Jaco, pronounced "Haco" - like "taco." Now you're an expert!
As has become tradition for me, I always like to start the New Year off properly with an international trip. Since I normally don't have that many vacation days - contrary to what all my friends would believe - I try to find places that don't take long to get to. This has led to a strong amount of Central America travel, and perhaps the most popular destination outside of Mexico in Central America, is Costa Rica. We were there from Dec. 30 - Jan 5, staying in Jaco, a surf town on the Pacific side, then drive to Turrialba to go whitewater rafting on the Pacuare River, which National Geographic rated among the Top 5 places for whitewater rafting, then finish at the hot springs and volcano in La Fortuna. If this sounds like a lot of driving - you're right! And it turned out this Pythagorean Theorem map route wasn't the wisest.
First things first! My first ever First Class experience on a connection from Hartford to Miami. How many times can I type the word "first"? Sadly, I didn't even get a Bloody Mary and just slept the whole flight. #loser
It was early, y'all.
Our Airbnb in Jaco with our rental car, which is a hell of a machine! If you do an airbnb in Jaco, I strongly recommend going with a property that belongs to Kattia Jimenez. She owns several rental properties in the area is extremely helpful with any tips and suggestions for your trip.
Big fan of the graffiti art in Jaco. These surfer girl impressions were all over the place. Jaco is really about one thing. Not the skateboarding.
Sunset at Jaco.
Dinner at Wahoos. Not to be confused with Socal's fish taco joint. Although I think I ordered fish tacos. Solid bar/grill spot that also had karaoke. We did not bless the locals with any Backstreet Boys renditions. Needless to say, they were disappointed.
Grilled avocado with vinaigrette.
The local beer. Imperial Lights are far better than Imperials, which has the taste equivalency of getting punched in the stomach. However, you have to drink the local beer when traveling - otherwise you're just an ugly American!
Breakfast at Taco Bar, which is super cheap (like $3), but not that good. The banana-mango-pineapple smoothie on the other hand was massive and delicious. This place is ideal for a post-surf morning breakfast. I find I love eating rice and beans in Central American countries, such more flavor than Hormel's canned beans I normally shove down my throat.
You might think this is a cool statue, but this poor surfer woman was actually frozen alive like Han Solo in "Empire Strikes Back." #SpoilerAlert!
For an intermediate (read: crappy) longboarder who likes waves from 4-6 feet, Jaco was perfect. There were a lot of spots for beginners, but what sets Jaco apart from other surf destinations I've been to is the ease and frequency of waves. Unlike many places, you don't have to spend much effort paddling past the break to get to the waves. It's a very easy paddle out, then depending on the tide (high tide was sunrise and sunset our entire time there), there were plenty of long rolling waves to catch. Instead of exerting all your joules paddling, you can actually spend the whole time surfing.
Did I mention the water was warm, too? Cuz it actually got warm with the rash guard. Pristine.
Pete crushing waves like he does the ladies!
Giving my girlfriend a quick tutorial on how to surf. This is described in ye' olden days as "the blind leading the blind."
Like a gentleman, I'm helping her hold the 7'10 board.
Success! Who needs to stand?
I do! These waves weren't even during high or low tide. You have to be more patient, but a few sets would still consistently trickle in.
One of our sunset sessions were solid. Another, not as much. The waves tended to crash far quicker at sunset for whatever reason, and Pete (behind me) and I were victims more than a couple times.
Playa Herradura. 5 minutes north of Jaco. Not worth a visit. This makes it look better than it is.
Manuel Antonio Beach. It's considered a tourism destination near Jaco but I still think it's worth going. It's around an hour south of Jaco, you have to pay to get in - I forget what admission is but there's a lot of bartering for parking and skipping lines. Just go, you bum! What else are you going to do?
Outbreak Monkey says hello from Manuel Antonio National Park! You now have Motaba! I actually Googled "Outbreak movie disease" to keep that joke accurate. Who says journalism is dead?! This monkey kept trying to grab my GoPro which was attached to a monopod. Ahem - monopod, not a selfie stick. Totally different!
In a less aggressive state.
Sloth butt!
Smiles! Joy! G'times! #Weeee
Hey Zac Brown, toes in the sand!
Shrimp pasta at Lemon Zest, a very gringo restaurant option in Jaco, but good enough. Very hearty. Like every restaurant in Central America, the service runs on Island Time (even though CR is not an island), which means "I'll bring you your food whenever I'm done finishing the Tico Times crossword puzzle of the day." I also think our waiter was tweaking out on Four Loko and cocaine, but that's another story.
New Years Eve revelers at midnight in the streets of Jaco. A lot of residents from San Jose (the capital of CR) drive down to Jaco to celebrate the new year. It's just a 2-hour drive. Getting service on Jan 1 and 2 takes forever, which is really saying something in Costa Rica.
