Wednesday, July 3, 2002

Today we had scheduled the Damas Island boat tour.  While I was waiting for Mark to get ready, a coati climbed the tree right by our bedroom window (like 2′ from where I was standing).  I love these bungalows! The hotel clerk had said that we would be picked up at 8:00 so we were just heading out to breakfast when the phone rang to say our bus was there.  Oh well, I guess no breakfast.  We get on the bus, and the guides are acting a bit odd but we just think maybe they aren’t as friendly as the others we’ve had.  We drive to pick up people at another hotel, and we’re in Quepos when the phone rings and after talking to the person on the other end the guide looks at us and says “what tour are you trying to take?”  Apparently we’d gotten on the wrong bus and we were now heading for a zip-line tour of the rainforest canopy with our toddler.  No wonder they were looking at us funny!  They took us back to our hotel right as our real bus was pulling up (at 8:00, as promised).  We got out, the right people got on, and off we went to our very safe, totally appropriate for young children boat tour.

This guide was very friendly, spoke totally unaccented english but english-accented spanish even though he said he was Costa Rican and it was his family’s tour business.  I guess maybe he was raised in Canada (where he said he had lived)?  Whatever.  Not really any of my business.  We got on the boat and immediately came upon a group of white-faced monkeys.  This time “monkeys playing peekabo” was Genevieve’s choice phrase.  One even tried to steal her pony-tail holder, a move a discouraged with a wave of my hand.  After the monkeys we saw a silky anteater, crabs, more bats and lots of birds.  The mangroves are pretty interesting, according tothe guide they act as a filtration system by capturing all of the vegetation that washes down during rains and keeping it from the ocean.

After the boat tour we went to the “restaurant” for lunch,which was actually built next to the tour-owner’s house, and it was the rest of the family that was cooking.  It was a nicehouse and a nice family, and they let Genevieve play with their son’s toys. (He couldn’t play too because he was napping)  And then we went back to the hotel where we relaxed, and then tried to go to the Jardin Gaia which was supposed to have rescued wildlife but really only grows orchids for the past two years.  I guess guide books can’t get it right all of the time.  To Genevieve’s joy we went to the swimming pool instead (well, swimming pool, then shower, then pool then shower then pool then shower and I think I’d still be alternating between the two if I hadn’t put a stop to it).  Yet another nice dinner, and then off to bed.  I was feeling quite a pang at the thought of leaving this wonderful place.  The only consolation I could muster is that I KNOW I’ll return one day.

<<Previous | Next>>