October 8th: Puerto Jimenez to Matapalo and back to Peuerto Jimenez

We woke up at 5am, Grant went to the bakery to buy a regular loaf of bread and a loaf of cheesy bread, and we had a light breakfast of plain yogurt with papaya, some bread, and some mango juice. we weren't too hungry since it was so early and we had eaten late the night before. the birds were awake already though, and it was bright out and they were very loud. One bird that perches nearby has a chirup literally like a siren, and he likes to sing all morning starting at about 5am when the sun comes up (here, the sun rises at 5am an sets at about 5:30am). we sunscreened ourselves since we both got red the day before at Playa preciosa, and we gathered our backpack and walked to the wterfront to meet Dominic. We walked through the town and out to the road that leads to the next town, Matapalo, that is about 18km from Puerto Jimenez. Our plan was to walk, and if we got picked up that was great. Matapalo is not a real town like Peuerto Jimenez. Basically, it consists of a small bus stop where the colectivo (bus) comes by twice a day, and a steep, narrow gravel/dirt road where a bunch of cabinas and lodges are located. that's it - there's no store or anything. so, we started down the road to Matapalo, past the houses on the outskirts of town, and into the cleared fields where the cows were kept. we walked maybe 1 mile south down the road when a truck passed by us going in our direction. There were two people in the cab, and one man and one boy in the bed of the truck. they were on their way to work at one of the Fincas (farms) between Puerto Jimenez and Matapalo. apparently, it is common for a Tico (Costa Rican) to pick up anyone walking along the road. Apparently, Americans who come and are driving big cars that they rent almost never pick anyone up, which is really a shame. we met several very nice people simply hitch hiking yesterday, and it was wonderful. (lesson: if you are an American and you are driving in Costa Rica in your big rented 4 wheel drive car, pick up the people who are walking down the road. they will almost never ask for a ride, but they will accept it if it's offered. this is a natural thing here, and it can lead to new adventures). Anyways, the truck picked us up so the three of us climbed into the bed of the truck with the man, boy, and all the tools, and we flew down the dirt/gravel/rock road. it is very full of holes, and the bed of the truck was super bouncy. we were going between 15 and 35 MPH, which was fast with no seat belts as we clung to the edge of the bed of the truck. It's funny - the Tico drivers fly all over these roads because there is no traffic, and they want to avoid the side of the road with the most potholes. So, they sway side to side depending on which side if smoother so they don't have to slow down. A four wheel drive car is essential because of the rough nature of the roads, and because the road is often intersected by rivers. Many people fly by on little motorcycles, often with someone clinging for dear life on the back. They took us between 5-6miles, then let us off at the entrance to the Finca they work on. we walked maybe 1/2 mile more, until we reached Playa Tomales. There we turned off the road and walked along the beach towards Matapalo.

the beach near Matapalo is much rockier, but beautiful. there are so many beautiful shells, and so many were whole. there were also a few beautiful crabs:

we walked for a while:

(that's Dominic and Grant walking down the beach). We even walked over some very old coral reefs that were very slippery:

true to form, Grant found some edible plants. there was a tree, Siriguela (that's portuguse, and he isn't sure how to spell it). it is a small orange fruit with a huge seed and very little flesh. but if you get one that's ripe, it's worth it. Grant climbed the tree and shook it so the ripe ones would fall into the sand and we could eat them:

we also pretended we were tarzan and Jane when we swung from a large branch:

of course, grant wanted more coconuts. we took a break in the shade to wait for grant to crack one open. the first had a fermented taste, and grant and Dominic said they felt the alcohol in it. I didn't like the fizzy taste, so I only had a sip. we cracked it all the way open, and watched the hermit crabs (which were EVERYWHERE around the roots of the coconut tree and along the shade line) fight over the coconut pulp:

our rest spot was beautiful:

the second coconut was a lot better, and we carried it with us the rest of the walk so we had some more water. we kept walking until we found an archway along the tree line:

The lodge we came across was deserted, and Dominic led us onto the property to explore. There were two open cabins, one with just a bedroom that had no walls (but a ceiling) and one that was two stories (also open). there were also numerous faucets along the path, so we think there must be campsights for the high season when there are lots of tourists.

perhaps we were a little nosey, but we got to see a blue lizard, and orchid, and a strange tree related to the banana:

Dominic actually took a nap in the hammock on the porch of the largest house. While she napped, Grant and I walked around the next corner on the beach so we could try and find Matapalo. When we came back she was sitting on the beach with Miguel, the man who cares for the property during the low season. He drew a map in the sand that explained how to get to Matapalo. we walked through the property to the main road, and almost immediately came across a river that was pretty deep and wide that covered the road. luckily, a land rover drove up right away, and he stopped and threw the door open. we all hopped in. The passenger was a Tico that the driver had picked up on the road, and the driver was a German man who had driven his Land rover from California all the way to the Oso Peninsula, where he was currently staying. He did it with his girlfriend, but she had gone back to Russia to visit family. the drove really REALLY fast, and he flew over rocks and potholes and rivers. we got to Matapalo in no time. He dropped us off at the driveway to his Cabina, which was right on the beach. Grant layed in the sand:

while Dominic and I watched the ocean:

the skies were darkening, so after sitting for an hour we decided to start the walk back. it was likely that we would get a ride, but you never know: the rain was going to come, and the bus was not going to pass by for another 4 hours or so, and sometimes people wont stop for you. So we started walking, which was not a bad thing:

Here's an example of a river that crosses the road:

Here is an example of a country school. the ones in town are not as nice, I don't think:

We also saw a dead snake, some ants that were hollowing out tunnels in the embankment on the side of the road (they were carrying the bit of mud to the entrance to the bottom, but it was a vertical climb and some had loads so big that they just fell off the cliff and into the pile of mud they had created) and we saw several mushrooms that looked like Turkey tails from home, but weren't exactly those. Grant is the person to ask for that kind of detail. Several motorcylces passed us, and it had just started to rain a little when a truck drive passed us at the same spot we were picked up earlier going towards Matapalo. This truck had two people in the backseat, and the driver, so he let the three of us jump into the bed. We rode the whole way back to Puerto Jimenez in the back of the truck. it was bouncy, but the rain drops felt great. The truck dropped us off on the outskirts of town, where Dominic immediately saw a friend who was selling tamales outside the big supermarket. grant bout two for 800 colones, then we picked up some vegetables at the stand on the main street and walked back to the cabina. Took a cold shower, and on the way back from the bathrooms we saw a very green lizard in the tree outside out room:

look carefully, he's in there! After our shower the rain really started. We sat down and tried the tamales, but it turned out they had chicken in them so Grant ate them both. I had the leftovers from dinner the night before, and Frederico gave us a lot of food that he had made earlier in the day. He had fried plantains, mashed potatoes, a green salad, cauliflower. He gave grant a dish that he made with meat, and since I don't eat meat Frederico made me a fritata with green onions which was delicious. He also gave us fresh papaya juice that he made in the blender while we were eating, which was so refreshing. The portuguese couple who is also staying in the cabinas with us made frederico dinner since he has been so nice to us all, and they asked us to eat with them too. We were so full, so we just tried everything and it was really good. during dinner, we enjoyed the thunder and lightning show, which was raging most of the night. the rain was nice though, because it cooled the air and actually decreased the humidity. we didn't need the fan in our bedroom until half way through the night.