A Full Day of Activities In Puerto Viejo

Today is an early start since there are so many things to do.  My roommate and I decided to walk into town to find something for breakfast.  Since it was so early there were limited choices.  We managed to find a cute little bakery.  She ordered a cinnamon bun and I ordered a cheese filled danish and a caramel danish. Both pasties were to die for.  My roommate described the cinnamon bun very easy to bite into and had sprinkled cinnamon and sugar on top.



After eating our pastries we headed over to the bicycle shop.  I was going to rent the bicycles for two of the people on my tour who were going to have an adventerous day of riding bikes.



Before we gave the bikes away, my roommate and I decided to ride back into town.  I was a little shaky since I hadn't ridden a bike for quite awhile, but I managed.  Once we got back from riding bikes a couple of us headed to town for a private surf lesson at the beach.



Once we got to the beach we met the instructor, he used a common saying known to the Costa Ricans as, "Time is run by the sun not by the clock."  The surf lesson went for about 2 hours, the waves weren't too large which in my opinion is better for beginners.  The water was fairly warm, the sand on the beach was white on top with black underneath, very cool.

Once we were finished at the beach we headed back to go to the Jungle Spa so Mama Chandra could get a facial and I could check out the facility and take some pictures for the blog.

Dinner At Stashu's con Fusion

Donna, Carol, and I had dinner at Stashu's con Fusion.    Stashu's has a Caribbean feel with a candlelit patio cafe and serving up creative fusion cuisine that combines elements of Caribbean, Indian, Mexican and Thai cooking!
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When we arrived we were taken to special table that was located in a special part of the restaurant.  The owner came to the table to greet us, he briefly explained what he was going to serve and asked us how we liked our food.

I ordered a virgin pina colada!  When I took my first sip I never expected for it to taste so sinful as I have had many pina colada's in my day.  I had never tasted any pina coloda so amazing before!

The two ladies ordered a glass of wine and the local beer of Costa Rica, "Imperial."  As we waited we chatted and got to know each other, I also went over to a couple's table and took a picture of their tacos.
  

Once the food came the presentation was excellent!

Macadamian Crusted Talapia, Caribbean chicken, Tangori vegetables

Extra slice of heaven (Passionfruit cheesecake),  melts in your mouth and sweetest escape to heaven

Beautiful Puerto Viejo

When we arrived in Puerto Viejo we were dropped off right in front of the ocean, the whole group circled around a basketball court to discuss the plans further.  The town looked very small, very colorful and lots of cute little shops, restaurants, and bars in the area.

We walked for about 10 to 15 minutes to the bungalows.  When we got to the bungalows you saw hammocks hanging in front of each room outside.  There were lots of flowers and bushes surrounding the courtyard area, very beautiful.  Once we were assigned our room key we went to the rooms, they had a very romantic atmosphere to them.  Canopies hanging over the beds, which I came to find out were mosquito nets, the bathrooms were very clean and upscale.

 

Sloth at the hotel!! Crazy

Once we got settled into our rooms everyone went and dispersed out, some people went to eat and others went to the beach.  I decided to scope the area out and see what the town had to offer.

I discovered a very nice spa, Jungle Spa, which I will discuss shortly in the next post or two.  I found a place nearby that was a hostel, but they also rented bicycles.

I also went to a restaurant that one of the ladies on the tour recommended, and I checked out the menu to see what they had to offer.  I further made a reservation for myself and two other ladies to come with me for dinner.  I spoke with the owner and he was going to put together a special tasting menu for us.



After I finished scoping things out we had a tour meeting to decide what everyone was doing for dinner.

Leaving Hotel Autentico, Hola Puerto Viejo!!

