Pavones

We heard a lot of great things about Pavones from friends, old men that come into our bar at home, and other travelers. We decided to make this our last stop in Costa Rica. 

Like every time we try and travel in Central America via public transportation, we were 3 hours early to a 3 hour late bus. Everything works at it's own pace here, and we just can't seem to get it right. Frustrating as it is, it's all part of the fun (or at least that's what we keep saying "were having fun...") and eventually it always seems to work out.

The bus from Manuel Antonio to Golfito is about 4-5 hours. Many people stop in Dominical for the beautiful beaches there if you want to break up the trip, but we were too intrigued by Pavones (a hidden Gem they say). From Golfito it is a 2.5 hour bus ride (it would be less but the roads are terrible) into the jungle and ending up in Pavones. 

There is no sign saying when you are in Pavones and we were told by the local (who just happened to have spent 2 winters in Aspen) to get off at the Mira Olas sign and to search for a cabina from there. Well, of course, we missed our stop and ended up about a half hour outside of Pavones in the dark wih only a small Soda in sight. Luckily the people in the Soda were kind enough to call us a taxi and for $10 we were back where we wanted to be. 

One thing to note about Pavones is that no one here speaks any English, and if they do know any (which is very rare) they refuse to speak it anyways. So we have really been relying on the little bit of Spanish that we know to get by.

We found a nice cabina (jazmine cabinas) and settled in. The first day we burnt our skin laying on the beach. The next we hung hung our hammocks in the shade and spent the day reading and lounging. The third day we finnally met some local boys who offered to teach us how to surf, so we hooked up with them at 7:30 am and attempted to surf on Pavones waves. 

Neither of the boys spoke any English, and I was amazed at how much of my terrible caveman Spanish they understood. So we surfed, I mostly swallowed seawater but stood up a few times so I feel vaguely satisfied... And when we couldn't handle being battered by the waves we headed into Rio Claro. 

The river is clear and a bit colder than the seawater so it is very refreshing. Our friend took us to a bridge about 40ft above the water where you can jump  from. Although the water is a bit shallow, we took the plunge and it was really fun! Many young local boys were there attempting to create the largest splash.

We went to lunch after and planned a bonfire on the beach for later. After a nice long siesta and a bunch of fresh vegetables for dinner we met with our friends and headed to the beach. They quickly created a massive bonfire and poured rum and ginger ale drinks. We sat around trying to learn about each other in  Spanish until the fire died and then we headed home. 

We were also lucky enough to have a guy (originally from Alaska but now considered a local after living in Pavones for 9 years) take us on an ATV ride and hike to a beautiful waterfall that we swam and cliff jumped in!

Pavones was definietly a highlight of our trip, and I highly suggest it as a way to get of the beaten track.

Manuel Antonio

After checking out the east coast we decided to see how touristy the west coast really is. The plan was to head to Jaco, the most visited beach in all of Costa Rica, but when we arrived in San Jose, the last bus of the day had already left. So we asked around and heard that Manuel Antonio a beach a bit south of Jaco is much more beautiful, so we headed that way. 

It was a about a 3 hour bus ride which drops you off right at the beach in Manuel Antonio. It is a very small beach town and many prefer to stay in Quepos (about 10 mins away) and day trip to the beach. After a bit of searching we found a hotel for $20 each, a little more than we wanted to spend but with no plans and no hostel in sight we had to make do.

We went to a small bar on the beach for dinner and ended up meeting some locals who told us about the town. We walked home along the beach and the next day we moved to a cheaper hostel hoping to stay in this lovely place for a while. 

We set out for the national park the next morning and though it is a $10 entrance fee, I would say it is well worth it. After a small hike where you can see various wildlife (we saw a few howler monkeys, many lizards, birds, and a small deer) you reach Play Manuel Antonio. This particular beach is the most lovely beach that we saw in all of Costa Rica. The calm blue/green water is just perfectly hidden in a lush cove of jungle. The water temperature is perfect and it's not too crowded for a park. It was paradise. After swimming for a good while we followed the trail up to some really magnificent Vistas and then you can either swim at another small beach or loop around back to the exit.

There is not much nightlife in Manuel Antonio, and though we were not looking for any the locals told us that everyone heads to Quepos at night. There is also grey surfing during the day and if you have the money, there are many activities such as atv tours, zip lining, and rafting as well.

