The Tortuguero Experience-Part II

The 3-hour, $15 canoe tour was totally worth it.  I wasn't real sure at first if things would work out well.  I asked the hotel owner about the tour (he had mentioned it) and he said he would call around.  What he really meant was he'd call his cousin and have him talk to me.

Roberto issued my ticket and told me to meet him at 5.45 at the public dock.  I did, and he passed me off to his cousin Ricardo (unsure if they are cousin friends or cousin brothers).  I was a little worried this tour wouldn't happen.

I worried for nothing because by 6am, Ricardo, 4 teenage boys (from England I think), and myself were rowing towards the National Park canals.

These teenage boys deserve special mention.  They were completely useless and never realized it.  They played with the paddles patting them against the water and they stuck the paddles in the water to create resistance (unwanted resistance).  The one at the front of the canoe decided he wanted to lie down on the boat (or recline as much as possible) which resulted in the boat almost capsizing multiple times.  While very annoyed that they wouldn't paddle (complaining of aching shoulders after 3 strokes and tentatively dipping the paddle in the water every once in a while and leaving the work to myself and the guide), I was amused by their conversation.  At one point, they were discussing shaving - 1 of them only had a bit of peach fuzz and 7 or 8 unruly hairs.  I wanted to laugh at this "manly" conversation about how they look with and without facial hair and how often they shave.

The tour itself (if I can possibly separate the tour from the moronic boys) was quite good and informative.  We saw several birds, caimans, the bluejean frog, and some monkeys - not too shabby for 3 hours and $15.  I wouldn't have been able to see these things on my own, and I'm not sure I could have seen them in the park either.

I returned from my tour at around 9am.  Later in the day (around 11 or so) I went back to the National Park, but this time I walked.  I was forced to rent absurd rainboots for $1.  They were absurd because it hadn't rained in awhile and at the end of my hike, they were dusty, not muddy.  Additionally, they were painful and rubbed the skin off my feet in several spots (it's hard to do anything about that when I'm a couple of kilometers away from the park entrance and my regular shoes that I had left as collateral).

I had meant to go to the beach after the park, but I wasn't feeling well (I haven't been eating well, especially not here since food is more expensive and there are fewer choices).

Today, however, I did go to the beach and hang out awhile (from something like 6-8am) and then I rested (not sure if I slept or not) and then I went back to the beach for another couple of hours.  Ahh!  This is the life.

And tomorrow, sadly, I must fly back to San Jose and take the afternoon bus to Montezuma.