I did hike from La Fortuna to Monteverde. I made it – from the rainforest to the cloud forest. The first 30minutes were easy – the only difficulty: there was no path; we walked through knee-high grass and then through a river. It did not look that deep at first, but the current was very strong, and it was deeper than expected. Gladly my camera in my backpack survived, I was only wet to my hips and my belly as I slipped and dipped my whole front into the cold water.
We then entered into the rainforest – hot and humid – and the path just had one direction, and that was up, up, up. I hoped that behind every next corner the hill is over, but it was not for the next 3hours. Every time we reached a flat part, it took only a few meters until the climb started again. I could not tell whether my shirt is still wet from the river or from my sweat.
The rainforest is incredible, the birds, the sounds, the plants. Our tour guide even made a little performance with a snake around his neck. I learned „black on yellow – is a friendly fellow; black on red – you will be dead“. The snake was only yellow and black, so no danger for us.
I tend to fall – I always fall. So I also slipped on the first day on the mud, and I landed directly with my ass on a root. My black trousers were, of course, totally ripped open. On top of that, I decided that morning to wear my white panty – white! So my fellows had now a perfect view of my booty. With a black panty, it would have been less obvious… but no, I chose white.
Once we arrived at the top – I was the whole time looking forward to the beautiful view – it was so cloudly and foggy that you could barely see the next tree and then it also began to pour, and we hurried to our cabin. The cabin was a very basic wooden hut with a river nearby, from where we got the water for cooking and „showering“. It was freezing cold, but exactly what my legs needed.
Our tour guide is also an excellent chef, and he prepared our dinner – rice&beans with a very delicious beef steak – while we had some time to rest. For breakfast the next day, we got the same – beefsteak with rice and beans. A beefsteak for breakfast that is precisely my taste *irony off*
Anyhow, we packed our things and continued the hike to Monteverde. Still, around 70% of the way was going up, at least it was only 70%. When we arrived in Monteverde, our luggage was not yet there, so we went for one beer (or more) –refueling our energy levels.
Now, I am confident, the other hiking trips, I want to do during my sabbatical, will be feasible.
After a couple of days in the mountains, rainforest and co, I went back to the beach – to Tamarindo. As you can imagine, there are not always direct buses, but it is common that the drivers let you out on the highway or similar, where you can wave down another bus. I was too afraid to take the bus at 3 am, which was heading north to the highway, so I took the one at 5:30 am to the south – taking some more time – to ensure I am not standing alone at the highway in the middle of the night. It turned out, I am not the only one heading to Liberia, so I had some new travel companions waiting with me at the road.
Tamarindo is a very touristic town – lots of restaurants, bars, surf schools, etc. My mission was to try out surfing and yoga. That is exactly what I did – I took 2h surf lessons with Kurt from California. „Eyes up – Booty down“ – was his best advice and I managed to stand up on the board and keep myself there for a couple of seconds before plopping into the water – yes I love falling-. Yoga: my second sporty objective for this week. I only attended a yoga class once in Germany, and oh my god, that was not made for me at all. The teacher lit so many incense sticks that I could barely breathe in the room and then she said things like „ inhale deeply through your nose and feel how the cold air flows past your nasal cartilage“– I could hardly stop myself from laughing.
Nevertheless, I wanted to try it again and signed up for two Hatha-Yoga classes. It was great. You build up strength and flexibility while being completely relaxed, and I did not hear the expression nasal cartilage!
Tomorrow, I will go to the national park, Manuel Antonio. Letˋs hope that I can take many excellent pictures of animals and lovely beaches.
Wanderlust 