SoCal Photos: Day 4

The obligatory SM Pier Shot

Beautiful March Weather: LA Photos

Eat your heart out, Middle America!  This is what the beginning of March looks like on the Santa Monica Bay...

 

 

Costa Rica Day 8: Beach Day!

This was our last full day in Manuel Antonio, and in Costa Rica, so we took the opportunity to let ourselves relax with a full day at the beach.

We headed down to the main public beach early, and got the perfectly placed umbrella and chairs that the locals peddle for $15.  Of course, then they want you to buy drinks and food and pretty much anything else you can think of from them.  But since this was our last day, that played right into our plans!  Though we did turn down the Tico with the kayaks and jet skis, we still enjoyed some margaritas, cuba libres, and of course, Imperials with our almuerzos tipicos.

After a morning and early afternoon in the sun (with plenty of sun-block, of course), we headed for the beachside alley of bodegas with all kinds of local-made crafts, jewelry, and souvenirs.  It's amazing how fast you make friends even when you buy little nick-knacks and chat up the local merchants; the Ticos we ran into on our trip were some genuinely friendly people.

Since it was our last day, we took advantage of Happy Hour at La Esquina de la Playa and stayed until sunset. Oddly enough, this was the most crowded place we visited on our entire trip.  It was also the only place I've ever seen a 12 year old smoke, with her family, and nobody think anything of it.

We took the bus back up the hill, which was $500 colones ($1) for the two of us.  Since the sun had just set, the bus was full with people heading home from the beach, tourists and locals alike.  The bus dropped us off at the beginning of our road, right at Cafe Milagro.

A quick 1km walk back to the hotel, and we had walked into the VIP reception at La Mansion.  It was a wine and appetizer social on the top deck at LMI, and we got a few minutes to speak with the head of guest relations, who also sent a follow up email on our stay a few days later.  If I haven't stressed it enough already, the hospitality in Costa Rica was absolutely amazing.

After the reception we adjourned to our room and soaked in as much of Costa Rica as we could, just watching and listening to the serene jungle from our deck.

Costa Rica Day 7: Playa Biesanz and a Quepos Catamaran Ride

Our second full day in Manuel Antonio was an unscheduled free day on our itinerary.  We decided to walk down to the secluded cove of Playa Biesanz after breakfast, but booked the afternoon catamaran sail out of Quepos harbor at the front desk on our way out, as that seemed to be one of the most recommended activities that we heard from people we came across.

The beach was about a quarter of a mile walk down the road, and then down a 200 yard trail to the sand.  On the way, we saw a family of Capuchin monkeys cruising on the power lines and in the trees right by the trailhead; it's amazing how adapted they are to human presence!  Some seemed completely indifferent to their audience, while others seemed to enjoy the attention and posed for pictures.

On the trail, we came across a cluster of butterflies, as well as a small farm complete with talkative rooster, turkey, dairy cow, several chickens, and even a family of ducks hanging around the perimeter.  Just past that was a small stand with locals renting snorkel gear and kayaks, and selling water and soft drinks.

The beach itself was extremely tranquil and practically empty, by Southern California standards. The cove also kept the water extremely calm, so I was able to swim out a couple hundred yards to get a look around the corner; I saw a group of people snorkeling where we eventually would be doing the same later in the afternoon.  There was also a group of rocks with tidepools on them near the beach, which of course, I had to take the opportunity to dive off.



We had lunch back at the hotel's swim-up bar where we were again the only guests.  We shot the breeze en Espanol with our bartenders Jesus and Martin, who were more than happy to have someone to talk to, and like everyone else, loved our response to where we learned our Spanish, "En escuela, y las calles de Los Angeles."

We also made quick friends with our shuttle-mates on our ride over to the catamaran in the harbor.  We met a German couple up at the Hotel Mariposa who spoke German and English (no Spanish), and of course our driver only spoke Spanish.  Their friends (the other people we needed to pick up) were outside the front gate, down the hill, and left off onto a side road.  It was when I translated this to the driver for them that I realized seven days in Costa Rica had really helped me bring back my Spanish.

As it turned out, these folks knew one of the employees on the catamaran cruise, which made the experience that much more fun.  Once we got on the boat, they opened up the tip-only bar, gave the quick safety speech, and away we went.  There were even nets at the front of the boat, trying to bring quaintness to the two-story tour vessel, equipped with outboard water-slide.

