Costa Rica - A Trip to a Volcano

Costa Rica is home to over 60 volcanoes with six of them active. The one with the classic volcano shape is Arenal but it's over 3 hours from us so we decided to check out Rincon de la Vieja instead. The ride there ended up being about 2 hours and it was all paved which was a bonus. Google got us most of the way there but it eventually tried to take us into an open pasture where there was a broken down bus. Kerry was smart enough not to follow and after asking for directions we made it to our destination.

When we got to the parking lot we had two options. The national park was above us and there was also advertising for a waterfall below us. Our destination was the national park so we checked that out first. There was a $15 US per person entry fee which was kind of steep but the trail itself was very well maintained. Probably too maintained since it was concrete with steps rather than a hike through the rain forest. Their goal was obviously to keep people on the trails as much as possible. It was about 4km total when you include all the side trips to see the various vents, mud pits and water falls.

One of our bucket list items for Costa Rica was to see a really nice water fall. It's dry season right now so the waterfalls in the national park were mostly dry. We went back to the parking lot and went down to the building that was advertising a waterfall. This one is on private land and there was another $10 fee. I hope all these fees are ending up in a good place. The waterfall was about a 10 minute walk through a well established path. The final stretch is over a 100 foot cable bridge with a 300 kg limit.

Once we crossed the bridge we came across one of the nicest waterfalls I've ever seen. Only about 100 people can be in the area at a time and the water falls down a single chute from the rocks above. There is a pool that ranges from about a foot deep to 10 feet deep and you can even climb behind the waterfall. There are signs that indicate no swimming and flash floods however that is for people that break in when the area is closed for the wet season. There was a ladder down to the water which was cool and crystal clear.

The drive home was fairly uneventful with the exception of a team of horses that was being driven down the road by some cowboys. They had pretty good control of them but had some trouble with one in particular that they had to lasso and drag along with them. It's fun seeing all the animals on the road but we also had to witness the drawback as about 30 minutes later there was a traffic jam on the main highway and a poor horse that had been hit by a vehicle. Drive slowly in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica - A Trip to the Sailing Centre

After our long day yesterday we stuck close to home today. The Costa Rica Sailing Centre is across the street from us and offers kayaks, boogie boards and small sailboats for rent. We rented a double kayak and a boogie board and Kerry and Callie were the first to attempt the kayak. It was low tide and the waves were breaking quite irregularly. Some were very small and others were a few feet tall as they hit shore. I'm glad that one of the rental guys came to help them because my plan for getting them into the water was unlikely to be successful.

I was planning on just shoving them out in between waves and telling them to paddle really fast. This might have worked however since the waves were unpredictable they may have ended up heading right into the one shown above. It was better to push them out past the waves and release them from waste deep water. Coming back they got lucky and paddled ashore right in between waves. Carter and I were not so lucky and were almost swamped. We both leaned in to the wave and surfed it into shore.

We still had a bit of time left after kayaking with the boogie board. The waves were big enough to push you towards shore but not so big that you could truly surf them. Callie tried first but she soon got distracted by the many beach dogs that were coming down to the water to cool down. My favourite was the one that looked like the dog from Pirates of the Caribbean. Put some keys in his mouth and he looked just like him. He really enjoyed getting his head scratched.

Our only other excursion was to Perlas for dinner. It's an open air bar and tonight was BBQ night. Well, maybe every night is BBQ night but since it was our first time I can make it sound like it was something unusual. The atmosphere was a bit unusual because it was Bingo night. Well, maybe every night is Bingo night but since it was our first time I can make it sound like it was something unusual. All the patrons were crowded into the bingo area and from what I could tell, some kid kept trying to steel the bingo balls.

Costa Rica - A Trip to Diamente Eco Adventure Park

Well, we found the rough roads I had heard about. Today's excursion was to an eco adventure park listed as '20 minutes away' by Google. In reality it took our small compact rental car about 45 minutes to get there. The road we took was good in some places but there were several hills that had not been graded recently and were steep and full of pot holes. We managed to work our way around them with one exception when we bottomed out as we were travelling along a dry river bed. We were quite relieved when we made it back to a skinny paved road.

