Monteverde, Costa Rica
Day 1
We landed and got through customs without a hitch. Picked up our bag that got 3 corners shattered and one wheel broken off! 😅 negotiated the rental car (such a pain) and made it on the road. We stopped at the first restaurant we saw to get done lunch. Tried a sampler platter with fried plantain, banana, ham, pork rinds, beans, fajitas, and some delicious cubed vegetable . It was good! We were thrilled to see a toucan and woodpecker so close to the airport! It promised some good animal sightings during our stay. Savannah was so happy to be able to make as much noise as she wanted with the restaurant being outside and all.
We made the drive to Monteverde along the windiest, most beautiful road. Savannah had HAD it by then and was very sad by the time we finally pulled into our airbnb in the dark in the rain. It was a cozy place and we were all so very grateful to finally arrive.
Getting there is very exhausting–especially with a little one.
Day 2
We loved our airbnb In Monteverde!! We could see so many amazing birds right from our living room! Savannah loved her crib and practiced standing and talking to us. The backyard had this amazing garden that the host showed us his plants, orchids, toucan nest, tarantula holes, pineapple plant, and mot mot nest. We really enjoyed learning to recognize the different birds sounds. I LOVED working outside and soaking in the amazing ambience. Hummingbirds would frequent the flowers nearby–dazzlingly blue and strikingly purple–like little jungle jewels in the air.
Each new birds sighting was thrilling–the magnificent mask and tail quills of the mot mot, emerald body and yellow banana break off the toucan, bright yellow tummies against a jet black back on there birds at the feeder, small blue birds flitting about. It was a bird watchers paradise.
And so many shapes, sizes, and colors of flowers! The cloud forest shows off its diversity of orchids, burmilliads, vines, and other flowers I couldn’t name. I loved watching the clouds roll in and past. We were basically living in a cloud for a week.
The mot mot is such an amazing, exotic bird and I loved how he just flew around the yard. Our host would put out bananas and the birds would come have a treat. Apparently the mot mot has a nest in a pipe in the backyard, so it hangs out. I loved seeing it so often!
Day 3
El Tigre Hike
This Airbnb experience was WAY at the top of the cloud forest mountain. And it was SO worth it! We hiked down through this incredible canyon, past breathtaking waterfalls and across the sketchiest hanging bridges! I loved the adventure of it all–and bringing Savannah felt very daring. She was a trooper and totally loved the hike. She loves being in the carrier–she shrieks and laughs as we walk along–totally enjoying her own little experience. We saw the majestic morpho butterfly 🦋 that you just have to stand still and watch flap by. We sent the drone up and almost lost it 😅 but got an amazing shot anyway. It opened up and poured rain halfway through and we just embraced it. An umbrella is the best rain gear btw. Crossing the tall log bridges made me anxious and I held Savannah tight. We did it together!
At the end we were met with a guide who had horses for us to ride back up the massive hill. He didn’t speak a lick of English and he seemed impatient that we had to feed Savannah first. Then, when we got up on the horse, we were trying to navigate changing the go pro batteries and he asked if we were ready to go. We very vitally said no and he sent the horses off. So basically we were super not ready. We asked if we could stop and the guide was like, no. Ha ha!
But the ride turned out to be fun and Savannah cooed and laughed as we went. At one point she started fussing and I realized that the saddle horn was hitting her in the butt with every step and she was tired of it! 😂 I’ve ALWAYS wanted to ride a horse in the mountains and it was everything I hoped it would be.
The meal at the top was warm, big, and delicious. Everything you want after a long, wet, incredible hike.
I would say that we all slept good that night, but Savannah had other plans. She still wakes up a lot and the hard floors echo her night cries loudly. Ah well, that’s just how it goes.
Day 4
We took a slow Sunday. We had a picnic with the parrots and saw some amazing basilisk lizards. They’re big with some impressive fringes across their backs and arms. Supposedly they run across the water! We stopped at a few places to see what birds we could find and saw some toucans! They’re easy to spot with their white chest and unusual shape as they fly. I love how colorful their breaks are! We learned to identify their call and everything. We spied a bunch of parrots and parakeets–easy to find with their loud chatter. Thankfully they’re loud or else we’d never see their green feathers against the jungle. We also spotted the smaller green tucanet as well! We drove up further into the cloud forest and visited a gift shop that had hummingbird feeders outside. And they were AMAZING! Little dazzling jewels darting around the Misty air. Shiny sapphire and amethyst blending into emerald greens. And they weren’t afraid of us so we could get really good views! We spent quite a bit of time just enjoying hanging out there. We also spotted a troop of howler monkeys before we heard them.
Day 5
This afternoon we just decided to start walking from our Airbnb and see what we could find. We ended up on some cool jungle trails. We found a capybara -like mammal called an agouti, Morpho butterflies, and whole trails of leaf cutter ants. I love following their trails to see where they go. It rained pretty good that night and we had some impressive thunder. It was so nice to be cozy inside! E we also made these awesome chicken wraps using the cabbage our host picked from his garden.
Day 5
Hanging Bridges
We spent the day exploring the hanging bridges park. They were impressively tall and unexpectedly long! We enjoyed spotting birds, monkeys, and even a tree viper resting on a bromeliad way up in the top of a tree. The home base had Internet, so we took a walk through the 3km loop and I worked for a few hours and we did the loop again! We did that several times and just made a day of it. It’s really cool to have such a flexible job.
I thoroughly enjoyed working outside in the yard, watching all the amazing birds go by. We played with a stick bug for a while and we get some hummingbirds to visit the feeder we bought in town. It was a rainy afternoon, so we walked through the souvenir shops in town and picked up food to have at home.
Walkabout 