Before leaving San Jose I walked over to the nearest grocery store with my bestie Dan to grab a few things before we traveled on the public bus to head to Puerto Viejo.  When we walked into the store no one really spoke the language. If you go to grocery stores in San Jose just a piece of advice, you will not know whether some of the locals speak English.  Make sure you absolutely revisit your old Spanish books if you do not speak the language or bring a translation book if that helps better.  It can be very frustrating trying to ask where things are or how much and they can't speak to you or respond.  I wanted to get a feel for some of the groceries that some of the locals eat, aka "junk food."  One of the grocery girls and I made the best of trying to communicate what she recommended for good cookies and crackers to snack on.  Purchase water, because most of the time the tap water is not safe to drink down here.  Once we left the grocery store and headed back to the hotel to meet the group we were transported to the public bus.  The bus ride was roughly 4 to 5 hours, I decided to bust out my Ipod speaker and play music for everyone on the bus to keep them entertained.  That was a good time to get to know some people and enjoy good music.

My bestie Jessica

This is our tour guide Allan

My Bostonian Sue was raising the roof to Macklemore

On our way up to Puerto Viejo, we stopped at a rest area to stretch our legs, thought I'd take some funny pictures of myself and people from the tour.  Check it out!!

Tate Chillin

Strike a Pose for the Camera

Tough girls ready to rumble

My sweet little German Girl

Can you say backpackers!!!

Arrival at the Hotel Autentico

When I arrived at the hotel it was very cute and sweet.  When you first walk in there is the reception area where the people are very friendly and speak English.  As you walk straight they have a cute little upscale Spanish restaraunt that has a nice bar area and a private room where I was told part of my group was sitting down.  I happened to run into our tour guide, Allan who is a very nice Latino gentleman.  Spoke excellent English and fluent in Spanish.  He showed me where the group was.  I was very excited to meet all the people on my tour.  When I got to the table six lovely people were sitting there. A couple from Norway, two girls from Germany, and a girl from Australia.  There were two people, a mother and son who were both from Canada that arrived with me at the same time.  I came to find out they were on the same flight with me.  I noticed that the menu had a large selection of Italian dishes on it that all looked very delicious.  I decided to go with a combination plate.  Had tortillas, black beans, plantanes, white rice, fried egg, fried cheese, and a piece of steak.  The service was excellent and very prompt.

Arrival In Costa Rica!!

Hey everyone, so I arrived at the airport last night.  I met some really nice people at the airport that made the flight go by alot faster. My recommendation is, if you can chat it up on the airplane with someone expect your flight time to go by in a flash.  The line in customs was intense, but once you get to the person at the counter its a breeze to get through, they don't really speak much English so beware that you may wanna brush up on your Spanish skills. I crossed my fingers as I approached baggage claim and there my bag was waiting for me.  I was so happy I didn't have a problem.  Sorry to those who have had lost luggage from what I hear I know its a royal pain.  But don't panic the airlines will take care of it if you take proper measures, like being proactive and harrassing the airlines.  Once I got my luggage I made my way to find a cab or some sort of transportation to get to the hotel.  When you get outside of the airport expect to be rushed by at of men who are pushing you to get in their cab.  Warning, I was told specifically to pick a cab that is flat fee versus one that is on a meter. They will nickel and dime you by telling you they will give you a short tour of the city while you are on your way to the hotel.  The gentleman that brought me spoke very poor English but was very sweet and helpful.  The city at night reminded me a little of being in Mexico.

And the Answer is...........

                                                                      COSTA RICA!!!

Thanks for everyone who participated in guessing my next destination.  The winner was Aashish Patel.  Congratulations for being the smart cookie lol.  So I leave tomorrow afternoon.  Made a quick stop for a day and a half in Dallas, Texas to break the trip up.  Staying with some family so that was a plus.  Wasn't expecting it to be freezing and windy here, around 30 degrees to be exact.  Can't wait to get to the nice warm humid tropical weather.  Got all my exotic outfits picked out, so get ready for some colorful threads.  Alright everyone well this is one of my shorter posts, I'm off to get my beauty rest.  Signing off for now but until next time, sleep well everyone!!