The cruise took us across the Manuel Antonio Bay and between a few of the islands that are part of the National Park.  The views were absolutely gorgeous!  Unfortunately, we didn't see any dolphins or whales, and were surprised to hear about orca being off the coast of LA at the same time.  However, we did get to see several species of birds, and still  had yet to snorkel.

Upon reaching the point and rock cluster I saw people gathered around earlier, we anchored and disembarked.  We were provided snorkel gear, complete with mask, fins, and of course a life vest.  I was impressed with how different the types of fish were here than the ones that I had seen snorkeling in places like Catalina, Baja, or Hawaii.  Definitely something I would recommend doing!  But I couldn't spend all of our anchor time snorkeling; there was a water-slide to be conquered!  Also something I highly recommend!

There was a sunset buffet as the cruise headed back toward the harbor, and they killed the engines and took the sail up.  One of the Germans we had befriended, Martin, is a world-class sailboat racer in Germany, and was asked to man the helm during the sail.  After the sun had set, we headed back for the harbor and disembarked.

Back at La Mansion, we were still a bit hungry by 8:30, having had eaten lightly at the 4:30 buffet, so we visited the Jacques Cousteau at the hotel.  We found out that there was a reason for their reputation in Quepos, as this place had delicious food in a dining-room style environment.  And again, there were only two other tables of people, leaving the place more than 70% empty, so the service was impeccable; we even got a visit from the manager, Diego, at the end.

It seemed that my wife and I both had the same idea as we walked back towards our room and peered our heads into the Bat Cave bar: it's right by our room, we're on vacation, it looks cool, we should go.  Add to that the fact that the place looked packed, and we couldn't be kept out any longer.

Once we sat down, the 16 year old bartender did his best to serve the "overwhelmingly large" crowd of 10, but it did take him a while to get everyone there drinks.  Before we knew it, Diego was on the scene.  It began with some quick criticism of the boy in Spanish, and then a quick, exasperated sigh eye-roll, and hand-flail, followed by a blindingly rapid set-up for four-- no-- five shots.  He turned around, grabbed a few bottles, poured a bit of each in it, and then I made the tiny gesture that would change the course of the evening.


As Diego poured the shots, he looked up to the family he was making them for, and asked, "shots?" to each of them to confirm how many he was making.  Facetious me, I had to turn his question into a Li'l Jon lick.  I barely finished my first, "Every-body!" when he slides the first concoction to me to demonstrate that he had made something worth imbibing, "Toma primero, y digame!"  Aw crap, me and my big mouth.


My wife and I probably actually ordered 3 drinks each that evening, Diego kept making shots, while telling us the history of the hotel.  He also snuck out for a few minutes early on to change out of his suit into his bar-tending transformers shirt.  Diego has been working at La Mansion for 11 years, and helped with the construction of the Bat Cave Bar.  In fact, most of the decor there are his personal artifacts, which makes it even more of a unique place.  By the end of the night when we got the bill, we paid for one drink each.  Needless to say, that friendly Tico got a hefty tip.  If you're ever in Manuel Antonio, definitely head to La Mansion Inn one night and check out the Bat Cave Bar; there were several people that popped in and out while we were there that were not hotel guests.

Costa Rica Day 6: Manuel Antonio National Park, a Jungle on the Beach!

Our first morning in Manuel Antonio was scheduled to be an eventful one, yet still exceeded expectations!  After all, you know that it's going to be an interesting day when you wake up to an iguana chilling on your balcony.

But that was just the beginning.  Again, we used Costa Rica Vacations to book this trip, and many things were included in our package, such as breakfasts....and the breakfast at La Mansion fue lo mejor!  Forget the disgustingly awesome views of the national park from our patio seating, or even the impeccable service from the staff, but the food was amazing!  I highly reccomend the Gallo Pinto, if you're looking to try some comida tipica.  And definitely get a fruit plate; you'll thank me later for some of the best and freshest fruit you've ever tasted.

But I digress.  Immediately after breakfsast, our tourguide was in the lobby to pick us up, a few others at a different hotel along the way, and we were off to Manuel Antonio National Park.  The first thing I noticed when we got there at 7:45am was how long the line already was to purchase tickets to get into the park.  There are a limited number of people allowed in per day, and a guide is not necessary.  It's $10 for a day pass into the park, and many people (both tourists and Ticos) just get the tickets and head down the trail to the beaches.  We, however, had Eagle-eye Roy to show us things we never could have possibly seen without his expertise...or telescope lens, in some cases.



