Carara National Park, where we will do a short hike and hopefully see some wildlife. We get an early start and are thankful for it due to the heat. Carara is a lush “transitional” forest — a place where the forest transitions from “tropical dry” to “tropical rain” and is one of the few places in Costa Rica where this transition is so evident.
We begin the hike as a group and I have to admit, it is less of a “hike” and more of a naturalist walk. Our guide, Catalina, is super knowledgeable and she eagerly shares information about local wildlife and plant life, and about her culture and country. While this is super interesting, after about an hour I’m really itching to stretch my legs and move a bit. I ask if its ok if I leave the group and hike ahead, and Lisa, another group member, joins me. We add an additional loop to the hike for some extra mileage and meet the rest of the group back at the visitors center to head to lunch.
The group votes to have lunch at a beachside restaurant in Herradura before heading back to Jaco for the evening. I decide to splurge and order oysters, because there’s no better place to eat oysters than while looking at the sea. They are delicious, but expensive. I want more than six, but don’t want to pay for more, so I order fish tacos as my main course, as well as some margaritas because the special is 2 for 1!
Back in Jaco, I spend some time cooling off in the room before heading to the hotel bar to have a few beers. I chat with Jose and Ephrain, the two bartenders, about their lives in Costa Rica over a few Imperials: the national beer. This evening we will have our farewell dinner at the hotel before going to bed. I eat with the group but then find myself exhausted, maybe from the heat, and go to sleep early. The rest of the group is either leaving tomorrow or staying in Jaco a few more days; I’m heading into San Jose on the shuttle with the folks who are leaving.
February 7, 2023
I awake super early this morning, probably because I’m pretty sure I fell asleep at 9pm last night. I kill some time on my phone waiting for a more reasonable hour to get up and start packing my things so I don’t wake Bunny too early.
Once we are both awake, I pack my things up and prepare to leave the hotel before breakfast. I’m heading to San Jose today, but Bunny is staying in Jaco. She and another group member, Rea, were supposed to come to San Jose with me today and go whitewater rafting, but they’ve both decided to stay in Jaco instead so I’ll be flying solo from here on out.
I head to breakfast and then those of us who are taking the bus to San Jose meet in front of the lobby to bid farewell to the others and begin our journey. I enjoy chatting with the others and the two-hour drive passes quickly. As I’m preparing to disembark at the airport, Catalina tells me that she and Tino, our driver, can take me to my hostel so that I don’t have to get a shuttle or Uber. I’m thrilled to not have to bother with that and thank them profusely. They drop me off right at the entrance to the hostel and I bid them both farewell.
Check in at the hostel isn’t until 3pm, so I ask the front desk to store my luggage. I take my laptop to a table in their on-site restaurant and bar. I plan to have a few drinks and lunch here while catching up on my journaling, emails, etc. I order a Green Pineapple drink and when it arrives, it is the most delicious drink I’ve ever had! It’s made with Guaro, a local liquor that has become my favorite Costa Rican alcohol. I have two drinks and some nachos, then kill time until I can check into my room. I’m thankful to get to choose a bottom bunk and I lie down for a nap. I plan to attend a Welcome Meeting at 5pm for new visitors, so I set an alarm and drift off for a bit.
When my alarm goes off an hour later, I’m groggy and almost decide not to head downstairs for the meeting. But my fomo gets the best of me so I drag myself up and go anyway. There are several travelers from all over the world at the meeting: a couple of guys from Switzerland, a woman from Australia, a couple from Belgium, and a few from the US. We all introduce ourselves and have a drink together while two hostel employees, Sophia (who is Costa Rican), and Carina (who is Puerto Rican) tell us about the hostel, its roots, and the activities they offer. This evening there will be a yoga class with wine, and then a salsa dancing class. While I’d love to attend either of these, I decide not to and instead have an early dinner at the restaurant and return to my room to pack.
I’m in a shared four-bunk dorm and am leaving at 0600 tomorrow, so I need to be packed and ready to go in order to minimize noise and disruption to my bunk mates in the morning. Tomorrow I’m heading out for an overnight whitewater rafting trip and I’m STOKED! This will be my first time experiencing whitewater in a foreign country.
Adventure Like A Girl 