Costa Rica – Coast to Coast June 2005 and August 2006

I woke up early and went outside and was greeted with a very clear view of the volcano. I can’t even describe how impressive it is. It’s there, gigantic, taking up the entire view. WOW!

Ate a tipico breakfast of gallo pinto, eggs, tortillas, coffee and juice that was included with the room at the hotel. After breakfast we drove back into town to get some pictures of the church with the volcano in the background.

We then checked out of the hotel and drove around Lake Arenal on our way to Tamarindo. The road around the lake was mostly well paved with only a few rough spots. We made it to Liberia in good time and the good road continued to Belen but after that the road condition really deteriorated the rest of the way to Tamarindo.

Once in Tamarindo we were horrified with all the changes since our visit last June. Lots of construction and new buildings – mostly 5-6 story condominiums, a pizza hut, subway sandwiches, TCBY yogurt and a Burger King! After checking in at Hotel Pasatiempo we were also disappointed to learn that several of our favorite staff members were no longer working there. We walked down into town dodging the trucks hauling construction equipment and choking on their dust clouds. We found that several of the restaurants we liked last year were either out of business or had been replaced with new buildings. We ended up at Nibbana (we ate there last year) and found that most of the tables closer to the beach were gone as a result of enforcing the 25 meter rule that nothing can be built or owned by non citizens that close to the water. We had pizza that was ok. We then walked down to Witches Rock surf camp which is now more fancy with higher prices and the waiters wearing uniforms. With advertising “Nachos as big as your ass” you would think this place would be more laid back! We then went back to Pasatiempo for a swim and hung out in their restaurant/bar playing scrabble until it was time to go to bed.

After breakfast and going to the internet café to send emails back home to family and friends we had hoped to go to the beach but since it was raining we decided to go for a drive and explore the beaches to the north. We made our way north passing several large resorts before stopping for a delicious lunch at Marie’s in Playa Flamingo. We had a bit of a scare when we returned to the car and discovered that I had left the headlights on. Fortunately it started right up and we drove back to Tamarindo.

After we got back to Pasatiempo it was still raining so we retrieved our travel scrabble board and played a few games in the bar while we passed the time. We ended up meeting another couple from Texas who were on their honeymoon and ended up hanging out with them for the rest of the evening. That night at the bar, it was the weekly Tuesday open mike night and they featured local bands that played some really good covers of blues, rock, and reggae songs ranging from Santana to Aretha Franklin. The place was packed with several hundred people in attendance and a good sized line waiting out in the street to get in.

At about 11:00pm we were hungry so we walked down the road into town looking for an open restaurant. The streets were pretty deserted (since everybody seemed to be at Pasatiempo) but we found that the Fiesta Del Mar café located at the circle in town was open where we had some tasty rice and chicken. The walk back to Pasatiempo was a bit tricky as the road was very muddy and slippery in places from the rain (we forgot to bring a flashlight) but we made it without getting too muddy and the party was still going on full swing but we decided that we had had enough fun for the night and retired to our room and went to sleep.

We woke up early and had a wonderful buffet breakfast by the pool. Breakfast included gallo pinto, potatoes, fried yucca, sausage, orange juice, yams, plantains, coffee, as well as a made to order omelets and pancakes. There was a parrot ... [Continue reading this entry]