Costa Rica Re-Cap #4: The Beach

"But for now, we are young.  Let us lay in the sun.  And count every beautiful thing we can see." ~In the Aeroplane Over the Sea

So after three amazing days in La Fortuna, we took a bus across the country to hit up what's called the best beach in Costa Rica--Manuel Antonio.   That was the extent of Day 4 of the vacation.  Despite the 5 hour car ride on HORRIBLE roads (during which I was handing out carsick pills to other passengers on the bus...way to be prepared, Tiffany!)..it was worth it!  Here's the re-cap of days 5 and 6 of the trip....our beach days.

The Regular Beach

So after going, going, going in La Fortuna, I think we were all ready for a little down time.  Cue beach, umbrella, chairs and a nice cabana boy named Alejandro.  Seriously, that was his name.  You can't make this stuff up.

So that's pretty much the sum and substance of our Day 5.  We spent lots of time chilling under the umbrella, I finished the 30 Things book and we discussed that, Cousin Swiss Mister discovered he did not like coconut water and then went for a run, followed by a massage on the beach.  Oh yea, one more tiny detail.  BOKG and I managed to get majorly sunburned.  Particularly on our *backside.*  It's easy to forget sunscreen back there!  So we basically came home, took showers, slathered ourselves in aloe and whined the rest of the night.  Wear sunscreen, kids.  Wear sunscreen!

Fancy Dinner

After such a long day in the sun, we all got dressed up and headed out for a fancy dinner at Kopi Kopi restaurant.  Seriously, how cute is "The Family Unit" (as Cousin Swiss Mister deemed the four of us!)  In true vacation style, we met up with The Ohios, who invited some friends they met, who in turn invited some friends they met, who in turn did the same.  We ended up with like 14 people at dinner.  Have I mentioned before how much I LOVE traveling??

 

Parasailing

We kicked off Day 6 with a big event...parasailing!  This baby has been on my bucket list for YEARS, so I was super excited to check it off.  Because Cousin Swiss Mister loves me, he said that he'd go with me.  (Turns out he'd been once before with some crazy girl he was dating just before they broke up and she threw her keys to him....he has great taste, but that's a whole 'nother blog!)

So we all headed down to the beach for the big event.  If you ever get the chance to parasail, do it.  It was amazing--beautiful, quiet, peaceful--I loved it.  Except for the part where Cousin Swiss Mister threatened to unhook one of my harnasses mid-air.  I informed him I would never be doing anything with him again.  We have that on video.  It's good.  Here are some photos.

Because we had such a good time, The Ohios decided that they'd parasail and Blonde Oklahoma Girl did the same.  Go Big or Go Home, you know!  Everyone had an absolute blast!

Sidenote, the woman running the parasailing place was from America.  She had a degree from UVA, a law degree from George Washington and was working at a white shoe firm in New York City when she met the love of her life on vacation.  He was from Costa Rica and after he tried to live a year in Manhattan and hated it, she quit her job and they started their own parasailing business.  If you think that didn't get the wheels turning in my little head, you're crazy!

National Park Beaches

After the parasailing, The Ohios said they had to take us to the beaches located inside the Manuel Antonio National Park.  We had to hike through the park (think jungle paths) to get there, but let me tell you, it was worth every minute.  The beaches are prestine and beautiful.  There are not that many people, nothing is bought or sold, it's just you, trees, sand, beach, and monkeys.  It was like a little pack of Marcel monkeys (yes, the extent of my monkey knowldge comes from friends).  It was an absolutely beautiful place and day!  I posted several of my favorite shots from the beaches here.

Before we left, we had to take some shots doing my favorite pose of all time.  I'll be adding these to my collection. :)

Stay tuned tomorrow for The Family Unit's Last Supper, our day spent lounging around the hotel, a monkey parade and our plane almost getting hijacked.  No lie....it happened.

Days 4-6 Summary

List of Activities:  Travel from La Fortuna to Manuel Antonio; lay on the beach; fancy dinner at Kopi Kopi; parasailing; hike through Manuel Antonio National Park; swimming at park beaches.

Quote of the day(s):  "Cousin Swiss Mister, NO!  I am never doing anything with you again!"  ~Me (when he tried to unsnap my harnass mid-air)

Lessons Learned:  (1) Apply sunscreen everywhere.  Backside included.  (2) Parasails have two snaps to connect you to the harnass.  (3) Sometimes you have to hike through the forrest to find the perfect beach.