Once we pulled into the resort it was a relief to stop moving. We walked from the van and were greeted by the Manager. A high energy man who introduced himself as Mauricio. He got our luggage moved to the small office in front, and showed us around. This was a very small resort, the entrance was the restaurant and bar, it was open and faced the ocean with tables stretching out into the sand. Past the beach we could see boats anchored out in the bay. The Bungalows were behind the restaurant, but since it was 8:00 am we had to wait to check in.
Mauricio thought that since it was Monday and everyone checked out early Sunday that things should be set for us early, but we could grab breakfast while we waited. We were tired and disoriented from the flight but Breakfast was something we could handle. He set us up at a table right by the beach and brought out some juice and smoothies to start. Getting some real food after a long flight was a huge help. My stomach began to settle, and we waited there until the Bungalow was ready.
The bungalow was right next to the beach, and close to the outdoor tables. it had it’s own view of the ocean over a small creek. Only downside was the creek is a nature reserve and apparently there is a crocodile there now. Like 10 feet from our porch. I’m waiting for it to pop out and eat someone. (how many likes would that post get!) It has 2 small bedrooms with a kitchen, patio, and bathrooms that have showers that are waterfalls over rock. This is one of the coolest setups I’ve seen. We dropped our ger and yulia immediately took off for the beach and I passed out on the bed.
I woke up in a daze a bit later, and when Yulia got back we took a walk up the street. There was a Food Truck market right next to the resort which looked amazing, and some stands with local crafts and t-shirts. There was a market just up the road so we walked up that way to pick up some water, wine, and beer. Gotta stock up. The streets were really clean and in nice shape. I’m comparing everything to Mexico, and while i love Mexico you can see that Costa Rica spends more on general upkeep. There were a few local restaurants and beach clubs on the way, and the store was pretty simple. As we walked i noticed some raindrops and I suspeceted that we might see rain later.
As we exited the store it was pouring down.
We quickly walked back to the resort and tried to stay as dry as possible. We changed out of our soaking clothes at the bungalow and went back to the restaurant. It was past lunchtime and we were pretty hungry. Mauricio was still there so he found us a table under an umbrella , and also offered a free bottle of wine if we were eating there for dinner. That sounded like a plan so we booked dinner and sat for lunch. The tacos were amazing. it was Mahi Mahi and Tuna tacos. they were huge and everything was super fresh. It wasn’t cheap ( this place is Hawaii prices, not Mexico prices) but i’m happy to pay for such good food. The rain let up and we hung out for a bit. We were still behind on sleep from our flight so we went back to rest in the bungalow before figuring out what to do next.
about an hour later i was sitting on the porch of the bungalow when the rain started again. It was fairly hard, banging loudly on the metal roof of the house. Then it started getting harder. We saw flashes of lightning out on the ocean followed by heavy thunder. Then the storm really hit.
The crocodile creek in front of out bungalow was filling with water fast. It was a trickle earlier in the day, but was a rushing river now, and was eating away at the sandy banks. We stood on the porch and watched coconuts float by in front of us and more and more sand fall into the water as the river ate away at the shore, moving closer and closer to the bar patio. It was crazy to watch and with the water pouring we were pretty much stuck in the house. We could see the staff bringing cushions and chairs in to keep it all from getting soaked and blown away, but everyone cleared off the beach and took cover like us. It was a few hours before things calmed down and we could check out the place.
There was no one around but us and the staff. They were setting up a table for dinner under a covered tent, and water was still flowing everywhere. It was approaching dinnertime, and we realized that the setup the staff was doing was for us. We had the only reservation. We changed and headed over.
The staff went all out setting up a table for us. They had tablecloths out, Napkins folded into hearts, full settings and the works. It was really a cool setup. Especially considering the storm that had just rolled through. We sat and had just a fantastic meal. We started with some excellent cevichie and sashimi carpaccio. We shared a selection of grilled meats, and surf and turf that was all super fresh. The wine was a very nice Italian Piot Grigio, and we tried a few cocktails from the Costa Rican variant of Rum. It ended up as an amazing Welcome to Vacation dinner.
once more group showed up right as we finished, but it was pretty much empty for the evening. A crazy first day.
Cognitive Dissonance 