Nuevo Arenal, Thursday

Thu 9th 1435 Things going well on the whole. Am a new hotel and it's very nice; after going out for walk (as described below) I came back and had a beer in the restaurant and sat on the terrace and as per comments on booking.com I saw loads of birds, including some hummingbirds and what I think is a toucan, and a squirrel, up really close.

Got up 7am, I had woken up a few times around midnight, 4am and 5am and was perhaps not solidly asleep. At IIRC 4am ish I felt kind of weird, a bit like (and this doesn't really make sense) I could have had that crushing sense of homesickness/despair, but didn't.

Ana getting up/checking out as well so conversation minimal ("is it OK if I clean my teeth/turn the light on?" sort of thing) but didn't feel too awkward. Bag bulging a smidge in part because suboptimally packed (eg shell jacket not neatly folded) and in part because I'm carrying three disposable water bottles as well as the reusable one and a bit reluctant to discard any of them; not a huge deal.

Had quickish free coffee and a half, didn't sit at table as not clear there was a seat and not overly fussed given I was on the way out. Got to bus station OK, asked a couple of almost certainly wrong bus drivers if they went through Nuevo Arenal and they all said "no, 8am" which was what I'd been led to expect.

Got bus OK, driver didn't know this hotel but I said it was a few km west of NA and he charged me 3400 - misheard 3 as 5 at first - which is a smidge more than I expected but probably right. Bus quite full with a lot of other tourists and I was mildly shocked how small some of their bags were, but as we went on I realised they were using this bus to get to tourist attractions along the way (maybe taking a chance on connecting with it on return, given only three a day, or planning to return via Uber/EasyHop/whatever).

We stopped for 5 mins in NA proper (it's not huge) and I got out briefly to snap photo (badly; should have been more careful as not totally legible, eg some hours blocked out) of timetable painted on the wall. A few mins after that I rang the bell as Google Maps showed we were outside this hotel and got off no problems.

Legs hurting a bit from last few days (esp "scrambling" , I guess) as came down the steepish incline to hotel. Owner seems to be German, think from guidebook lots of Germans/Austrians here, menu is v German etc. TBH his and my Spanish don't seem to quite click but we got things sorted without too much trouble. No big problems but he used a rate of 600 CRC/USD (I have virtually no dollar notes left) and so I had to pay a bit (not enough to make a fuss about) more than I expected - I checked when I got into my room and "official" rate is 582, which is a 3.1% premium and thus (and not that it's the best/only solution) I would - ignoring maybe getting change at unfavourable rate - have been better off paying the approx 2.5% commission (a fixed 4.95 fee on $200, and I could have wd eg $300 to lower this) offered by that ATM in La Fortuna.

Room very nice, no lake views but that's fine by me (I'm downstairs at the side), double bed, private bathroom, views over a bit of the garden anyway.

It was about 10-1015 by the time I'd got into room so I set off intending to walk into Nuevo Arenal and see about lunch and/or getting some snacks. I made it about half way and then there was a deserted lot for sale and two fucking dogs started barking and coming towards me - there was a great big gap (truck sized I'd say) in the fence so they weren't contained. I turned round and they ignored me. I am not saying I couldn't have walked past unscathed, but I wasn't keen to chance it - FWIW I had not (and still have not) seen anyone else walking along the road here, it all feels vaguely middle class upward German/English speaking expat territory (lots of signs in English for lots for sale etc).

Bit pissed off about that but can't be helped. I did see one or two buses and I think there is a local service Tilaran-Arenal which (I am guessing) runs once an hour or so, which if I *need* to get into NA may be useful (I probably won't unless I run out of cash, and I semi-deliberately made sure I had a fair supply before coming and it looks like paying by card is probably an option given the general affluent expat vibe - don't get me wrong, it seems a very quiet area, but the places I've been in and the general atmosphere is of quietly expensive-ish expatness) and may also - I will try to ask for advice from staff here in a day or two - be the way out of here when I leave, I haven't made firm plans yet and will read guide book etc but gut feeling is that Tilaran may be the interchange point for heading anywhere except back to La Fortuna.

There was a parilla type place about halfway between hotel and where I had to turn back because of dogs. I had a quick look at menu on way into NA and prices looked borderline OK (even if most of meat type stuff was unfamiliar words) and I said hello to woman in there and said it was too early to eat but I might be back later (true). On the post-dog return I popped in to ask if I could take a photo of menu, explaining when asked that I wanted to look up the unfamiliar words. She offered to help and although I said it was too early to eat now, I might come back later and would appreciate her help. So we discussed some of the stuff, it helped but also didn't - eg chicharron is pork crackling by the sound of it (I half knew this is context of the crisp type snack sold in shops) but I'm not sure that sounds appetising, I have no idea if there's any "meat" with it or if it's just the fried skin. Anyway, I asked about sauce and she said all the meats came with no sauce and (as I had noticed) there was a separate list of sides like french fries and salad you could add on. (All this handwritten on a whiteboard for a refreshingly unexpensive feel. :-) ) I thanked her and said I would probably come back later (repeating it was too early to eat), they close at 6 but she said if I reserved they could open til 7, which feels insane given they were absolutely empty.

