We woke up about 5am to take a 5-minute walk to Playa Chiquita. As we traveled down the gravel road, this huge rodent-like mammal crossed our path.
“What the f*ck…” we said.
This is probably the only animal neither of us got a picture of because we were just stunned and confused at what this creature was. Later in the day, we tried to describe it several people and we think it was an agouti – which is prey to the jaguar, so I’m just going to leave that at that.
So one thing we didn’t think about was what side the sun rises in relation to where we were located… Whoops. Therefore, there was no beautifully colored sky or anything, but it was nice to explore the deserted beach. Dani and I took a stroll along the narrow strip of shoreline, hopping over logs and avoiding the rushing waters coming in.
I was at such peace and found myself in a child-like energy. At some point, I decided to do something I haven’t done in probably twenty years – climb a tree. I balanced myself on the trunk and onto some branches. I was clearly over the water, hearing it lap against the rotting wood below. I stared out at the horizon, appreciating its beauty. Alone, in the sky, relative silence. I felt so grateful for the experience. Once I retreated to solid ground, I found a rock and meditated for a moment.
On our way back to Lapaluna, our AirBnB, we ran into our host – the wife this time – walking their family dog. Relaxed and grounded, the sun shone brightly – my skin absorbing its radiant light. As we approached the entrance, we saw and heard literally over 30 birds of all different species amongst the trees of, and flying around, the compound.
I was so proud of Dani because as long as I’ve known her, she’s been scared of birds, but this time, she was able to appreciate the magnificence of these animals. We were shocked to see so many because upon our initial arrival Thursday night, we had asked our host what animals were around, and he specifically said that they don’t get a lot of birds in the immediate area, but for some reason it was like they were ALL drawn to this location on this rising. He even came outside in amazement at the sight. The most interesting bird was one – just imagine a turkey, that could fly… We marveled at the birds for about 15 minutes before heading inside to change and continue our adventure.
Breakfast was had at GypSea Café, which was nearby, in walking distance. It was an eclectic little outdoor spot with tasty, farm-to-table vegan options. I sipped on some homemade, spiced hot chocolate. Dani and I shared two servings of avocado toast – I don’t know what else was on it but it was delightfully good – and I had the Acai Coco Loco bowl which had coconut ice cream topped with tropical fruits, granola, pure cacao, and coconut shavings. Breakfast was about $30 total.
On this day’s schedule, we had our most expensive tour – which was about $60 per person. It’s always important for me to not just enjoy the beaches, but to learn and experience the history and culture. Besides sloths, the one other thing on my to-do list was to visit the BriBri reservation. The BriBri are the largest aboriginal American tribe in the Talamanca region of Costa Rica, who have still preserved their native language. After breakfast, we powerwalked back to the residence. The tour shuttle was already there so we ran in to grab our bags and hopped in. There was only one other woman on the tour – after some early conversation, we found out that she was a therapist that owned several clinics in Ojai, California. The drive was about 30 minutes, but we stopped in a small town and our guide bought us some fresh fruits to enjoy later in the afternoon. As we drove deeper into the mountains, our guide pointed out the Panamanian border. If this vacation was longer, I definitely would’ve done one of the day trips to Panama. When we arrived to the reservation, we were taken into a hut that was filled with handmade tribal masks made of Ochroma wood.
Next, we were taken to a hut where an indigenous woman took us through the process of preparing cacao. Cacao is extremely precious to this group of people and is used ceremonially. It is deeply revered as a magical feminine energy and was typically only handled by women.
We harvested the pods, cooked it over an open fire (which was hot! I was sweating!), crushed it traditionally – using a large rock, which was definitely a workout, separated out the shells, ground it into a thick paste, and was served our creation with boiled plantains. Then, we boiled the remaining grounds into a drink, added sugar and sipped on the rich, aromatic and earthy treat.
Afterwards, we were shown how to use hunting tools such as a bow and arrow and bird caller.
Our guides then took us on a tour around the medicinal gardens and showed us a wide variety of herbs, and plants that could be used as paint and also glue! Dani and I were “married” by connecting our fingers with the sticky substance from one of the plants. Lastly, we were shown a breeding shack with all kinds of tiny, little frogs. Some were poisonous, so we couldn’t touch them, but their vivacious red and green colors were so intoxicating.
Following the BriBri tour, we drove another ten minutes and pulled off the side of the road to a little shack. We ate the fruits that were bought earlier, including pineapple (yum!!) and our guide gathered some water apples, which was a fruit I had never tried before. We were told to pick out a walking stick and headed down a steep incline until we reached a small river and waterfall. I felt like Gandalf as I traversed the rocky path.
The water was cool and refreshing. We swam around the pool and even behind the waterfall. I can admit, I was a little sad there was no place to jump off of, but it was nice to have the experience be so easy-going. As we enjoyed the afternoon, the woman we booked the bike tour with showed up with a group – this was the hidden waterfall! So, everything worked out for Dani and me anyway.
As we headed back to Puerto Viejo, we stopped at a bank for the other tour participant to pay for her trip. I noticed we were alongside La Playa Negra. Dani and I looked at each other, thanked the guide, and hopped out! We walked across the street and decided to have a beach day.
“That looks like a good spot,” I pointed out.
“Where?”
“Just follow me, haha,” I said. I had picked out a relatively empty spot way down the beach, so we took off our shoes and walked about ten minutes to the “perfect” location.
Playa Negra is about a mile from Puerto Viejo, and between there and Cahuita. The black sand is a product of lava deposits – there are about 50 volcanoes in Costa Rica!
It was such a sight to see the jungle on one side, the black sand, and then the strikingly blue ocean on the other. The waters were a little rough – at some point Dani would swim below the surface and reappear somewhere down the beach.
“Ma’am, I’m gonna need you to not,” I mothered her.
We talked about the spiritual nature of water, but also how paradoxically it can be healing, yet destructive.
After playing in the water for a few hours, it was time to eat, so we started our leisured trek back to town. I was so happy when Dani also decided to climb a tree that she was drawn to.
We got a little side-tracked from our food mission and checked out some art galleries. Our main visit was to Lulu Berlu Galeria. It was on a backstreet and carries one-of-a-kind folk art from local artists. Here, I bought a painting.
At some point during one of the past two days, we had passed a grocery store and eventually, we found it. Dani is such a great chef, so she took the lead for the evening. She had wanted to fully utilize the gorgeous outdoor kitchen that we had back at Lapaluna. We bought some wine, plantains, beans, rice and a few other goodies. As we took a tuk-tuk back, our host had messaged us and said that there were veggies in the garden that we could pick.
As we arrived, we gathered some large cucumbers and then decided to take advantage of all of the lodging offerings. We rinsed off using the outdoor shower. It was in a private area, but we couldn’t guarantee no one would wander over, so even though a nude shower out in the open would have wonderful, we opted to keep our bathing suits on.
Also, when’s the last time either of us had gotten on a trampoline? So hell yeah, we got on that thing and bounced around before realizing that, too, was a workout.
Dani showered first and by the time I was done, she had lit all the tea light candles, and we turned on some Spanish music to jam out too. It was her dream to cook in an outdoor kitchen, so I let her do her thing. We both had the same idea to dress up for our home-cooked meal.
It was such a beautiful, beautiful evening. The perfect way to end our day.
Now me, being the lowkey nudist that I am, at some point decided it was too hot to be dancing around in a satin dress, so I took it off and encouraged my friend to do the same.
“Like what; we’re in the jungle, in friggin’ Costa Rica; no one is out here, let’s just be free!” I pleaded.
After many laughs and shenanigans, we said goodnight to our resident cat, who had once again shown up, and off to bed we went.