Forget about the epic Asian lantern festivals to celebrate the lunar new year, we've got a CR version! Several locals were lighting up lanterns and sending them off their way. Evidently there's an art to it because I saw a lot of struggling. The fireworks behind us were a free for all. I don't know if there were any official fireworks being set off, it just seemed like we were surrounded by explosions set off by every 5-year-old in a 100-foot radius. Many locals drove onto the sand and just set up shop with picnics, drinks, etc. The celebration epitomized Costa Rica's attitude of Pura Vida.
The locals can't get enough of Costa Rican Pete.
Hello 2016.
And scene.
Go Pro video.
Next: Exploring one of National Geographic's top 5 places to whitewater raft in the world.
We got up at 5:45am to catch a 7:30am puddle jumper to Culebra. That was not ample sleep. Let me tell you, if you take a plane to Culebra, you don't need to get to the municipal airport early. Get there like 15-20 minutes before, and that'll be 15-20 minutes earlier than you need to. No TSA. One-way flights to the island are around $70. You can also take the super cheap ferry early in the morning from Fajardo, but depending on the season, it might be a long shot to get as there's limited seating, a long line that people sometimes camp out at, and no advance ticket purchases. If you want to save the hassle, the flight is an easier option. Although that ferry price is awfully tempting.
We be dragging ass. Our 8-seater plane.
The pilot apparently didn't mind having a GoPro camera jammed in his face.
Our G-ride. Courtesy of Carlos Jeep Rentals. Don't get a jeep. These golf carts can go anywhere on the island. As we discovered.
This little food truck, down the street from our AirBnb, is the spot to eat. Cafe Casa Grande operates on island time, but they made a delicious pesto torta sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich. Accompany the sandwich with an assortment of fresh juices and you're good to go.
Not much to look at, but it's good.
Visit.
Entrance to Flamenco Beach. This was the reason I wanted to revisit PR. One of my boys hyped up this place as one of the most gorgeous beaches in the world. He was right. White sugar. Warm turquoise water. No crowds.
Pure.
Really pure.
Super really pure.
History lesson that I stole from other sites: the Navy used to use Culebra to test bombs and artillery. It wasn't until the 70's that a non-violent protest from locals led the Navy to stop using the island for testing. That said, there are still remnants of the past - most notably, this tank that just sits in the water. I believe the "Ley 66" is dedicated to ESPN's Bob Ley. That's what I believe. I could be wrong.
This tank must've been operated by barbers.
Here's a nice close-up of our golf cart, which we ended up taking for an off road ride at the suggestion of the dude who rented us snorkel equipment. He recommended we go to Carlos Rosario Beach on the western part of the island, but the only way to get there...
Was through this gate. The guy told us it's totally fine and normally that fence is locked up. He said there's a cart path - even though technically against the law to drive down - but no one actually gets in trouble for it. Hmmmm. By the way, a woman told us earlier there are still landmines in the area, so be sure to stay on said path. Snorkel renter dude then mentioned we can walk, but that will take around 10-15 minutes. Well, that just sounds too long... so we ended up taking the cart on a bumpy ride that involved branches smacking us in the face and destroying the shocks to our Humvee of golf carts. In the cart, it took 10 minutes to get to where we wanted, so I don't know what the hell snorkel dude was smoking. If you take away the light bruising and permanent back damage, the ride was actually super fun!
The path led us here. Completely isolated. This would've been so much more awesome if the snorkeling was good though. There just wasn't much to see, the water had very poor visibility, and there were sea urchins and sharp coral. Both my dudes Brian and Mason ended up with several urchin spines in their hands and feet. Pete and I were fine, so maybe those guys just don't know how to snorkel.
We had to commemorate making it through the path of broken spinal cords.
The view from our AirBnb. The place was a palace, unlike our stay on the main island.
Okay so this isn't a great picture. I know. But this was the bar at the Hotel Kokomo, one of the few places still open at 10pm on a Sunday night during non-peak season. The bar was practically empty. Maybe 1 or 2 locals. It had a TV. That was set on a family channel (in a bar!). On the channel was the "Super Mario Bros" movie. The "Super F'n Mario Bros" movie??? I thought all proof of that movie's existence was buried in a New Mexico landfill like Atari's ET video game. Not impressed? Whatever. I thought that was zany.
We almost stayed at this place because it was super cheap. I'm really glad we didn't.
Flying back to San Juan.
Pete and I only had a few hours before having to take off, so we checked out El Morro, the impressive fort in Old San Juan.
Classic El Morro shot.
More El Morro. For facts, you can check my Old San Juan, PR blog entry.
Contemplating jumping.
Love the colonial look of Old San Juan.
Mason getting artsy. Fascinating colors of cobblestone.