From there I walked back to hotel and past it (didn't go in), heading for tiny village of El Aguacate. I got there without any dog trouble, small but sort of picturesque - oh, I saw the odd colourful bird on the walk along the road (which is a bit hairy as no pavement and moderate amount of traffic), and a fairly bit half-squashed dead snake, and several times a "condor" swooped sufficiently close and slowly overhead that I half wondered if it was having a go at me.

EA v small but pretty church (didn't go in) and a small supermarket and one slightly upscale looking restaurant, El Corral. I went in and sneaked a look at the menu and decided I'd have a (very nice) casado de filet de pollo with a diet coke which came to IIRC 5700 and I left 300 change as tip, no idea if I need to tip or that's too little or what. I could have paid by card (thinking about if I want to conserve physical cash supply) but as the price was in CRC I didn't - I'm kind of thinking that in general if a price is in USD, I'm short of physical dollars and I can pay by card in USD I should, then I don't get ripped off by a crappy exchange rate and the merchant has to pay their n% commission to the card network (which sucks, but at least feels like a kind of retaliation for the whole "charging in USD even though we have our own currency and fucking you over on the exchange rate" business).

I felt very slightly guilty for not eating at the parilla where I spoke to that woman, but I didn't want to trog all the way back and I will probably go there tomorrow anyway.

Got some snacks at the supermarket (luckily I brought my own carrier bag as one wasn't offered and I didn't ask) and came back to hotel. Went into bar/restaurant and leafed through menu while no one there - local beers USD3/bottle, German USD7/bottle, food vaguely German-ish for prices in the USD7-15 range per dish (probably more than I want to pay and maybe a bit "saucey" ; not saying I couldn't eat anything). I had already thought a beer might be nice so I got an Imperial (bit pricey but not terrible), asked if I could pay by card and I could but the woman (not the bloke who checked me in; she might be Costa Rican as her Spanish seemed less strange to be) put it into the machine in colones! To be fair she didn't apply the 600 rate although I don't know exactly what it was. OK, 589, which isn't bad. Still, another time I might ask (but not insist, if it's a problem) they put it on in USD.

Went out on balcony, only me in the place, really lovely views over the hotel grounds, Lake Arenal in the distance, wildlife as already noted. It all feels very luxurious if perhaps after a few days a bit dull, but I could see myself putting in 3-4 days here and just vaguely relaxing, just (vaguely PG Wodehouse-esque) walking a few miles into town and back once a day for supplies.

I'm writing this on a bench outside my room window if I didn't already say.

I think I might have another couple of beers up there around sunset. Even if the dogs weren't an issue, NA is too far away to realistically bring back cold-from-shop beers and drink them in/outside my room, but El Aguacate is about 20 mins walk and I think that might work if I want to do that one evening. I'd probably not be caught and no one has said there's a rule against own alcohol (I am a hotel guest, not a restaurant customer, and I'd be sitting outside my room not in restaurant), I might also (which feels pathetic but also curiously attractive) try pouring beer from can into my reusable water bottle and drinking from that. :-)

Got back to room maybe 15-30 mins ago, chunkyish but vaguely UK sized spider (perhaps a downside of all this garden?) down by the side of the bedside table but I managed to trap it under a glass (luckily two supplied) and get my laminated passport copy (full size, not credit card) under so I could invert it and take it out int the garden. Hope that doesn't keep happening but not particularly freaked out. It seemed surprisingly sluggish for a spider, FWIW.

It is sunny verging on fractionally too warm now, and was during lunch in EA. It started to rain on the walk back but it didn't last long and I didn't get utterly soaked and I dried off pretty quick when it stopped. It does feel quite "tropical" here in a nicely stereotypical way.

I think that's about it so far. I really need to exercise a bit after not having the privacy in dorm. But really apart from that I don't particularly plan to do anything much - not watched any YT for maybe a week or more as been out during day and lacked privacy and/or was talking to people in evening. I probably don't want to spend two weeks here (though it does kind of feel - modulo slightly poor wifi in room - like the sort of spot it would be nice to camp out in for a month or two with a laptop and write the Great American Novel^W^W^W^Wsome epic open-source code contribution or other) but if I want to extend my current three nights to four or five I think that's fine. I don't want to do it *because* of this, but the simple lack of stuff to do here means that unless I go very heavy on the beers, it is probably helping to pull down my average daily spend being here, even with paying approx £20/day for the room

Forgot to say after getting spider out I went for brief stroll around grounds (I've had "Mrs Robinson" stuck in my head since I checked in) - they aren't huge and I felt vaguely "trespassing" as there are no paths, but presumably I am allowed to do this, although there didn't seem to be any seats out there and the grounds are nicer to look at than to actually be out in, somehow.

