Guaranteed Crocodile Sightings

September 7, 2007. One of the most popular places to always see crocodiles -- from a safe distance of course -- is from the bridge over the Rio Tarcoles on the road between Puntarenas and the popular beach town of Jaco. There were about a half dozen of this large cratures resting on the muddy banks of the river when we were there. There is room to pull your car over and walk over the bridge to get a good look. Makes you wonder about swimming in the other rivers around the country!

Manual Antonio National Park

September 7, 2007. Manual Antonio National Park is one of the most visited locations in Costa Rica. We spent time in the area last year, shopping, dining and playing on the beach by the entrance to the park but never went inside. This year I wanted to find out what the park offered that wasn’t in the surrounding area, so we waded across the shallow water to the entrance, shelled out the $7 entry fee and went inside. Within a few minutes of starting down the well-shaded jungle path we spotted our first wild animal – something from the rat family. Next we spotted an adorable family of baby raccoons followed by a coatimundi and a sloth in a tree. The iguanas were plentiful as well and did not seem to have any fear of humans as they made themselves at home on people’s beach towels. We spent a leisurely afternoon on the tropical Manual Antonio beach watching the capuchin monkeys and playing in the surf. Occasionally a killer wave would crash into shore – the result – a broken rib for Gordie and some very wet, sand-covered towels.

Hatching Turtles in Ostional

September 7, 2007. Today we took a very long drive from the northern Pacific beaches heading south along the western side of the Nicoya Peninsula to the remote town of Ostional – not our original destination. Our initial plan was to see if we could drive all the way around the peninsula. The unpaved road became more challenging as we headed south. Potholes were many but the scenery was incredible. As night approached we began encountering small rivers flowing across the road. Since it was the raining season, the rivers were muddy and it was impossible to see the bottom so Gordie would get out of the car, wade across and see how deep they were. The word “crocodile” never made it into our conversation. A short distance after passing through the small town of Ostional and crossing our 7th river, we were confronted by a very wide, very swift river with a car sitting about half way across it on a sandbar. Gordie waded out to talk with the occupants. After some discussion we all decided it would be best to find a place to sleep in Ostional and take a closer look at this river in the morning. We found a small cabina for $3.00 per person. It was late, we were tired, it was time for an Imperial beer at the local bar. After serving us a cold one, the bartender turned on a DVD about the town and the significance of the Olive Ridley turtle. Our timing was perfect. The thousands of baby sea turtles were hatching and making their journey to the sea. We woke up at the break of dawn, headed for the beach and participated in this amazing phenomenon of nature. A portion of this experience is captured on this video.

The magical topiaries of Zarcero

August 31. We have looked at several promising properties in the San Ramon area and now it is time to take a leisurely drive to the Lake Arenal area by way of Zarcero. It's an easy drive that takes you through lush green forests, cloud forest and rolling pastures. As you drive toward the Church in the center of town you may mistakenly think you are in Disneyland. Then entire square in front of the Church is filled with whimsical topiaries. Each corner you turn reveals more and more of these magical plants.

Searching for a retirement home - San Ramon

August 30, 2007. Our second trip to Costa Rica to find the "perfect retirement home." We started in San Ramon which is just outside of San Jose in the Central Valley. We had scheduled an appointment to meet with realtors from http://www.american-european.net/. Through them we met and stayed with Stephanie and Wilbur of West Osaka Island Properties (http://www.american-european.net/ site #1740). What a fantastic introduction to this part of Costa Rica. We had a private 3-bedroom guest house with it's own jungle barbeque "rancho." The house had all the modern conveniences and is set on the banks of the Rio Barranca. In addition to an un-matched natural setting complete with waterfalls, the property includes a large tilapia pond for fresh fish frys, horses, swimming pool and more. Believe it or not, Stephanie only charges $400 per week for up to 4 people! Her email is curvette1@aol.com. I highly recommend a visit.