We did not end up staying long as we did not like the location of our hostel, and we decided to head down to Pavones.

Puerto Viejo

We decided to head to the Carribean coast of Costa Rica to start off our adventure. We read that it is less touristy and built up, but were warned that the chance for rain is much more likely. From San Jose it is about a 3.5 hour bus ride to Limon and 1.5 hours further to Puerto Viejo.

We arrived in the afternoon, our excitement growing as we passed black sand beaches and beautiful clear blue waters on the way. We had read about a really nice hostel (I forget the name) but when we arrived they were totally full. 

               Black sand beach.

So we took a chance and followed a pretty drunk local to a hotel down the street. On our walk (his stumble) he pointed out various elements of the town to us in barley comprehensible Spanish. To our surprise though, he took us to Hotel Puerto Viejo which was really a very nice hotel, $12 a person for a private room.

We grabbed Casadas (a typical dish consisting of a meat, rice, beans, salad, and plantains) for dinner  at a small beachfront restaurant or "Soda" as they call it here in Costa and then went to sleep early that night.

The next day after eating our standard breakfast of bananas and mangos, we wandered the town. The are many small stands selling goods, and just as many stores selling sarongs, surfing attire, and souvenirs. 

A short walk north of town is a really nice black sand beach with very calm waters and despite town being fairly busy, it barely ever has anyone on it. So we spent our first day lounging and swimming there. That afternoon we discovered Rocking J's hostel and decided to move there the next day.

That night, as if the hotel was mad at us for planning to leave, I was awoken to a pleasant surprise. At around one in the morning I felt a drip coming from the ceiling onto my head, after a few drips I realized it was not stopping and caught one in my palm. After smelling this liquid I realized that a cat was peeing through the thatched roof above my head and that I was literally being peed on! I woke up in a daze and went to go take a shower and scrub the cat piss off. No one in the hotel was awake so I curled to the side of the bed where the pee couldn't reach and tried to get some sleep. I was quite grateful that we had decided I move hostels the next day.

Rocking J's is a little ways outside of town ( to the south) but it is a really lovely place. Everything in the hostel is either covered in mosaic or painted creating a really beautiful atmosphere. We were excited becaue for $6 you can hang up your hammock and sleep in that, and for only $1 more they will provide you with a hammock. 

After checking in we headed to Cahuita, a small surfing town north of puerto Viejo (a 30 min bus ride $3 round trip) where many go to snorkel, fish, explore the national park, and of course, surf. We decided to go to the national park, which is free but we each gave a $2 donation. You can also pay a guide to take you through the park and they will help you spot white faced monkeys, howler monkeys, sloths, birds, lizards, snakes, etc.

Another great day trip is to rent a bike and head down to manzanilla and/or Punta Uva to check out the gorgeous beaches there. There is also a jaguar rescues center right outside of town that has many monkeys, sloths, and other animals to see in close quarters.

Puerto Viejo is a lovely beach town and I highly suggest it to tourists wanting to do something a bit different than the tried and true west coast of Costa Rica.

Ometepe

We heard mixed reviews about ometepe, but clearly, we had to find out for ourselves. We were given a ride to Rivas from our host Chelly, who absolutely hates Ometepe. We figured though, after hearing his reasonings (not wanting to go in the fist place, motorbike breaking down, getting lost, getting his surf boards broken, etc.) that he just had a bad experience.

Anyhow, from San Juan you can grab a bus right outside the market at almost any time of day (just ask for Rivas) and once you are in Rivas it is about a 5 min taxi to Ometepe. There is only one ATM in Ometepe and it is very far from the touristy areas (though very close to the ferry) so I would suggest hitting a bank before you leave the mainland.

      Pink chickens? Only in Ometepe...

We teamed up with some travelers we met on the bus and were able to score at taxi to the middle of the island (right between the volcanos) for $5 a person, but on your own it will be about $20-30 a person. It is about an hour taxi ride. We read on trip advisor that little Morgans was the hot spot hostel so we headed there.

          At least the view was nice!

To our disappointment though, Little Morgans was hot, smelly , and covered in bugs and when we tried to go down to the river to cool off it was too rocky to swim. So we were pretty disappointed plus it was a pretty far walk to get to anywhere but the hostel. There looked like there were some nice hotels before little Morgans though, that we're on the beach of the lake and out of the hot buggy jungle.

     And this little guys visited our room.

