Ben's Travel Adventures

Taxi Hounds at Third World Airports

Here's a little thing third world countries could do which would vastly improve the travel experience for foreigners: create a formal taxi line and enforce it.

In every poor country I've been to the airport scene is always the same. You land, go through customs, and then take one step outside and are hounded by taxi drivers. Some legal, some illegal, all shouting "taxi! taxi! taxi!".

The most frustrating experience I've had was in Dalian, China. There the illegal taxis swarm and won't leave you. I had to physically push one guy away and he nonetheless kept following my every step trying to get me to hire him.

In Liberia, Costa Rica, you step out of the airport and before you know it you're inundated by "taxi! taxi!". When I waited to pick Laura up at the airport, I watched dozens of passengers exit the airport. Each time, without exception, they walk out with a smile on their face, and within seconds, at seeing the mob scene of taxi drivers, their smile turns to deer-in-headlights or general fear / nervousness.

Why would you want that to be the first impression visitors have of your country?

Ziplining Through a Forest Canopy

Monteverde is the most popular place to zip line in Costa Rica, but you can just as easily do it in Arenal. There's a forest canopy with 12 different platforms built around a tree. For about 15 - 60 seconds you zip along the line to the next platform. It's very cool and fun and any jitters quickly dissipate after the first run. Here's a money pic of me on the line:

Pictures of Hike Thru Rincon de la Vieja

I blogged about my hike through Rincon de la Vieja (part 1 and part 2). Below are some photos:

La Fortuna - Arenal: The Lake

The Arenal Volcano and the surrounding activities (rafting, hiking, ziplining, hot springs-ing) are tier 1 tourist destinations in Costa Rica, along with the Monteverde Cloud Forest, the Pacific Coast beaches, Manuel Antonio, and Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean side.

Arenal is an active volcano (last erupted in 2000) and as such you can't walk up and around it (like Stan and I did in Rincon de Vieja). But, it's more stunning to look at from afar -- a perfect cone, with visible "scars" on the upward steep towards the peak, which I assume resulted from lava flows.

La Fortuna is the town at the base of Arenal and is very touristy but contains a wide mix of restaurants and activities. You have to hunt for the local prices (look for where the locals are eating!) but it's possible.

Our first full day in Arenal my new traveling companion Laura and I took a taxi to the lake area adjacent the volcano. We were told there was a good hike up and around the lake. The taxi driver dropped us off at the beginning of a path. It was a wide, well marked road/path. Easy walking surrounded by endless green -- trees, brush, nature, etc. After about an hour of walking we realized we were walking away from the lake and there was no turn off or fork in the road that would suggest we missed an exit. We nevertheless kept walking, stopped to rest at a river for a bit, then continued on, following signs for a restaurant about 2km ahead of us. The uphill was a bit tiring but as we ascended a more mountainous part the view of the volcano and lake behind us (so much for walking around the lake) grew only more spectacular.

By the time we reached the restaurant on a small mountain, the view of the volcano and lake was the best we've had the whole trip. We grabbed a table by the window and ate lunch with a one-of-a-kind backdrop. After lunch we sat in the lounge chairs smartly assembled facing the volcano and forest and lake. A terrific sight.

As usual here in Costa Rican green season, the threat of rain was omnipresent. Dark clouds started hovering. We had no car, there were no taxis where we were, and to hike back the way we came would take a couple hours. We would surely get soaked. We decided to start walking about at around 2pm and hope to hitchhike back to town.

The moment we got back on the road trail it started pouring. 10 seconds later a car passed us, we looked longingly (but did not actively hitchhike). The car pulled off the side, a Canadian man popped his head out, looked back, and asked if we wanted a ride. Before we knew it we were in their car, driving toward La Fortuna, and torrential rain beat down over our protected heads.

Lost in Translation Moments

Interestingly, my few lost in translation moments in CR didn't happen in Spanish, but in English.

"Do you like the food in Costa Rica?" I asked a Dutch couple in English. The wife responds, "Oh yes, it's a beautiful country, there's so much diversity."

At the front desk of a hotel, the woman describes what's in the national park.
She says:
"There is the flamadore."
"Are those birds?" I respond.
"Yes, we have birds in there too."
"No - the flamadore. Is that an animal?"
"Yes, there are animals too. Very beautiful."

School Goes on Vacation...