Diamente is located north of us right on the ocean. There were several different options for activities and we picked the one that let us try zip lining. None of us have ever been though Kerry has had more than one opportunity in the past. Heights are not her favorite thing. There are five zip lines at the park and they started us on the smallest one. I think there was a bit too much going on at the start when we were getting our harness, helmet and gloves on because Callie decided last minute that she didn't want to go.

The rest of us got in line for the platform. They sent us down in pairs and since there were three of us I went first on my own. Carter was starting to look like he was going to be the next to drop out and I wasn't sure if Kerry was going to go so I made sure I didn't scream as I was going. I've always had it in my head that there would be a sudden acceleration but it was really just a slow ramp up. The scary part is at the end as you are breaking. You come in with speed. I was expecting a long wait for Kerry and Carter but they followed quickly though I could hear Kerry screaming the whole way down.

The next zip line was about 500 feet up and instead of going down sitting up you went 'superman' style. We decided this was our limit though in hindsight I think next time I would do it. They took us by bus up to the starting point and I think the road up was scarier than the actual zip line. When we got back Kerry managed to have Callie's zip line ticket turned into horseback riding. Callie got to go on a one hour tour and since it was still early in the day she was the only person other than the guide.

While Callie and Kerry were off with the horses, Carter and I checked out the animal sanctuary. We were excited to find one of our favourite Costa Rica animals, a basilisk. These guys have webbed feet that lets them run on water. There were also crocodiles, jaguars, monkeys, iguanas and sloths. The enclosures were all very well done though the cats all looked a bit chubby. Our only regret was that we should have done the last two zip lines after super man because at the last one you got to walk over a rickety bridge with crocodiles while still in your harness. Next time.

Our park ticket included a buffet lunch and we got a great table over looking the ocean. Lunch included, chicken, pizza, fries, tacos chips, grilled plantains, pork ribs and plenty of juice to re-hydrate us. After we were done we all went down to the animal sanctuary for the sloth feeding. My favourite part was when the daddy sloth would wait for them to fill the water dish and then he would take a three hour nap in it. Fun fact from Carter. Sloths only poo once a week and they like to come all the way down to the ground to do it.

After the sloth feeding and some more time spent with the frogs, butterflies and snakes we walked down to the beach to go kayaking and snorkeling. Unfortunately it was much to rough to do either so we set up in the hammocks overlooking the beach. Five minutes in, one of the staff had to tell us that there were a whole family of monkeys in the trees right above us. They were very docile in the heat and most were draped over branches like towels. There were several mommies and babies as well.

Our final destination at the park was the 'Cultural Experience'. It was a garden of mangoes, papayas, coffee and cocoa with a wooden building in the middle. We were there for the 3:00p tour and ended up being the only group for most of it. The guide started with having the kids crush some sugar cane before we went inside to try a sample of the juice. He then roasted coffee on the stove and brewed a cup for Kerry and Callie. They don't usually like straight coffee but indicated it was quite delicious and much less bitter than what they are used to.

The guide then proceeded to show us how to make chocolate from raw ingredients. This included the process of taking the sugar cane juice to make sugar followed by the process of picking, drying, shelling and grinding the chocolate. We each got to make our own mix of chocolate nibs, ground chocolate, cane sugar and milk powder followed by a bit of hot water. It was delicious.

Our ride home was much less dramatic. It took about 15 minutes longer but was fully paved.

Costa Rica - A Trip to Tamarindo

So far the roads in Costa Rica are much better than I was expecting. As long as you don't get stuck behind a bus, don't want to turn around and can keep your vehicle on the road at all times. The travel times on Waze and Google are much slower than the distance would seem to indicate so I was expecting rough roads and even dirt roads. Turns out the roads we've been on so far have been well paved but they are narrow with no shoulder and most of the bridges are one way so you really have to pay attention.