To cool down we we to Ojo De Agua, a cold springs a ways down the road. On island you can rent bikes or motorbikes to get around, but finding taxis is quite tricky. There is also a chicken bus that passes from time to time. Ojo de Agua was definietly a highlight of Ometepe. The clear blue water is just the right temperature and you can grab a rum coconut or food right by the pools.

                      Ojo de Agua

We only spent one night in Ometepe, we decided we felt the same as our friend Chelly and decided to move on quickly. There are many other activities there such as hiking the volcanos, various swimming holes, and waterfall tours, but they are all expensive and on our budget we decided it was not worth it.

    There are many wild horses roaming.

To leave the island you must also take a ferry. There are 3 ferrys, one back to Rivas ( if you stopped in Ometepe first go here to head to San Juan del sur) one to Grenada, and one to San Carlos which is the one we took. The ferry to San Carlos is 9-12 hours, and always overnight. Most people sit in the cabin where there are benches or the deck on lounge chairs. But the best way to go is by hammock. We carry our own hammocks so it was a no brainer to get swayed I sleep by the waves atop an overnight ferry!

Tie your hammock the the side of the boat, lay back and fall asleep. It really is that easy, definietly bring a sweatshirt and for some night even a raincoat. We awoke at the port of San Carlos at 6 am untied our beds and went to find immigration so that we could take the hour long ferry to Costa Rica. After a series of asking around, we found immigration and got our stamps. We still had a few hours to kill so we grabbed breakfast across from the market (gallo pinto, huevos, plantains, and coffee all for $2.50 a person) to kill time with a fellow traveler.

 

Once on the ferry it is a very easy little tip across the border. From the boat you have a great view of the jungle plus howler monkeys, lizards, turtles, birds, livestock etc. it is a short trip and you arrive in the Costa Rican city Los Chiles, where you go through all the immigration quite painlessly. 

From there though, it is a 5 hour bus to San Jose. Our wise traveller friend Zach took the shorter 2.5 hour bus to go see volcano Arenal (the most active in costa rica) which we later wished we had done. The plan was to rent a car in San Jose, which really would have been a great way to see as much of Costa Rica as possible. But that plan fell through when we both realized we had only brought debit cards and needed credit cards for the deposit.

So the adventure from Ometepe was a very long one to say the least. I would highly suggest stopping at Arenal and just heading down the west coast if you plan to leave Ometepe via San Carlos. 

Nicaragua

We arrived in Managua around 10 AM, specifically so that we could just go straight to the beach. Many people will go to grenada for the architecture first or Leon for volcano boarding, but we decided to skip these inland places. If you are thinking about going to Ometepe, I would suggest going there first as well.

 As is typical anywhere in Central America, once getting through customs you will be immediately bombarded by men trying to hustle you into their taxis. We haggled them down to half price which was $5 a person from the airport to the bus station to San Jaun Del Sur. 

We were shuffled into a chicken bus right from the taxi, which was so full I had a to wait a few stops just to get a seat , and even then it was barely enought to fit even my tiny butt. The bus is about three hours. There are many street vendors that hop on and off throughtout the ride offering food, drink, and candies.

The bus drops you off in Rivas, unfortunately once you arrive in Rivas you typically have to take a 30 min taxi, which I have heard many various rates for. We hopped in a taxi with two much older Nicaraguans and it was $4 a person, but I have heard I tourists being charged up to $20 a person, so be wary.

          Beach at San Juan Del Sur.

After spending a night in a terrible random hostel, we went in search for something nicer. We found Yajure Surf Hostel, which is not only right on the beach but also has a pool. The hostel was run by a man named Chelly who treats everyone like an old fiend and the hostel environment was the nicest we had in all of Central America. It is $10 a night for a dorm, well worth the money.

Yajure is right across this bridge into town

In San Jaun you can lounge and swim on the beaches, hang around in town and eat at many nice restaurants ( La Lancha was our favorite for seafood but for cheap eats the street food and street tacos are really good)  but for surfing you must venture to nearby towns. 

    A ways down the beach in Maderas

We are not big surfers so we only took one day trip to Maderes, a very good surf town for beginners. It is also a lovely beach to lay on or walk around. There is not much of a town, but there are two restaurants for food and beer and you can also sign up to do yoga there.

                   Hermit crabs!

After almost a week working on out tans in San Jan Del Sur we headed for the island of Ometepe.