If the school teacher needs to make more money doing another job. That's how it works in a school near Playa Samara, in Costa Rica. Sometimes the teacher declares random days vacation days, so she can go work and make more money doing something else.

Price of Tour Depends on Where You Buy It

La Fortuna is a tourist town with every street home to a travel agency trying to sell various tours -- rafting, hiking, hot springs, etc. What's remarkable is the variance of quoted price for a given activity. Everyone marks up the base price differently.

Our lesson from Fortuna is buy tours through hostels (such as Gringo Pete's in La Fortuna), NOT from nicer hotels or even random street corners, as their commissions tend to be much higher. The difference in price is sometimes $30-$40 or more, for the exact same tour or service.

Rincon de Vieja - Part 2 - The Hike

In Rincon de Vieja National Park, there are a couple volcanos. To reach the craters, it's advertised as a seven hour roundtrip hike from the entrance of the park and you have to sign a waiver before doing it releasing the national park and Costa Rica of any liability. Stan and I thought we could do it quicker. We're both fit and Stan is an experienced mountain climber in Colorado.

We set off at around 9:30 AM and began the trek. The first hour and a half was an uphill but pleasant hike through some forest / jungle. Lots of trees and shrubs around us and a canopy overhead blocking the sun. We stopped a few times to get water, but overall, it wasn't too hard. We saw only two other people in this section of the hike -- they were older but determined to continue on, it seemed.

After we emerged from the canopy section, out in the open air, we stared up at the crater and were startled with how far away it was and moreover, how steep the trail seemed to the top. We walked on and up through, still feeling pretty good and confident with our pace.

We eventually reached a sign that had two arrows and messages: one pointed to the "difficult" path and said "Use caution" and the other pointed to the "easy" path. We couldn't decide which one to follow, we flipped a coin, and it landed on the easy path. We set off in that direction and within a couple minutes had to decend a steep, poorly constructed path downhill toward a river. We were amazed this was labeled the less difficult of the two paths -- even this brief downhill section was muddy and challenging and it's hard to see people with big bags or wobbly legs doing it.

At the bottom of the hill we had to cross a river and then came upon a wall of solid dirt and rock with a rope hanging down. WTF? Would we have to use the rope to ascend this wall like a rock climbing wall? It appeared so, and we hauled ourself up. By this point we were stunned at how difficult the going had become. And it had just started.

For the next 40 minutes we gained elevation very quickly as the trail became a stairmaster with muddy footholes and narrow lanes winding through shrubs. No crossbacks, no zig zags, no flat land. Just straight uphill. Exhausting. Very very exhausting. The farther up we got we had to stop every couple minutes to catch our breath.

We felt some raindrops and this added to the stress. The day prior we had been rained on, hard, and we didn't want to have a situation where it started raining Costa Rica-style and we were left on the side of a mountain with the paths would quickly disintegrate into a mudslide.

As we climbed and climbed I think stopping and turning back crossed our minds. There wasn't another soul on the mountain and the prospect of rain was scary -- not only for our clothes / comfort but for the safety of being able to come back down.

We ended up making it up the steep hill, barely, and the worst was over. We still had to hike up to the peak of the mountain and then walk around the edge, but the uphill was largley over. My quads were shaking.

The top of the crater was like nothing I've ever seen. Deserted. Moon-like. Rocks and nothing else. Then some green leaves here and there. We walked along the narrow path at the very top of the crater and finally reached active volcano. A sign said we couldn't stay for more than 15 minutes b/c toxic gases emitting out of the steamy crater are dangerous. We checked it out, turned back, and found a wind-secluded area where we could have a bag lunch.

Truly one of the more exhausting, crazy, but worthwhile physical experiences I've had!

Rincon de Vieja Nat'l Park - Part 1

Rincon de Vieja National Park is not at the top of the tourist list in Costa Rica. But it's still worth visiting for anyone in the country for more than a couple weeks. Only 45 mins northeast of Liberia airport, it's easily accessible.

My friend Stan and I spent our first day in the national park hiking the shorter, two-hour path. It was mainly forest / jungle so lots of beautiful tree sights, a mini-volcano / hot spring thing, and a mini-waterfall. About an hour and a half into our hike, it started raining. Pouring. Pouring harder than either of us have experienced. We turned around and started backtracking out of the park.

I had an umbrella, Stan had a jacket, but neither was effective for the torrential rains. We hitched a ride back to our hotel with a Dutch couple (we had walked the 4 kilometers to the park) who we also had dinner with later that night.