The main roads run along the coast and we started by heading north from our condo. We found more cows and lots of smaller local markets before we attempted to turn around. This is where the narrow roads with no shoulder come into play. It was not easy finding a spot to turn around so we did a bit more exploring then planned. When we did get turned around our destination was Tamarindo to the south of us. We knew in advance that it was more of a tourist town and I will admit is probably the most tourist centric town I have ever been to. Gift shops everywhere and street vendors selling necklaces and bird whistles. This was exactly what Carter was looking for. I think we hit every gift shop in a KM and he worked with Kerry to bargain with a street vendor for a few bird whistles. We think he got a good deal.

We spent a bit of time walking on the beach and found a nice open air food court for lunch and dessert at a chain called Pops that had been recommended to us. Both were great!

On our way back we stopped at another beach called Playa Grande. Each beach we've been to has been quite unique. This one was big, flat and windy which made for a good place for what I am fairly certain were mostly beginner surfers. The waves broke really close to shore and I don't think I saw anyone get up on their board in front of us, though there was a group farther down to the left us that looked like they were having better luck. It was mostly open to the sun with the exception of a small area of palm trees. A perfect area to read a book.

We have several views from our condo. The pool is on one side and we can see the ocean from the other once you look past a local gathering spot. Every night we've been here people show up just after dark, turn on a single bright LED light and play soccer. The picture here shows them wetting down the dirt to keep the dust down. It's a very controlled game of mostly passing since I don't think they like having to chase the ball into the adjacent lots. It's clear why soccer is a universal sport. A ball and a flat space is all you need.

Costa Rica - A Day at the Beach

We started our day by driving to Playa Conchal beach. It's about a 20 minute drive from our condo and we had been told it is made out of sea shells rather than volcanic sand. As we arrived we had multiple locals waiving signs at us pointing at where we needed to park. This seemed like trouble. The guy closest to us was very insistent but the guy farther away had a spot under a tree. We went with the tree and 2000 colons later we had our parking spot. Not really sure how official this parking zone was but our car was still there when we got back.

The beach was about a km away from where we parked but as far as we could tell we were as close as we could get. We knew we were in the right place because we could see the white beach from afar. We walked over a dark sand beach and over a small ridge and came upon a little piece of paradise. You could see coral reefs in the water, shells and white sand and there was even a couple large lizards. I had to go back to the car to get Kerry's phone so was a bit slower than the rest of the family. Carter is not happy that I saw the lizards and he didn't.

The beach signs warned of rip tides and if it was wavier I can definitely see that as a problem. Kerry and Carter spent their time in the water and every few waves one would drag them down off the beach deeper into the ocean. The tide was also coming in and it was a good thing I moved our stuff higher up into the trees. There were several big waves that sent groups near us scrambling to get their bags before they were swept out to sea. It was rather comical watching one sun bather as they slowly inched farther up the beach only to be swamped by a large wave.

After getting showered back at the condo we booked a table at "The Beach House" restaurant nearby. It was actually available on Open Table for booking. It was walking distance but we still hadn't figured out how to walk down to the beach near our condo so we walked alongside the road. This area is great however the roads are skinny and there really isn't a lot of space to walk. We didn't come across any cows during our walk but they were were everywhere when we were driving around earlier in the day.

We had booked our table at 4:30p so we could take advantage of happy hour. We did not need to book. We were the first group to arrive and only two other families showed up while we were there. The restaurant is right on the beach and we got our pick of tables. The prices were in American so it wasn't super cheap but the food was good and you couldn't beat the view. There were boats in the bay and pelicans fishing. My favourite pastime right now is watching some little black birds eating on the beach. They walk as close as they can and then scurry away when a wave comes.

We noticed some families were arriving from the direction of the beach so we chose to walk back that way rather than along the road. Our hope was that we could find the entrance from the beach side. The other bonus was that we got to see the sunset. It's always nice being on the west side of any tropical location as you can see the sun set over the water. We found our entrance and discovered some more local shopping. All set for the rest of our trip.

