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Best food of the trip, hands down. Should you ever find yourself in Punta Islita, go see Miguel at Don Ramiro's. You will not be disappointed! Sunday evening I ventured out to the pub in Punta Islita and met the owner, Miguel - a very friendly guy who is a genius chef! All the food coming out of his kitchen looks like it belongs in a 5 star restaurant. The previous week I had tried a bite of someone’s (a complete stranger’s!) hot dog and had been thinking about it all week long…so I finally went and got my own: yum. All sorts of sauces and toppings, including a slaw on top. So delicious. Totally made me ready to take on a new week.
This week was slower work-wise as Sam and Maricela are back in San Jose, and Maricela is actually off for the week. My to-do list included wrapping up loose ends on site with Tom (site manager) and Chucho (site manager in training). On my hit list: creating some forms and processes to better document what happens each day in their visitor centre / tours. Once created, I reviewed with Tom and Chucho to make sure that they were simple enough to use…once in use, they will create a much better flow of information back to admin, into the accounting system, and thus
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Scarlet macaw at the Ara Project. This guy (and others as well) would come right up to say hi as we walked along the enclosure. better information to make decisions from! I also spent a bit of time with Tom counting up all his cash kitty and reconciling to what was in the accounting system. Got it done just before he left for a few weeks of vacation back home.
I was able to get a more in-depth tour of the project on Wednesday with Tom, and it was interesting to see all the birds and hear histories, stories, and information about their methodology. They take such care with all the birds, but their focus is very clearly on releasing the birds they can back into the wild, and protecting the wild populations.
A slower week was good timing, as it enabled me to tackle some work back home, coinciding with month end. I also took the opportunity to get to the beach one afternoon and finally swim in the ocean this trip! And on Friday, I took a little road trip further south from Corozalito to Coyote, San Francisco de Coyote, saw the most amazing beach ever between Coyote and San Miguel (I’ll take an oceanfront cottage please!), enjoyed a fruit smoothie and a chat with a German lady who has lived
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The beach between Coyote and San Miguel (from above) in Costa Rica 13 years, but also enjoyed several trips to Canada…, and just soaked up the scenery of a coastal area removed from city life and many of the amenities of modern life. I also visited the art museum in Punta Islita, and the galleries of my host Isabel and her neighbour Marta, and spent a bit of time with my hosts and Marta Friday evening in celebration of Isabel’s birthday.
Saturday morning saw me packed up and ready to hit the road. I stopped for a few minutes at the beach in Punta Islita as I found it quite bittersweet to leave. I was told to expect a bit of a rollercoaster journey of emotions, but it’s hard to really know what to expect. One minute you can be happy, joyful, feeling accomplished, comfortable, and the next you feel out of place, tired, alone. I wanted to leave but I also wanted to stay.
My drive was another one for the record books. And for which record? Most potholes per square yard perhaps, or successful navigation resulting in fewest number of tires in said potholes. I also got to attempt (and succeed) a few river crossings.
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The cove and beach at Punta Islita (from above) Glad for a dry day! I followed the Pacific coast up to Tamarindo, a tourist beach town. For the first time in weeks, my GPS showed multiple restaurants, hotels, etc., and I was in a town with a bank machine!! I spent some time browsing shops before checking in to my hostel. I’m actually bunking with a couple other Canadian girls, although they’re from Quebec and don’t speak much English! I took a quick detour to the ocean (from my ocean front hostel…) to frolic in the waves for a bit and sat on the deck to read for a bit as I dried off. Tomorrow I hit the road again and begin my journey east, hopefully eventually finding my way to the Caribbean Ocean!
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