The next day we walked to the waterfall near our hotel and swam / stood in the little pool area the waterfall created. Obviously, the nature around the waterfall was stunning -- green and attractive and large, angled rocks. When our conversation started treading on "how to improve Twitter's UI" we had to bring ourselves back to nature. :)

That night, in a heroic attempt, we tried to walk to a neighboring lodge in the national park area to have dinner. The closest hotel was 3.5 kilometers away -- most people drive or pay the $5 roundtrip fare for a hotel van to take you. We were feeling adventurous, so we set out at night. We got lost, confused, scared (of some attack dogs at one house we passed, the sole house in the deserted park area), etc etc. Even though we had seen the sign for the other lodge during the day, by night, Stan's little headlamp couldn't illuminate stuff enough for us to find our way. So we turned around and began the long, 3.5 km walk back to the hotel. Exhausting.

At dinner, we bumped into yet another Dutch couple, who we chatted with. They wanted someone to talk to, and importantly, start complaining to! They ragged on the hospitality impulse in Costa Rica restaurants, which was pretty funny to listen to. ("The service here is non-existent, it's a spectacle, it's ridiculous.") It was true that waiting tables doesn't seem to be a skill at the staff at this hotel or other restaurants. With the waiter standing in front of us, Stan even told me, "Maybe I'll get the same thing as you, so they don't screw up our orders." (The prior night they had brought all of us the wrong dish, forcing the Dutch guy to demand to re-see the menu and compare plates to orders.)

All in all, our first couple days in Rincon de Vieja were fun, filled with nature, rain, and one too-long night walk. Little did we know our real physical challenge would come the next day....

Why Costa Rican Weather (During Rainy Season) Feels like a War Zone

I'm sitting at a restaurant in Costa Rica looking out over a ledge into the dark sky. Every 30 seconds the sky lights up and flashes a couple times -- lightening. Soon, there will be thunder. The thunder will be loud. Louder than anything in the States. The thunder will last for a few hours.

Then rain will come, and in the rain the monkeys and other animals will make weird sounds.

The sky lighting up is like bombs exploding in the neighboring city; the thunder is the sound of bombs; the animal noises sound like surface to air missiles.

(Note: Costa Rica is a very safe and peaceful country. :) )

"Those Sound Like Surface-to-Air Missiles"

My traveling companion made this comment after hearing howler monkeys scream after the crazy-loud thunder roared in Rincon de Vieja Park. The thunder here in Costa Rica is unbelievably loud -- like bombs exploding.

Moments Thus Far That Have Stuck w/ Me

Some memorable moments so far:

• Lathering my feet and legs in bug spray (97% DEET!) before going to bed, to prevent being ravaged by the endless bugs here.
• The grandmother at my hostfamily addressing me, "Muchacho" and handing me some clean clothes. It was sweet.
• Grandmother asks, "Le gusta chilli?" I hear "chilli" and think of the American dish (beans, means, tomatoes, mixed together, tasty). Apparently chilli in Spanish means "spicy" / peppers, which I hate. She gives me peppers to put on my food; since I said I "love" chilli I oblige and put a bit on the side of my plate, and move it aside when she's not looking.
• I tried to tell a girl "her laugh is distinctive" - I think it came out, "your smile is beautiful." Oops.
• Lying on beach, on beach lounge chair, to the left and right were palm trees, straight up was a big blue sky. iPod in my ears. Then, suddenly, a perfect V formation of birds flies across the sky. Magical. I've never seen anything like it.

Rice and Beans

I've had rice and beans for virtually every bfast / lunch / dinner I've been in Costa Rica so far (in addition to other stuff). It's truly the staple of the cuisine here. Some complain, I don't. I like hearty, square meals, even if they're forgettable.

Playa Samara Beach at Sunset

Playa Samara
Originally uploaded by costa rica beaches

Click the pic to enlarge...I didn't take it but it's exactly what this place looks like. Pretty damn beautiful.

Travel Doctors are a Scam

I've never been to one, but I now know two people who went to American travel doctors before going to Latin America. Of course they give you every medicine they can think of and tell you to avoid everything and anything once in the region.

A particularly amusing fun fact was the travel doctor a friend visited before coming to Costa Rica had only been abroad once in her life, to London!

