Costa Rica -

Costa Rica attractions, naturally! Part II

Gosia — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 20:28:38 +0000

From my trip to Costa Rica, I will definitely remember one thing – the amazing lush vegetation of tropical rainforests. Místico Arenal Hanging Bridges is definitely a must-see. The park has 6 suspension bridges and 10 traditional bridges that allow you to see the rainforest from a completely different, higher perspective. The most spectacular view is from the longest bridge, which is almost 100 m long and over 25 m high. The way there is an attraction itself, because the bridge is not a stable structure and wobbles with each step you take. In addition, it gets quite slippery when it rains. Looking down isn’t recommended, especially for people with a fear of heights. The bridge is a metal structure, and only a metal mesh under our feet separates us from the abyss. Costa Rica is also famous for its spectacular waterfalls. One of them is almost 30 m long – Llanos de Cortés. Less than 70 km north of Llanos de Cortes, there is an even more spectacular place – Tenorio Volcano National Park. In this rainforest, you can admire one of the most beautiful places in Costa Rica – the Río Celeste waterfall. The milky-blue colour of the water contrasts with the lush greenery of the rainforest. According to the locals, the phenomenal colour of the water, was created when God finished painting the sky blue, an then he washed his brushes in Río Celeste. November is supposedly the best month to observe the Poas and Irazu volcanoes. Unfortunately, in my case it didn’t work out 😀 While in the misty forests the fog created an amazing atmosphere, here it could obscure the volcanic eruption itself. At the end of my adventure in Costa Rica, on the way back to the border in Paso Canoas, I visited the beach – Espadilla. I wasn’t surprised that it was rainy on the beach, but it didn’t make much difference to me because I didn’t come here to sunbathe. This place is famous for another attraction… You can see a huge number of capuchin monkeys here. In fact, I did not expect to see so many of them. What’s more, they seemed to completely ignore the presence of people or cars on the road. While in Costa Rica, I also saw countless raccoons, which also seemed to function perfectly among people. Although, I did not manage to see a macaw or a toucan, in national parks could observe other interesting species of birds. Costa Rica is also worth visiting because of the stunning vegetation. After the rainy season, the forests looked like jungles, with an intense juicy green colour. The variety of interesting flowers with intense colours was also amazing. Find out more about my trip to Costa Rica here. Z podróży do Kostaryki, z pewnością zapamiętam jedną rzecz – niesamowitą bujną roślinność tropikalnych lasów deszczowych. Punktem must-see jest z pewnością Místico Arenal Hanging Bridges. W parku znajduje się 6 wiszących mostów oraz 10 tradycyjnych, które pozwalają zobaczyć las deszczowy z zupełnie innej, wyższej perspektywy. Najbardziej spektakularny widok roztacza się z najdłuższego mostu, który liczy prawie 100 m długości i znajduje się na wysokości ponad 25 m. Przejście tego kawałka jest atrakcją samą w sobie, gdyż most nie jest stabilną konstrukcją i chwieje się wraz z każdym postawionym krokiem. Dodatkowo, w tracie deszczu robi się tu dość ślisko. Jednak patrzenie pod nogi może się okazać złą taktyką, szczególnie dla osób z lękiem wysokości. Most jest metalową konstrukcją, a od przepaści dzieli nas tylko metalowa siatka pod stopami. Kostaryka słynnie również z widowiskowych wodospadów. Jednym z nich jest liczący prawie 30 m – Llanos de Cortés. Niecałe 70 km na północ od Llanos de Cortes znajduje się jeszcze bardziej spektakularne miejsce – Park Narodowy Wulkanu Tenorio. Park stanowi las deszczowy, na którego terenie znajduje się jedno z najpiękniejszych miejsc w Kostaryce, wodospad Río Celeste. Mleczno – niebieski kolor wody kontrastuje tu z bujną, soczystą zielenią lasu deszczowego. Zjawiskowa barwa wody podobno nie jest dziełem przypadku według miejscowych kiedy Bóg skończył malować niebo na niebiesko, umył swoje pędzle w Río Celeste. Listopad jest podobno najlepszym miesiącem do obserwacji wulkanu Poas i Irazu. Jednak w moim przypadku to się niestety nie sprawdziło 😀 Podczas, gdy w mglistych lasach mgła tworzyła niesamowity klimat, tak tutaj mogłaby przysłonić samą erupcję wulkanów. Na zakończenie mojej przygody z Kostaryką, w drodze powrotnej do punktu granicznego w Paso Canoas odwiedziłam jeszcze plażę – Espadilla. Ku braku mojego zaskoczenia, na plaży było deszczowo, natomiast nie robiło mi to dużej różnicy bo nie przyjechałam tu z myślą o plażowaniu. Miejsce to słynie z innej atrakcji… Można tu zobaczyć ogromną ilość małp kapucynek. Faktycznie, nie spodziewałam się, że na miejscu tyle ich zobaczę. Co więcej zdawały się kompletnie ignorować obecność ludzi czy samochodów na drodze. Będąc w Kostaryce widziałam także niezliczoną ilość szopów, które także zdawały się doskonale funkcjonować wśród ludzi. Co prawda nie udało mi się zobaczyć ary lub tukana natomiast w parkach narodowych można zobaczyć wiele innych, ciekawych gatunków ptaków. Kostarykę warto także odwiedzić, ze względu na zachwycającą roślinność. Po porze deszczowej lasy wyglądały jak dżungle, o intensywnym soczystym zielonym kolorze. Niesamowita była także różnorodność ciekawych kwiatów o intensywnych kolorach.