1532 Was thinking on the bus that even though I didn't speak to many of the younger people at hostel in La Fortuna, I overhead a fair amount of conversation (including at least one being checked in and given a friendly introduction to the local "attractions" ) and it struck me that although there was a vague "party" vibe (bar-ish), in general no one seemed to be talking about eg how much fun it was white-water rafting or ziplining or horseback riding. I have no idea if this is a biased sample but I am slightly surprised and also oddly reassured. I guess these activities are *not* cheap and anyone on a budget can't be doing them every day (eg several people in Santa Elena said they were over budget etc) - you don't need to be desperately short of money to worry about this, I think (perhaps projecting a bit) if you're on a two or three week break from work (ie you have income and aren't spending over *that* many days) it's more likely you're going to spend freely, if you're on a two month upwards trip (perhaps the duration even dictated by how long the money last - not my case, though I have an element of this as cost of this trip will affect likelihood of other trips in near future) you're probably spending money you saved up for the trip and you probably don't have the same daily budget even if you are broadly speaking comfortably off. And of course people staying in a decent but no/few private room hostel are presumably also not the ones with "unlimited" travel budgets in general.

Incidentally the night walk guide said that no Costa Rican spiders are deadly to humans. I am not 100% sure this means they are all "bee sting" kind of harmless (ie you might get a bite but barring some kind of allergy it just hurts a bit and gets better without treatment) or if it means they can be nasty but with medical treatment they have no major lasting effect. Not that I plan on touching any, but you never know what might happen by accident.

The same is not true of the snakes, and while stepping just off the tarmac to let some of the scarier trucks go past (the drivers seem considerate, but the road is narrow enough when two cars are passing at the same time there isn't a huge amount of spare space) the prospect of disturbing something venomous wasn't appealing. But this is probably not a huge risk, no one has specifically cautioned me about it or anything. I have no idea if the squashed snake was dangerous when alive, for example.

FTR El Corral is closed Tuesdays, if I happen to be around long enough for that to matter.

There were two people working in grounds when I was up on balcony, at least one is still going at it with one of those buzzing (probably petrol) strimmer kind of gadgets. Not a big deal but mildly annoying.

Also FTR it was the black trousers that had the machine wash the other day.

1931 On balcony just starting third beer (350ml Imperial), came up here just before sunset (1745ish) to watch light fading over lake and lights come out on far shore. Direction not right to really see the sunset but still pretty nice in its way, various bird cards, crickets (I assume) started up and still going like billy-o. Few other customers, all seemingly German speaking, but far from busy - and in a way it's kind of nice to have a handful of other people around but not get distracted by their inane conversation because I can't understand a word of it. :-)

Had some (sweet pastryish, not the meat savoury kind) empanadas de piña that I got surprisingly cheaply (packet of 9 decent sized ones for 1250) at the supermarket in El Aguacate (and incidentally, yes, I know that means "the avocado") - there is *very* little filling in them but the pastry is very rich and kind of sweet. I also got some crispy things (including a Takis Fuego-alike) and may have some of those back in room later. This will probably be last beer tonight.

Will probably extend here a day or two if they have availability. On the one hand I could see it getting boring and I don't want to waste time. On the other hand, until (and maybe even slightly past) the point it does get boring, it feels like a little semi-private tropical paradise (a little like the week+ I spent in Paraty) and exactly the sort of thing I " should" allow myself to experience. I also don't want the relaxation to be tempered by feeling I have to drag myself away or worries about how long I ought to stay. Gut feeling is I'll see how I sleep tonight and then maybe extend by just a single day, and perhaps do that again in a day or two.

I could vaguely imagine/hope finding some similar-ish kind of somewhat cheap and relaxed place on the Pacific coast but it wouldn't be quite like this even if I do find it (different, not better/worse) and I should enjoy it while I can.

FWIW I am wearing fleece zipped up over one of the thin non-wool tops. It is very comfortable like this, zipped up not absolute essential but does just take the edge of the slight chill of the broadly welcome breeze.

