All the way down through the whole of Central America I have posted pictures of many beautiful beaches, jungles, vistas and punctuated each with phrases like ‘We found paradise” or “Another bloody paradise”. And now the children’s story of the boy who cried wolf comes to mind. I might have spoken too soon. But I assure you, this time we have found it. Costa Rica!
I won’t go into the mundane practicalities of crossing borders, or my opinions on the way of things here. I will just focus on the sheer beauty of the place.
From the moment you cross that border things change, dramatically. You are suddenly surrounded by lush green forests, amazing wildlife and views straight out of a travel magazine. It is truly wonderful and very difficult to describe without doing it the justice it deserves.
We had always been heading here. Our dream to find a piece of land and build a house for both of us, and maybe a rental unit or two was always the driving force behind the adventure. And I cannot lie when I say that our plans have changed somewhat throughout the different and diverse countries we have travelled through. Mexico, Chiapas in particular, with its humid forests, great beaches, cheap cost of living and very relaxed planning laws attracted our attention. El Salvador too for many of the same reasons, but it is more expensive and a little sketchy at times. And Nicaragua for the warmth and welcome of the people along with the charm and beauty of its landscape, though politically it is unstable and dreams can be shattered by revolutions. But none of these compare to the country we are now in, for me anyway. I know Dani may agree. The only downside, if there really is any, is the cost of living and the price of land. Everybody wants a piece of it, celebrities buy up swathes of land here, backpackers never leave once they taste the bounty, and expats have invested massively too.
But good things come from that kind of interest and investment. Though the roads are still a little lacking in tarmac, the infrastructure here is great. Good telephone coverage, excellent medical care and everywhere here accepts our Mastercard. No small thing when you have had to rely on cash withdrawn, at cost, from dodgy banks elsewhere. It has so many things going for it, and we have come back to our original idea of staying and living for six months to get a feel for the life here and seek out opportunities.
On that point, we were looking for a place to rent for the first month. As usual Daniela does the research and found a few places. They were ok but I had the feeling there was something better somewhere so I did some of my own. I came across one place, in the jungle in the south near a town called Coyote. It was totally separate from anyone. Had a huge veranda that overlooked the jungle and in the distance you could see the ocean waves. Instantly I was smitten and insisted on booking it. It was more than we were anticipating to pay but the location, the access to wildlife, the silence and peace was all I could think of. So we did. A whole month in paradise! And I do really mean Paradise. We were greeted by the lady who looks after it for the owner who, apparently, is a dance music producer from Amsterdam. She showed us around and at each turn I was just dumbfounded. How could we have been so lucky.
From the veranda you can see and hear the Howler Monkeys in the trees. Hummingbirds come to feed on the beautiful flowers in the garden. Butterflies of all colours come too, fluttering around us. We can hear the ocean in the distance, 20 minutes walk away. It is Eden and all credit to the man behind it. He has owned it for twenty years and has built a little piece of heaven here. It may even be possible to rent it for longer if we want. But we have to negotiate a better price away from Air B&B first. Given the choice, I would stay forever! Paradise…
The local town of Coyote is only a few kilometres down the gravel road. Some of the best beaches in Costa Rica are a kilometre the other way. Everybody waves at you. They seem happy to have us here. Even the cleaning lady was happy that we were looking to stay and offered a few places that were for sale by the owners in the area. She is also looking into whether we can get a quad bike for our use. Definitely a must here. Marissa is totally fine doing these roads but she is a guzzler and at 12 miles to the gallon I think a quad would be a better option. And what better way to see and smell the area than on a bike.
I don’t think I want to leave any time soon. Watch this space.
Sounds wonderful. Happy days 🙂 x
😎🌞😍