Depression

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Geo: 10.64, -85.45

Last full day of the trip - always a depressing proposition, but perhaps even more so in this case, since the only planned activity was a long, depressing drive to an even more depressing location - the Hilton Hotel at the Liberia airport. Sure, according to the reviews, the hotel is nice with a decent pool, but come on - staying out by the airport? Is that ever fun? Unfortunately, there wasn't much choice in this case, since we have an early morning flight back to Calgary tomorrow ...

Liberia city itself isn't too far away from the airport, but by most accounts, the city is a pretty depressing place - a bigger Costa Rican city without much of interest to tourists - so there was no real incentive to stay there either, as at least staying close to the airport offered the advantage of grabbing a few more minutes of sleep before dragging our sorry sleepy asses out of bed in the morning. That ended up being the only advantage to staying here, as we didn't even get to enjoy the pool, since it was unseasonably cool and rainy today in Liberia!

What we did get to do, however, was head to the coast for one last sunset, at Playa Hermosa, one of the more popular beach resort areas in the entire country. In a way, it was actually even more depressing, because it wasn't exactly what you would call a pretty beach, with its dull, grey sand. Add the fact that the beach is completely crowded with hotels and busy bars, and it makes for a less than inviting locale ...

But there was one great thing about tonight - the fact that Playa Hermosa was a spot we had originally considered for spending the last few nights of the trip, but ultimately decided against. When we saw what Playa Hermosa was all about, it made us long for the beautiful seclusion of Playa Carrillo, which proved to be the better choice, by far. So while it was a bit of a depressing day, at least it allowed us to feel even more grateful for the last bit of time that we had in Costa Rica, lounging on beautiful Carrillo ...

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Photos

Last Costa Rican Sunset at Playa Hermosa ...
... we were glad that we had spent our last few days in Carrillo and not here - the sand was a bit grey and the beach a lot more crowded with restaurants and hotels. Still a nice spot for a sunset, but not quite what we were looking for during our last few days in Costa Rica.

Typical Costa Rican Breakfast ...
... the gallo pinto was good here, though a tad salty, and it was impossible to eat it all since the portion was so huge. The highlight of breakfast every morning here was the fresh fruit - pineapple, watermelon, cantaloupe, papaya ...

The Last Guanabana Juice of the Trip at Ozaki ...
... not a smoothie like we've had elsewhere, this one was a bit watered down. The chicha morada was actually better, a traditional Peruvian drink made with purple corn and spices - oddly refreshing.

Pedestrian Sushi ...
... salmon, tuna, and sea bass. The sea bass was by far the best, with the salmon oddly bland and mushy.

Ceviche Overload ...
... although not quite as pedestrian as the sushi, it still was far from the best ceviche we've had in Costa Rica - none of it seemed to have been marinated long enough, and the fried yucca was good at first, but became a bit too repetitive at the end. The sea bass was served with a Peruvian sauce, the Costa Rican-style one was salmon, shrimp, and pineapple also in a Peruvian sauce, and the tuna was with sesame oil, soy sauce, and avocado. It was simply way too much raw fish for lunch today, and it was difficult to finish due to monotony.

Pasta with Calamari, Shrimp, and Snapper ...
... a pretty good pasta dish, with garlic and tomato, and some decently al dente pasta.

Fried Whole Garlic Snapper ...
... super fresh, but a tad mushy. The fried crispy skin was the best part, salty and garlicky.