Day 2: 6/22/18
Today I visited Manuel Antonio National Park. Epic. Hold that thought…
San Jose has the worst drivers I have ever seen in my life. Every transfer I had from my pick up at 6am weaved in and out of traffic and cut things way too close for my tastes. Now I will be the first to admit that I am a conservative driver (flipping an SUV at 16 will do that to you), but this was absolutely insane.
We met up with the tour and headed out for a really long bus ride (still with crazy driving), and took a rest stop for breakfast. The fruit was the freshest, most delicious fruit I’ve ever had in my life! The fruit juice turned out to be a blend of several fruits, but it too was amazing. I look forward to my inevitable attempt to re-create it, although I know I won’t be able to without fruit this fresh.
After breakfast, we walked over the “crocodile bridge.” Its namesake is obvious and it did not disappoint. The scariest part was not the animals. It was walking on the shoulder of the highway over top of crocodile infested waters with previously mentioned Costa Rican drivers flying by within inches. At one point, I admit to panicking… But I took a deep breath and reminded myself that the purpose of this trip was to break my shell, to reach beyond my comfort zone. I focused on the crocodiles, and that brought me serenity, as crazy as that sounds.
The tour was made up of a rag tag group of people from all over the world. I learned something new about myself after interacting with this group. Hope that thought… Again.
An Indian-born Texan befriended me early on in the tour, and it was partly due to our hotels being the furthest away from the heart of the city like our counterparts stayed in. He was a photographer, which really came in handy as I was using a DSLR for the first time in my life. He helped me loads in the park getting good shots and teaching me about different settings in different scenarios.
I also met a man from New Orleans who was here as he so eloquently put it, “for the women.” He was married and takes a yearly venture to San Jose where prostitution is legal to get his “desires satisfied.” As he again showed such class as he smoked his electronic cigarette, he said, “Where else can I find a 25-year-old to be coming on to me like that?” I can’t help him with an answer, but hot or not, prostitutes do not interest me in the least at this point in my life.
While they weren’t prostitutes, had they lived in San Jose, a group of kids on our tour probably would have found that to be an easy path for themselves. Giggly, obnoxious, and quite frankly off-putting, these girls taught me something about how I view others. While we are all judgmental to an extent, I call them “kids” because of their youth for actions, when the reality is that they were in their late teens or early twenties. I didn’t pay much attention to them, as I tend to look past those who I feel can’t contribute to my well-being… Maybe I am being too judgmental, though…
Back to the point…
Manuel Antonio was life changing! I have never experienced seeing so many animals in the wild before. Iguanas were roaming everywhere, along with many other lizards and reptiles. Everywhere I looked was an animal of some sort, and I had to be mindful of the ants. The ants were everywhere, following a line and working, and had I not paid attention, I easily would have stepped on them. Several animals resembling beavers roamed about (can’t recall their names), and a raccoon even made an appearance to steal a lunch from the beach.
The beaches were beautiful! The waters of the angry Pacific were an amazing site as they crashed into the rocky shores with white sand. I was able to get quite a few good shots that I hope to paint when I return home. Home… I miss Sugar. I hope she knows how much I need this adventure and will forgive me for not being there this week.
I have always wanted to see a monkey in the wild, and they were everywhere in the park. A dream come true was watered down to an extent because of the sheer number of monkeys that were roaming around. I feel like there is a life lesson somewhere in there for that…
I had a wild to think about my comfort zone issues on the long ride back to San Jose. New Orleans Man was thinking about his prostitutes, Texan was thinking about his flight home tomorrow, Giggle Girls were trying to decide where to go party in the city, and I was reflecting on my second all-Spanish encounter in two days. This time, I had asked a question about cost and got the response before responding. As simple as it seems, I worked hard to learn some Spanish on this trip and not for a grade or to impress anyone, but because I genuinely wanted to respect the culture of which I was invading this week.
I find it ironic that, by forcing myself out of my comfort zone, I find myself becoming more accepting of who I am as a person and I am revisiting old comforts like reading and writing. I am excited to see what adventures tomorrow brings, as I again wake up early for a new adventure through a jungle.