We saw all kinds of plants, bugs, birds, reptiles, and even poisonous jungle crabs.  But of course, the highlight was the sloths (both 2 and 3 toed) and the family of Capucchin monkeys that performed in the trees and on the beach right in front of us.  There was a family of racoons, too, but that was only odd because you don't normally associate them with the jungle.





Our four hour jungle tour ended with some much needed beach time at the main Manuel Antonio public beach, where we also got some lunch at one of the beachside restaurants, and had to stop by one of the street vendors for some fresh Pipa fria!

A post-lunch pool beverage, followed by naptime was definitely in order after our long morning in the hot & humid jungle, but by the time late afternoon rolled around, it was exploring time again.

What do you need when you wake up from a quick nap, feeling a bit groggy from the morning's hike, lunchtime beverage, and afterlunch in-pool beverage?  Fresh Costa Rican coffee, of course!  We headed up to the main road to Cafe Milagro, a coffee/bar.  Definitely the best latte I've ever tasted, and we had to stash up on Costa Rican coffee to take home, so this was the perfect spot!  They also had Costa Rica microbrew there, so naturally I had to try one of those, as well (also Awesome!).

We had dinner at a local spot where we saw only 2 tables of Ticos eating, deciding to employ the "Chinese people eating at the Chinese restaurant" technique.  The strategy did not let us down, as the comida tipica was amazing.

And I know we get spoiled with gorgeous sunsets in Southern California, but even the folks on the Catamaran ride the next day agreed, the Sunset on Jan 3 was absolutely amazing!

Costa Rica: It's About to go Down!

Less than 24 hours to our Honeymoon trip to Costa Rica, and I can barely sit still.  Yes, I know, we waited several months to go on our Honeymoon but hey, that's just how the logistics worked out.

We're set for a 9 day, 8 night trip that will take us into San Jose, then to Alajuela province to stay at the northern base of Arenal, and finally to Puntarenas province to stay at Manuel Antonio-- and I've resloved to venture over to Jaco Beach for a looksey.

Lots to do, lots to share, so keep the feed rolling as I'll be blogging from Tico-Town for the next week!

Destination: Pierpont Beach

A little slow to the draw, I know, but here we go.  We spent last weekend at Pierpont Beach in Ventura;  a nice getaway not too far from home.  The house we stayed at is available at HomeAway, and was a perfect location and layout for our family.  Of course the weather was a bit overcast most of our trip, as can happen in August in Oxnard and Ventura, but I still managed to get a bit of a tan.  The house was right off of the Pierpont bikepath, which runs from the north end of the marina at Marina Park to the north end of the Ventura County Fairgrounds.  I highly recommend this location for a local beach getaway; there's even a quaint little restaurant row on the west end of Seaward, and you have to go to Duke's burger shack.  Best of all, we went during the Fair, and there's a shuttle that leaves from the Ventura Marriott at the entrance to the neighborhood.  Here's a shot I got from the Ferris Wheel...

Getting out of Town...Sorta

Heading to the V-Town for a beach house vay-cay with the fam for what is debateably a staycation, given that it'll only take about a half tank of gas.  The VC fair is on, so I'll take the opportunity to post on other happenings in So Cal outside of LA city limits this weekend.  Keep the feed rolling!

2011 6 Man Tournament: Recap

The 2011 6 Man Volleyball tournament in Manhattan Beach, the 50th Anniversary of the Charlie Saikley event btw, was a great scene as always.  This year had a different vibe early on, as the sand wasn't as packed as in years past.  That definitely changed by about 1pm, so perhaps everyone was just getting a lazy start due to the marine layer that dominated the morning.  Here's a few of the photos I took during this year's tourney, and why I always say that if you haven't been....GO.  Set Your calendars for ONE YEAR FROM TODAY.  August 4, 2012...Celebrate Obama's Birthday in Style, like this....

Team WWF Huddles up, prior to dominating

Luke Walton can't help himself, has to run through the ring...

It quickly became apparent what the players are up to during the NBA lockout.

Kevin Love tries to show Jordan Farmar how it's done; an exercise in futility, no doubt.

...but he does know how to negotiate with the ref, regardless of what court he's on!

Luke gets pumped after his teammate puts up the monster block