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Costa Rica attractions, naturally! Part I

Gosia — Wed, 15 Feb 2023 17:11:22 +0000

I am starting my trip to Costa Rica in mid-November. I’ve planned to see paradise beaches, tropical rainforests, huge waterfalls, volcanoes and countless tropical animals and birds such as: sloths, monkeys, toucans and parrots. It sounds so exciting… Meanwhile, crossing the border with Panama in Paso Canoas, I’m thinking if it’s the right place. There is no one on the street and the wall of rain literally makes me invisible as well as everything around me. Of course, while organising this travel I took into account the possibility of heavy rainfall because of the end of the rainy season. However, I was full of hope because according to many sources last few years haven’t been so rainy. However, I didn’t take into account a some kind of regularity – if it is supposed to rain somewhere, it will be exactly where I am. My belief was confirmed by the locals, who unanimously claimed that they had not seen such a heavy rainy season in Costa Rica for 30 years! It’s raining cats and dogs and I’m trying to find my way to the border crossing, but it’s not that easy, after a while it turns out that I’ve passed it completely without noticing it! In fact, no one from Panama’s border control even took notice of me! The Costa Rica border control pavilion is about 200 meters away, so I’m wading in water almost up to my knees to get another damn stamp in my passport. All this is pointless, because as it turns out later, my accommodation is in Costa Rica, but I have to go back to the Panamanian border crossing because my hotel is right next to it. I’m so soaked and tired that I don’t have the strength to analyze this twisted logic. The next day welcomed me with perfect weather , I went to pick up the car and start my adventure! As it turned out later, I unnecessarily listened to the opinions on the Interner that in Costa Rica it is necessary to rent an SUV, preferably 4WD . I may not be a master of driving, but having driven almost ¾ of this country, I haven’t encountered conditions under which an ordinary car would refuse to cooperate. The first point of my itinerary is a phenomenal beach in the national park – Marino Ballena, established to protect the population of migrating whales (Ballena in Spanish means whale). Although I didn’t see any whales because the migration lasts from December to April, the beach and its surroundings made an amazing impression on me. The deserted park made me feel as if I were somewhere on a remote island at the end of the world. An interesting place, although little known, is El Miro – a Costa Rican urbex, an unfinished building (probably a hotel), located on the top of a mountain. This place makes an amazing impression. Stylish winding stairs, columns and balustrades are decorated with interesting murals. The observation deck offers a spectacular view of the beach – Playa Hermosa. The path is not demanding. Return trip is only 2.5 km long. After walking 500 m you can see the first viewpoint. The path is opposite the Delta petrol station on road 34 towards Playa Hermosa, there’s also a car park. After visiting El Miro I was so excited to see the next point – Parque Nacional Carara, which is said to be inhabited by macaw parrots. I couldn’t wait to see them in their natural habitat. Unfortunately, I didn’t see any, and I guess that is the main reason why this attraction is not at the top of my list. I continued my journey towards Monteverde. On the way, there I had another attraction – so-called Crocodile Bridge, from which you can admire these reptiles at a safe distance. I remember the road to Monteverde to this day, it was a winding, sometimes narrow route, perfect for driving. The view of the sunset was otherworldly. The next day, at dawn, I set out to conquer the misty forest. It is true that the main tourist attraction in the area is the Monteverde Misty Forest Reserve ($25 in 2022), but the price and the large number of tourists made me choose the more intimate Santa Elena Reserve ($16 in 2022). Cloud forest is a type of tropical forest, found in mountainous areas. These forests are charaterised by a lot of mist due to high air humidity. On the way to the place I was wondering how misty forest is misty … it turned out that yes, it’s really misty! Moreover, the mist does here a really job, giving the place a mysterious look and creating perfect conditions for photos. I felt here as if I was discovering a kind of secret garden. The reserve also has a viewpoint a tower from which on a clear day you can see the Arenal and Miravalles volcanoes. Of course, it couldn’t be any different that time either! It’s easy to guess that I didn’t see that view ? This is only a part of the amazing places I visited in Costa Rica. Watch out for the next post soon! 🙂

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