In Conclusion, some thoughts on Costa Rica

Our original motivation for visiting Costa Rica was to see some of the country's quite amazing array of birdlife. To this end we booked a Birding and Wildlife orientated trip through Aratinga Tours which did not disappoint in any way. We saw plenty of birds, some other wildlife and a good few places in Costa Rica. Without exception the people that we met were friendly and helpful, starting with the immigration officer as we arrived and finishing with the guy who drove the minibus to the airport as we were leaving,

What went to plan? 

The info provided by Aratinga and the research we did, warned us to be prepared for wet weather. We probably got less of this than might be expected in November but we got some. The combination of Wet Pack, Dry-bags, beach shoes and rain jackets that we took saw us through the worst and when it got just too much we put our cossies on and went swimming.

The birding was just sublime throughout. Some of the best spots were while eating breakfast and looking out of the restaurant. The splendid variety of colours on show and the constant movement of hummingbirds was like nowhere else we have been.

All of the accommodation was good or better. A couple of the rooms had fridges but where they didn't our trusty sac isotherme performed well. The travel kettle got regular workouts. About half of the rooms had US style dribbler things but we prefer our tea not to taste of coffee. The small vacuum flask was handy for keeping ice solid.

The driving, apart from in San Jose city, was not onerous. The roads were not very busy, the majority of road users were polite and considerate, and the potholes large but usually easy to spot. The wifi gadget supplied with the hire car performed well in almost every location. The directions provided by Google Maps were not perfect but we got by.

We added two days at the end of the trip to explore the attractions of San Jose, the Capital city, and were glad that we did. The Gold Museum and the National Theatre are well worth seeing as is the Central Market. We were also lucky to see a parade celebrating rural life. 

What surprised us?

The food in most of the places that we stayed was a pleasant surprise. We had been warned that Costa Rican cuisine was basically beans and rice (Gallo Pinto) and this was offered with most meals but there was plenty of good stuff besides. Some of the breakfast omelettes were divine and the Sopa Azteca was a revelation. A Costa Rican Green Salad is something else altogether. We had some excellent steak and seafood dishes.

We made an effort to learn some Spanish before we went and took a Latin American Spanish phrasebook that saw some use, mainly when arranging laundry. English was much more widely spoken than we expected and many of the people we met were keen to practice their skills. 

Nearly every light switch that we saw in Costa Rica is mounted horizontally rather than vertically. Why?

Getting a brand new car to drive when we collected the rental. If they had known where we were going they would surely have produced a clunker.

Patacones are a real winner and cassava crisps and lemon flavoured peanuts run them close. Who knew that Costa Rica was such a leader in packaged snacks?

Most of all we were amazed by the OTT enthusiasm of the population for all kinds of Christmas glitz and tat. The "Official Christmas Store" was every bit as good as the one in Berlin.

What would we do differently?

We wouldn't go for a three meal a day package if we went again. Several of the hotels ran the same three course menu for both lunch and dinner and for us a good breakfast and a decent supper is plenty when it is warm.

We wouldn't bother packing a hair dryer or a photographic tripod. Both got hauled all the way round and never got used.

For us Costa Rica delivered its promise and for three weeks we revelled in Pura Vida.