My approach is to follow the CDC / State Dept recommendations on malaria, avoid tap water, and be smart about other types of food. Get your shots, etc. But do your own research and take action that will keep you healthy and make you less nervous (sometimes people say you don't need to take malaria medicine in certain places like Guanacaste in Costa Rica -- but I'd rather assuage any nervousness when I get molested by mosquitoes which inevitably happens).

Just don't outsource this process to a "travel doctor"!

Staying with a Family in Rural Costa Rica

On Sunday I moved in with a local family for a week.

I've stayed with families in the past, but this is the first time I'm paying to do so. I pay the school, the school pays the family. For $125 I get six nights of lodging and two meals a day. This means the family is attentive to my needs but it also means the whole thing feels more like an economic transaction than a real cultural experience. The family hosts a student almost every week of the year, so the novelty has long worn off. The two kids haven't asked me a question about anything, and the mother is very kind and sits with me at dinner in case I want to ask her something (in Spanish)...but being open to answer my questions is different than a conversation. All in all, though, even if only viewed through an economic lens, it's still a helluva deal as the meals are hearty and bed comfortable.

Their house basic but livable. This is rural Costa Rica so hot showers, internet, a/c, etc etc rarely are found in homes (and hotels), including mine.

The TV is on all day and night (until they go to bed). They mostly watch cartoons or telenovelas. The kids eat all their meals in front of the TV. I hear this is how it works in most families here -- the dominance of a TV in the house is a sign of being poor, I'm guessing, in any country.

The "neighborhood" is a mix of shacks and small houses, with dirt roads and the occasional paved road (which has potholes). Due to the rain, the roads are almost always flooded and more than once I've had no choice but to walk through muddy puddles which come up to my calves. In the distance I can see the beach and palm trees; it's a beautiful sight.

Kids run around without shoes, socks, or shirts.

Arriving in Playa Samara

Liberia airport is in the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica and has non-stop flights to Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York throughout the week. Liberia, then, is an alternative for American travelers who don't want to fly into San Jose, Costa Rica's capital, which is regarded as dirty, over-crowded, and dangerous.

I flew into Liberia Friday night and took a taxi to Playa Samara, which is a beach town along the Pacific coast (as opposed to the Caribbean coast). It takes about two hours by car from the airport.

Samara is very much a tourist town. Not only is the beach is beautiful (right out of a postcard), but there's also a successful Spanish language school here called Intercultura which attracts hoards of Americans and Europeans (mostly Swiss, for whatever reason). It's a well run operation and I'm taking one week of Spanish classes (4 hours a day) at the school. The classrooms / school are about 30 yards from the beach.

I'm here during the "wet season" which means it's insanely hot during the day (tropical climate = Ben sweating for like 48 hours straight upon arrival) and usually rains for a few hours in the evening. My second night in Samara it rained so hard that the thunder sounded like bombs exploding right outside the window and an hour later all the power in the town went out. I heard an American ask someone "Does the power go out often here?" and the response was, "No, not so much. Last time it happened was three weeks ago." The natural reaction when there's no power is to light candles in your room. What I learned in the Amazon jungle in Ecuador, however, was that candles attract bugs and other insectorial creatures. So, I shunned candles and went to bed early. Sleep proved elusive because with no power there's no fan and with no fan you die in the heat.

The downside to spending a week in a tourist town is that the restaurants are generally overpriced and there's more English spoken. The upside is there's more infrastructure for tourists (such as laundry service and the like) and the town knows tourism drives the economy, so they don't hassle out-of-towners.

The "McWalk" in Prague (and Haifa, Israel)

Massimo and I happened upon what I think should be a more recognized tourist attraction in Prague: the "McWalk" in McDonald's! It's like a drive-thru window; except it's a walk-through open 18 hours a day.

According to my research, there are only two McWalk's in the world: one in Prague, and one in Haifa, Israel.
I say this because the Prague Post claims that Prague is home to "the only McDonald's in the known world with a 'McWalk' window." And yet a Google search turned up one other location, in Haifa, see photo below. All other results pointed to Prague.

Kafka Musuem

Well worth visiting in Prague. The pic below is me in a mirror exhibit in the museum. With dark museum and weird mirror effects throughout the whole thing, it really gives you a sense of the depressed mood in Kafka's writing.

From Prague Old Town

Two pics from Prague old town. It's a remarkable sight to stand in the old sq and take in the Astronomical Clock (pictured here) and then old facades and colorful buildings which surround the square...