We spent a couple of days driving around Nicaragua and the city of Managua. We were greatly surprised by what we saw, and it is definitely a place to visit, not only for the landscape and the countryside, but also to check the advances after the revolution.
To leave Managua we took the Carretera Sur (aka Panamericana), and this one climbs continually during 8 miles to the town of El Crucero, up the mountains. It took a couple of hours to reach the border, at Peñas Blancas. No main problem to exit Nicaragua, but it took another two hours under the sun to pass the Costa Rican controls. They were very professional and knew what to do, but for some reason they had a line up of some 300 tourists waiting to enter or exit the country. On top of that, there was a long line of trucks (for sure more than 50) wating to exit Costa Rica.
We spent the night at the city of Liberia, on the northern part of Costa Rica.
A friend recommended us a visit to the Orchid Garden, in Santa Elena, so we headed there early in the morning. The Orchid Garden has a ver good variety of regional orchids, most of them very minute and very different than the orchids normally on sale at a flower shop.
They explained the details of a real orchid: three sepals, three petals, and a center column with the reproductive elements. The lower petal is deformed and colored to attract the polinizers (insects or birds). All very interesting and makes anxious for more information.
The Garden was good and we recommend it. However, the roads to get there are the worst. We took the access from Las Juntas to Monteverde, all unpaved, and it took us almost three hours jumping over the big rocks of the road to make just 12 miles. On the return trip we took another road through El Sardinal, and this one was slightly better. Overall we drove less than 70 miles, but we ended up completely exhausted, so we decided to spend the night at Esparza, near San Jose.
Probably many people already know how nice is the country of Costa Rica, so there is no much for me to add in this regard. Plenty of green everywhere, many tourists, and hot and humid weather.
here are some of our latest pictures:
A view from the top the mountains on our way to Santa Elena, near Monteverde
An orchid in the act of being polinized.
What an adventure! I enjoy reading about your observations and looking at the wonderful photographs. I especially enjoy all the rich history you are getting to see.
ReplyDeleteLeroy:
DeleteThanks for your comments. I will bring more details when I return to Texas.
Best regards,
Roberto
Leroy:
DeleteThanks for your comments. I will bring more details when I return to Texas.
Best regards,
Roberto
Fabulous! Thanks for the excellent descriptions and commentary; it is almost like being there with you. Christine and I visited the Monteverde area many years ago: we had the advantage of a jeep, but I clearly remember the roads in the area and I am trying to imagine Alicia and Roberto and a Toyota Corolla up there.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry that you did not like Belize so much (especially after I had spoken fondly of it just before your departure). I cannot argue with your comments, and, in retrospect, perhaps I enjoyed it a lot because we spent almost the whole time way off the beaten track, in the jungles and mountains, so it was easy not to see the less pleasant aspects that you saw as you drove through.
Anyway, I have notified my Belizian "contacts" concerning your comments. They are able to move freely throughout the region (they certainly don't bother with trivial things like border posts), so they may pay you a visit late one night to "correct" your impressions of their country. They can be quite convincing. I have asked them not to bring their pet jaguar along with them.
All the best, take care, have fun, and watch out for exploding volcanoes.
This has been a great read. Thank you for allowing us to come along on your trip. I’m looking forward to what comes next. Saludos :)
ReplyDeleteFantastic pictures!! We're following your journey from here and enjoying your detailed descriptions of everything you encounter.
ReplyDelete