My shuttle picked me up today at about 8am and I was on my way to Santa Cruz. The first two hours of the trip were on crazy roads....lots of pot holes, hills, dust...I almost felt sick. Even the shuttle driver said he did not like that part of the drive...and he has to do it every day!!!! The drive to Santa Cruz was about 3 1/2 hours in total. Along the way we
dropped off a couple people in
Nicoya who were travelling on to Samara. I wanted to go there on my trip, but with it taking so much time to
travel around I decided not to...maybe next time. On our route to Santa Cruz we passed through several small towns, saw some cute little houses, and there were lots of cattle that were way too skinny...they are all like this in the hotter areas of the country. We also passed lots of people driving ATVs...this is how many people get around due to the road conditions. The funny thing is that they wear ski
goggles to keep out the dust...good idea I guess. I was dropped off in Santa Cruz along the main road at a bus stop. I was told to take the direct bus to Liberia...easier said than done. I tried to get on four buses to Liberia in an hour before I got the right one...I do not think it was direct however, but it got me where I wanted to go. A very nice
Tico man helped me get on the bus, as he spoke very good English. The bus to Liberia was a little over an hour and cost about 800
colones or $1.50. The bus was full...this is one of the busiest days to travel...so I stood the whole way with my pack at my feet. One woman offered me a seat, but I figured with my big bag, it would be better to just stand with it and make sure nothing happened to it...she was very sweet. I arrived in Liberia at around 2pm. This is the second largest city
in Costa Rica and nothing really to brag about. It is located in the northern part of the Peninsula
Nicoya where it is much dryer. The first thing I noticed when I arrived was all the
fastfood chains...
McDonalds, Burger King, Subway,
ect...very Americanized. Once at the bus station I bought a ticket to
Playa Hermosa....685
colones or $1.15...there are several places with the same name, so you need to make sure they know which one you are going to. It is about an hour bus ride back in the same direction and then off toward the coast. I hung around at the bus station and tried to relax a bit. It is a very busy spot, with lots of people, buses coming and going and people selling fruit, vegetables, drinks and souvenirs...I thought I would try out a coconut milk drink right out of
th
e shell. All I can say is YUCK....it was NOT for me!!! When I finally figured out which line to get in for the bus...thank God because I think every taxi driver came up to me trying to get me to take the $25 taxi ride to
Playa Hermosa...I found a seat and enjoyed the ride. At this point I was exhausted from the day and ready to be at my final destination. I arrived at
Playa Hermosa at about 4:30pm. From where I got off the bus it was about a 5 minute walk to
Hermosa Heights, were I rented a private 2 bedroom, 2 bath villa for five days. I know it sounds a bit much, but it was on sale for 50% off
and I could not resist....and thankfully I did not. I think I am in HEAVEN!!!
Hermosa Heights is a mix of small villas along the mountain side. There is lots of beautiful vegetation and at the entrance there is an ATM, security, a spa, gym, movie theatre, mini put golf, basketball court and a sports bar. The town is not that developed, so it has less of a touristy feel, but once you look up the mountains you know that tourism is well on its way. Huge, beautiful homes all over the place...mostly owned by foreigners. The hillsides are definitely for sale!!! As you walk up from the entrance to the complex there is a pool...two
tiered...with two
waterslides. There is a jacuzzi at the top, with a waterfall and a swim up bar/restaurant. My villa is just up from the pool in a nice secluded area. It has A/C, a kitchen, a safety box, a nice deck over looking the pool area, a 42" flat screen TV, a rice cooker...of course... and a washer/dryer.....this is SO exciting!!! Every piece of my clothing is smelly and dirty...I could not wait to do laundry. Laundry service is very expensive in Costa Rica...about $16 per load and I saw Tide for sale for $21 for a 32 load bottle...good thing I brought my own!! Once I got settled in, I walked up to the supermarket and bought groceries for the
nex
t 5 days. A full breakfast is included everyday, but I plan to cook all my other meals and enjoy everything this villa has to offer...nice change really. Once I put the groceries away, I went for a swim...so nice, did my laundry while I cooked dinner and then watched a bit of TV...this is luxury after backpacking for 16 days. I spent part of the evening sitting out on my deck enjoying the gorgeous evening. I sat in the jacuzzi and just watched the stars glistening above...so peaceful...it feels very removed from everything. Tomorrow I plan to check out the town and the beach and get myself more acquainted.
Until then....
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