FINAL POST

We traveled to Puerto Viejo- my first time to the Carribean coast. Our hotel, the Banana Azul (Blue Banana) was super super awesome. It was run by two gay men and was just reopening the day we arrived. I got a luxurious room with a balcony and a hammock, AND the bugs weren't that bad (in the hotel at least- our hikes were a different story). The beach, Playa Barbara (shout out to Aunt Babs!) was maybe 5 steps away. But let me tell you, this ain't your grandma's beachfront. These waves rocked my world and spin cycled me 3 times in a row. I crawled back to land and swung in a hammock. Smamacita claims that she body surfed a wave (up for debate) and almost lost her bathsuit bottoms in Davvy Jones' Locker.

For our first dinner we ate at Monita Bonita (Beautiful Feminine Monkey) Smother and Stan split a red snapper and I got sushi- not bad, not bad at all. A live Calypso band came towards the end and ran through some great Belefonte hits. On our way out we stopped to admire lobsters, huge suckers with no pinchers! We also had a chance run-in with the owner, a gringa who I think had no actual knowledge of Spanish (based upon her sad miscommunications with the waiters).

The next morning as we ate our huevos rancheros, Gekko Tours came to inform us that snorkeling visibility was poor and asked if we wanted to postpone our trip. We opted to hold off for the next day and instead did the trifecta of Animal Rescue/Chocolate Lady/Waterfall- an obvious grouping of the coolest tourist attractions.

The animal rescue introduced us to a variety of snakes- including the BUSH MASTER, the most deadly snake in Costa Rica. Of 6 reported bites, 5 have been fatal. But you can tell by those numbers that the snakes are reclusive and don't usually attack. The coolest part about the reserve was the spider monkey babies. Our guide (a nice Spaniard whose specialty is primates) constantly had at least one on her head. An interesting note, you should always pick up monkeys by the tail, or cola.

Another really epic moment happened with our guide brought out both a three toed and a toe toed sloth. The three toed is my favorite as it reminds me a lot of Cammy Cakes. See facebook for upclose/personal sloth photos. Biggest disappointment: the caymens. They're like a foot long and just sat there. Apparently the local lore is that the tails are aphrodisiacs, so people will hunt them, cut off the tail and let them go.