We visited the city of Granada, an old historic district with the churches and ornate colonial buildings. Narrow streets were a pain, but free wifi in the park kept us there for lunch.
We spent our last night in Nicaraugua on the beach at Le Virgen, not far from the Costa Rica border. It was windy on the shore of Lake Cochibolca and we enjoyed the cooler breeze once the front blew through. We had a nice view of two volcanoes across the lake on Omotepe.
Getting out of Nicaraugua took almost as long as getting in did. The process is a travesty. We again passed miles of trucks waiting in line to clear out. There were also many trucks lined up to clear in.
We got to the front of the line and were handed a form to fill out by a totally disinterested man who didn't even speak to us--he couldn't interrupt his conversation with another policeman under the awning--and we were waved away. If you don't look ahead for someone waving for you, you will get lost. They seem to recognize us foreigners that need help to figure out where to go next and flag us down. Sometimes we can't tell the difference between a 'handler' who wants money to help you and the real person who you're supposed to stop for and show paperwork to.
We reached Costa Rica, lush and green with a lake on one side and the ocean on the other.
These orange flowering trees make a really pretty contrast to the green
Our camping spot on the ocean bay. Coyotera Beach was like our own private cove.
There were some colorful rocks on this beach. Even Jason liked looking at the conglomerates of multiple colors.
And just a few steps away was this huge long beach that was totally deserted. It used to be part of a big resort, but the buildings are abandoned now. The only things on the beach were some crabs and an old turtle carcass.
Liberia used to be the capital before they moved it to San Jose.
This large white church is an iconic symbol in Liberia.
On the corner of the museum grounds was this monkey statue. Looks like the Speak No Evil image. To the right is one of the mysterious Diquis stone spheres
Playa Panama is a well-protected bay, used by yachts and local tour boats. Across the bay is the Papagayo Peninsula, a famous tourist destination.
Jason at the beach on Playa Panama, checking out the local families.
A stuffed sloth in a souvenir shop where we bought our sticker.
A pretty red sunset from our parking spot next to the library in Liberia.
Our view from the park by the Lake Arenal. Such red dirt. The water level seemed to be way down, but the rainy season is just getting started.
Jason walking down the boat launch ramp at Lake Arenal. It was very long, very steep and had a very big dropoff on both sides. You'd better be a pro at backing up a boat here.
The start of a bird's nest Jason found blown out of a tree.
This colorful insect is only about an inch and a half long. Mother Nature sure packs the colors into a small package here.
This giant hummingbird is part of the Pollinator Park. We walked through it on our way to Nuevo Arenal where we found the German Bakery.
Only one petal of this flower is bright pink, an unusual design.
Jason was enthralled with the deep, rich color of the earth here.
We had lunch at the German Bakery, but the brats and bread weren't as good as we'd hoped. An expensive splurge that left us wanting.
These curly red pods burst open to disgorge dark purple fruit or seeds.
Another view of the unusual red pods with the dark seeds/fruit inside. I don't know what they are, but the purple fruit stained the sidewalks.
Another unidentified fruit that was falling off the trees in the park. Apparently people don't eat this as there were many rotting on the ground.
Lake Arenal is pretty big. Here, near one end of it, there are high spots of land that are now islands.
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