Costa Rica - Getting There

It's an unusual start to Spring Break for the Schwab family this year. Not because we're going to Central America, not because we had to get shots before we left and not because we are going somewhere that we don't have to pay for our hotel. It's unusual because we got to leave out of YVR! Ordinarily we jump in a car and drive to our destination or we drive to the States to catch our flight. Our flight for Toronto left at 11:00p and was scheduled to arrive in Toronto at 6:20a for our 7:20a flight for Costa Rica. We were a bit late leaving and despite Kerry's frequent questions to multiple stewardesses about whether we should be concerned, we were assured we had plenty of time. We were a bit relieved when I discovered that our flight to Costa Rica was delayed by 10 minutes. This relief was quickly dashed when we heard over the speakers that 'If you are catching a flight to Liberia, Costa Rica, please rush!" We got off the plane and the desk agent had a sign that said 'Please rush to your Liberia Flight".

We rushed! We were stuck at the back of the plane for 10 minutes un-boarding. We got stuck behind a security incident. We were stuck behind a mob that rushed the security gate when it cleared. We got stuck at a checkpoint that made us scan our ticket to get through. We were almost eaten by the worst airport walkway I've ever been on. We arrived at our gate just as they were giving all the delinquent travelers a last call over the PA system including our names. We made it! For all that rushing it still took us 45 minutes to take off waiting at the gate and getting deiced.

We arrived in Liberia, Costa Rica about an hour behind schedule but it was before lunch and we had no real plans for our arrival day. I'm not sure if it was because of the size of our plane but they dropped us off on the tarmac instead of one of the gates and we walked to immigration. We were on an older Air Canada plane and there were quite a few older couples already dressed for the beach so the whole experience felt a bit like we had actually arrived in 1990. It took us a bit of time to find the shuttle to our rental car. I don't recommend Ace for Liberia. The shuttle was very infrequent.

We've been to Maui and Florida as a family but this was the first time the kids had been to Central America. Our plan was to stock up on a few necessities in Liberia before heading to the condo and although it's not very adventurous, our first destination was the local Walmart. We have no idea what to expect in Costa Rica so our hope was going somewhere familiar first would ease us in. It was not as familiar as I was expecting. It's very difficult to figure out what kind  of meat is in a hot dog on a normal day let alone trying to translate from Spanish and figure out which one is 'All Beef'.

We knew in advance that Google wasn't a great map service for this area but I had forgotten to download Waze onto Kerry's phone so I tried Google anyways. It took us on a very interesting local tour of some back allies before getting us going in the right direction.

We arrived at our Condo just before dinner and spent the evening getting comfortable and checking out the pool. We haven't seen any monkeys yet but there is a family of mourning doves on one of the posts on our deck. I was out last night shining my camera light in their faces. They didn't seem to upset and they are still there the next morning. They are pretty big so I expect they will be gone before we leave.

Hopefully we find monkeys today!

Carter's Science Fair

I only recall doing science fair once as a kid. I grew bean plants and subjected them to various forms of music. I still recall that Jazz was their favourite. I was hoping that Carter would do Science Fair last year since they traditionally open it up for grade four students, however his teachers decided that Grade 4 is 'not mature enough'. Not sure I agree with that. Carter and I disagreed so profusely that we did our own science fair last year. We used various kinds of solvents to melt things. Our favourite was lego and styrofoam in acetone.

I was hoping for a better decision from his teacher this year and I was initially disappointed. Carter came home with the task of selecting an experiment that he could do in 90 minutes at school. Initially I thought this was just a practice for his real science fair project but we both soon learned that science fair was in a mere two weeks and what we chose was his project. This mean no time to grow plants or anything that took any amount of time.

I say initially disappointed because as it turned out Carter was definitely able to make the best of an undesired situation. He picked a fairly interesting topic and his teachers were quite impressed with his scientific approach to selecting an eco-friendly laundry detergent. His presentation was excellent and his experiment was very sound. He did the vast majority of the work on his own at school and when it came time for judging at the school science fair he managed to get top 5 for the school. The judges were very impressed with how well he presented his findings, both visually and verbally. Top 5 meant he got to go to the district science fair and once again his judges were impressed with how well he spoke. They don't award winners and instead everyone gets either gold, silver or bronze. He managed to come away with a Gold!!! Just to be on the safe side we're already thinking about projects for next year. We will have plenty of time to do something interesting.