Costa Rican Treats

Pictures are now on the computer, and I thought I'd share a few treats. We stayed at 2 hotels, the Paradisus Playa Conchal and the Hotel Tamarindo Diria (about 20 minutes south). It is near the end of the dry season there, and things were noticeably not green. The great thing about the dry season for visitors is, however, NO rain. That is desirable when you're taking a beach vacation and the weather did not disappoint.

The first few days were spent doing... well, nothing. Relaxing by the pool mostly, and while re-energizing, by the 4th day we were ready for adventure. And we got it... leaving the hotel at 8 am, a group of 18 of us headed inland for a canopy tour that included a 14-platform zip line, water slide, hike to a waterfall, mud bath and hot springs (of a sort), and a wild horse ride.

After adventure, we needed to recuperate, and we did that the next day on a half-day catamaran trip that ended at sunset. This time, about 45 in our group attended, and there was enough sun, surf and sand to satisfy just about everyone. The only thing that seemed to be missing was the sailing, which was fine with me, but some of the purists onboard would have preferred sail over motor. All told, I saw much more flora than fauna, but did see several iguana, an anteater (or sloth...not sure which), lots of skinny cows and horses, and a porpoise. Oh, and a tick hitched a ride stateside between my toes. Ouch!