We had a short stop in Cahuita, a small town on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica close to another national park, this time one on the beach including a coral reef.
It was absolutely boiling in Cahuita when we arrived and we spent the first afternoon very close to the hostels pool and playing with the owners puppy, who unfortunately for grace was going through his biting phase!
The next morning we headed into the national park early in the hope to do the bulk of the walking around while it was still relatively cool, or at least not absolutely boiling.
It was an enjoyable morning, Hannah and Rob saw their first hermit crab! We also saw monkeys, sloths, a snake and lots of Lizards.
We walked to the tip of the park where the Coral reef was located in the hope of snorkeling but found there is no snorkeling allowed without a guide to protect the reef. So we decided to head back for some lunch instead.
We headed to a local soda and tried some ‘pattys’, the Caribbean take in empanadas, we had one each but they were so nice we went back for another round and also tried some sweet pineapple ones. The savory ones were a stewed beef mixed with a coconuty sauce. It was delicious and I was really enjoying it until Hannah spotted a dead ant in hers. I couldn’t eat another bite after that.
After our pattys we headed back to the hotel pool to cool off from the afternoon sun.
The next day we headed to the bus station to catch a bus to our next stop, Puerto Viejo, and while waiting Rob brought us some fried chicken, another plus of being on the Caribbean side of the country. Rob and Hannah were already sick of rice and beans for most meals (including breakfast). We also brought some dulce de leche pastries, a tried and tested favourite of mine and Grace’s, for Rob and Hannah to try. It went down a treat and even better there were no ants in sight!
I’ll tell you all about Puerto Viejo soon, lots of love, Alice x