Today is our “vacation” day. We are going to the beach. But, it is about a three hour drive from where we are in Poas. According to the map there are beaches much closer but, according to Anne, this is a very nice beach that won’t be crowded. The downfall is that we have to leave very early. Anne said we needed to be on the bus ready to go by 6 a.m.! Donuts and yogurt awaited us at the dining pavilion at the top of the hill. And, off we went. Stephen had gone on ahead of us in his truck so that he could purchase tickets for entrance into the national park where the beach is. Apparently they only allow a certain number of people into the beach area at any one time. We stopped for a break about half way there at a small area where there was a restaurant and some souvenir shops. We got something to drink and then walked across the bridge to the other side of the river where the bus was waiting for us. Along the banks and in the water were crocodiles. I counted 31 ranging from small to great big! We then reboarded the bus to continue on to our destination.
About 9:30 we met Stephen in the town just outside the park. He not only had the tickets but all the lunch supplies we need to carry in. We are told it’s just a short walk from the entrance. Ha! The sign said 1.8km on rocky dirt road, and sometime at an incline, with hot sun and high humidity. We all walked at different paces, arriving hot and tired. Sam & Luetta were at the end of the group but they attached themselves to a tour group seeing a sloth, an iguana, monkeys, a termite nest in the trees and some other things. At the top of the hill, just before the beach we saw another sloth with a baby up in the trees. Also at the top of the hill were the bathrooms and shower houses so those of us who planned to swim changed into our suits there. After changing we walked to the beautiful beach and got into the water. About half the team decided not to swim so sat in the shade of a multitude of various tropical trees guarding the food from the monkeys. Just before lunch time a brave monkey dropped out of a tree, grabbed a plastic bag of bananas off our table and just as quickly jumped back into the trees, but not before Wonda yelled at him and made him drop the bag! All during lunch we had to keep an eye on those sneaky monkeys as they hovered over and around us in the trees. We also had a small iguana come close to the table. He acted like he was wanting food also but we were careful to keep from feeding him. After we had eaten a raccoon came close also. Guess they could smell the sandwiches and fruit. Right after lunch we all decided to stop swimming and change back into our clothes. We took a different path out of the park than when we had come in. Although it was less rocky it followed the coast so was level. It was still quite a walk and at the end we had to walk across a small river to get to the town. It was only about ankle deep so easy to cross.
The rest of the afternoon was spent shopping, sitting in the shade, and even eating some ice cream. Marcia loved bargaining for good deals and several of us benefited from her excellent skills in getting prices down.
About 5 p.m. we loaded back into the bus for a short ride to El Avion, a restaurant built around the fuselage and wings of an old airplane. All the walls we open and it felt like we were sitting on a big patio with a roof. The dining area faced west overlooking the ocean. As we were eating a delicious meal we watched the sun set over the water. It was very relaxing.
But, all too soon we had to get back into the bus for the long ride home to Poas. Arriving about 9:30 we headed down the hill to the dorms to pack up for our trip home in the morning.
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