The Adventure Hat, Part 2: Puerto Viejo

Our fourth weekend. Time is going by slowly and pretty fast at the same time. Every day feels long but in general I don't feel like I've been here for a month.

This was the first weekend ISA didn't offer an excursion, so naturally we decided to go to Limon (the only place in Costa Rica where malaria is still a problem, and the poorest part of the country). Also as expected, it was AMAZING.

Puerto Viejo is a little Caribbean town on the coast with one main street, some beautiful beaches, and an unbelievable hostel--called Rockin J's. We took the public bus from San Jose ($10, 5 hour ride).

Check this place out!

Pics show the central courtyard, from left to right.

And through the walkway shown above inside the big building with the white roof...

(WHERE WE SLEPT)

Out the back gate

As you can see, Rockin J's is a huge compound. Costs $4 per night for a hammock (see below). Hammock's take a bit of getting used to for sleeping--I was up for like 3/4 the first night. But after that, they're pretty swell. And somehow sleeping in a hammock just seems really cool.

For high-rollers ($5 per night), there was space for tents.

And the cool thing about the place is that all of the tile artwork was done by guests.

Including...me. Here's my attempt at California!

FAIL

The girls did better, though.

Both full days we were in Puerto Viejo we rented bikes. We visited an Indigenous chocolate plantation (Bribri tribe), and got to taste samples of different chocolate--all amazing. The plantation itself essentially consisted of a couple big trees and a large hut where one lady made chocolate.

We spent the rest of the day lounging on the beach and hanging out.

The next day, we got to see some really cool stuff. We took our bikes out early and rode to Manzanillo. On the way we saw all sorts of wildlife, including toucans and monkeys, who proceeded to poop at us. How exactly does that work, you ask? Well, there were overhanging trees on the road we were taking, and these monkeys climbed up into the branches right above us and started to defecate. I literally (there you go, Sam) had to run to my bike to escape. Hilarious. Monkeys rule.