Travels with Hayley

Today was the only day of the trip that we had a later (9am) start which couldn’t have worked out better after my 3am bedtime! I squeezed in a run to the supermercado for a restorative Diet Coke and then we were back on the mini bus heading to Manuel Antonio, a beach resort where we were spending the penultimate 3 nights.

The driver stopped on the way for us to take pictures at a viewpoint, it was so beautiful. This country never ceases to amaze with how stunning it is, you just can’t drink it in enough.

We also had a stop as he spotted 6 scarlett macaws at the side of the road and we jumped out to look and get a shot through a telescope. I know we have parakeets in Crystal Palace park but come on, scarlett macaws are sooo much more exciting aren’t they!

Further on to a rest stop (about 11am and would you believe it, a full restaurant was right there for Marvin’s breakfast…) and huge excitement because laying under the bridge (which was nice and high, panic not) were the biggest crocodiles I’d ever seen! They are just so prehistoric looking, they really do send a chill right up your spine. Apparently about 5 years ago there were a couple of young guys at the rest stop who were drinking heavily and one of them decided to have a swim in the river…it turned out to be his last swim. They found his skull a few miles up the river a week later. People are so stupid sometimes…

I tried on some clothes at one of the roadside stalls, we collectively decided while the open weave crochet dress was very nice, potentially it wasn’t the most practical of purchases what with it showing my entire bra and pants and so sadly it had to stay there. Next time maybe 😜

We arrived at our hotel which is about 25 minutes by bus from the actual beach (I assume the ones nearer are too expensive…?) dumped the luggage and got taken on a quick orientation walk showing us where to catch the bus, go to the cash point etc. The change in the weather was stunning, in Monte Verde where we had left that morning, I had been wearing long sleeves and a denim jacket to dinner. This place was so hot that sweat started dripping down your back the moment you exited anywhere that wasn’t air conditioned! Even the vegetation has changed again, vast palm trees everywhere, much more of Caribbean vibe if you know what I mean.

We got on the public bus, hung out of the windows for some ‘fresh’ air and headed straight for the beach. We had lunch at a little restaurant on the front and I shared a chicken quesadilla and a fresh local mozzarella salad (not like our mozzarella, very yellow, creamy and in little bits – I’m going to say brain shaped but don’t let that put you off, it was delicious!) with Katie but I could barely eat anything, it was just too hot. 

As I left the restaurant a man at the bar stopped me as he ‘had’ to tell me how beautiful I was and then another stopped me to tell me the same and kiss my hand. This is happening all the time wherever we go (it’s really the blonde hair, there’s barely any blondes here and they’re obsessed with it!) but Katie finally lost her patience with it today 😂 ‘Wherever we go, the rest of us ask for water or anything at all and it just gets dumped in front of us, you get ‘oh what’s your name, where do you come from, you’re so beautiful, come back and see me’. I mean she’s not wrong but a packet of hair dye would sort it out asap 😂 Marvin told her ‘she can’t help it, she’s the beautiful flower and all the men are the pollinators trying to get the nectar’ – what a vivid analogy eh 😂. I can’t lie, it’s super fun for a change to have everyone clamouring over each other to make you feel special, it was the same in Cuba. I think Central America is definitely my place, as long as I can guarantee a reliable source of Clairol!

We hit the beach and got straight in the sea which had some pretty big waves. I was helping Homa as we’re trying to get her over her fear of water when a huge wave crashed over us. I caught her but my sunglasses were the casualty and ended up in 5 parts 😂 Thank goodness I’d had the foresight to take some cheap Primark ones instead of the Pradas! Hit the supermarket at the beach immediately and within 5 minutes they were replaced, this time for the vastly more princely sun of £6. I shall not be wearing these in the sea to protect this outlandishly lavish investment, obviously.

Turns out that, surprise surprise, I was allergic to something on the beach/in the sea and came up with a weird rash all over my legs, arms and the side of my face – it went down in a couple of hours after a clean shower and an antihistamine but honestly the group are so nice, they were so worried. I was spectacularly unconcerned as it would be quicker to list the things I’m not allergic to wouldn’t it and I knew it would go as quick as it came but they were all offering anti histamine, pouring their bottles of fresh water over me, suggesting doctors. Very sweet. 

Jumped back on the bus about 5.30 to head back as by 6pm they only run hourly (for a Londoner this is both inexplicable and unacceptable!) and after a cool shower and a double anti histamine dose, normal skin service was resumed. The 3 of us headed out to dinner to meet the others who had left the beach slightly earlier. We only had to walk about 10 minutes but there was a really sketchy vibe to the neighbourhood, we didn’t feel particularly safe. The smell of skunk was really strong in places and frankly if you wanted to take up a hard drug habit you wouldn’t have had to go more than 30 seconds or so to bump into your friendly neighbourhood street dealer…

I had the Aztec soup again, this one was even more delicious with big chunks of tender chicken and loads of mozzarella and avocado. The soup itself was so flavoursome – I was so sad I couldn’t eat much of it but even with the fan going overhead it was just too hot. I was really grateful you can drink the tap water (not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, you can drink the tap water everywhere we’ve been bar one which relied on a well) as I drunk so much if I’d had to pay it would have been more than the soup! 

Back to the hotel and the neighbourhood impression we had got was further confirmed when we realised they locked us inside the hotel at 10pm with a security guard on the gate the whole night. You’d had to put on a purple paper wristband when you arrived and post 10pm he would only open the gate to someone wearing one. It made us feel secure but slightly worrisome that it was required…😳

Another amazing day, what will the next one bring? I feel like I’ve been away for such a long time but I’m not even nearly ready to come home!

Love you all millions xxx