I am drinking Imperial rather than the much more expensive German beers partly on cost grounds but also on the grounds I don't set myself up as a connosieur and that while I might think the German beers are "better" (although I "like" all sorts, rather than it being a simple one-dimensional quality scale) in some sense, I can drink export German beers anywhere (and in particular back home, perhaps cheaper too) whereas Imperial is local and while nothing special, seems a perfectly decent lager which I wouldn't be drinking elsewhere. It's also not like I'm pining for a "taste of home" ; I'm sure the German beers are decent but it's not like I drink them regularly and I've only been away a few weeks anyway. If they had expensive bottles of some UK bitters or UK-style bitters I might be more tempted, but the same arguments would mostly still apply. I might splurge on a German beer or two another day all the same. (Supermarkets here do seem to sell a fair selection of Belgian beers, and I think American craft IPA type stuff - all good beers and the IPA type stuff especially what I might occasionally drink at home (though it has a premium price and I don't drink it regularly), but as I say, I've not been away long enough and the local stuff feels more fitting and is cheaper for this to be a massive draw.)

1950 It's raining a bit, though balcony has roof extending way past edge so not getting wet, just hearing it (can't see it as it's dark). We're not so far from La Fortuna so I suppose it makes sense weather is similar. I think it might have stopped already as well.

Difficult not to draw comparisons with Lake Atitlan but it's not a competition. The places round Atitlan felt more touristy in general, the view was perhaps more dramatic. For whatever reason things felt cheap-ish round Atitlan and I was able to go to that bar right by the lake shore and alternate coffee and beer there in the day (to be fair if memory serves I found that a minor down-at-heel gem, other places near lake not necessarily so palatable on price), whereas here I'm close and high enough for a decent view but not on the shore (and I'm not sure it's easy/cheap to get to the shore, especially in a place serving beer/coffee) and the beer isn't insanely expensive (as I think I've said/implied, while this place isn't "OMFG it's so cheap like £5/night for a private room and beers are like 50p!" cheap, it feels very reasonable and excellent value and my wallet isn't crying in pain from being here). But this place has the really nice garden with the close-up bird/squirrel/spider :-) viewing opportunities. As I say, it's not a competition, it's just that the thought occurred so I've bashed out some comparisons.

I have been reading/browsing web a bit but am also trying to just sit and look out and think and be "present" .

Seeing a beetle on tablecloth suddenly reminded that I don't think I observed that while at breakfast in Santa Elena one day there was a brilliantly metallic green fly. I'm sure like any fly it could get annoying as fuck quickly, but it was undeniably a beautiful colour.

2006 "Forever Autumn" (Justin Hayward) coming slightly indistinctly from inside. :-)

There are some ants running along the balcony railing. Not a constant stream, fairly well spaced. Once in a while two ants going opposite directions (presumably following the same chemical trail) encounter each other, then they pause for a fraction of a second and carry on past each other.

Howard Jones "Things Can Only Get Better" now playing, also slightly indistinct and faint and overlaid with the chat of the German couple out here on balcony who are the only other people here.

Not having another beer, though vaguely tempted to go sit inside and 80s it up :-), but I'm here a few days, and those unhealthy snacks in my room are also calling loud enough to be heard over the crickets. :-)

Still got a bit of this one though, not rushing off. Overall consumption today/anticipated consumption over next few days not *great* but also not going batshit crazy and showing some kind of restraint.

I may not, since I may go there *anyway*, but it occurs to me if there are a fair number of local buses (not just the three a day to/from La Fortuna) I could maybe do a day trip to Tillaran from here. Though as I say, the fact it's probably an inevitable destination en route to other places kind of argues against that.

2018 Finished beer, pretty decently slow pace I think. Let's go pay, on credit card in USD if possible (yes privacy, but in this ATMless area I don't want to burn through my cash reserves, and as waffled about earlier *maybe* thiere's scope for avoiding exchange rate fuckery).

2024 Back in room. All very amicable but a bit weird. German guy (who by his name is presumably owner) didn't want to take a card for USD9 as it was very little and the bank makes a charge (he said the latter in response to a smalltalk response of mine later about how I liked the 80s music; he seems a nice enough chap but our Spanish does not seem to mix) but the woman who took my card payment earlier seemed to let me do it (after some minor PIN-related fuss) but told me the bill was in colones so I couldn't pay in dollars (fair enough, except why are you listing the price of the beer in dollars then?) but I was charged at 588CRC/USD which isn't an insane markup. Honestly don't know if I can/should pay by card another time. I did suggest I could run a tab (*not* using those words, maybe I should have done) and pay when I left but in the end as they seemed OK to just do this small-ish payment that's what we did. I did justify myself by saying as there was no cash machine here I wanted to conserve my cash, FWIW. Anyway, as I say, all very amicable but just a touch strange.

2147 Snacked myself stupid. Feeling quite tired, will go to bed shortly. Will set alarm for 10am and see what happens.

Wifi in room is very ropy and it's a bit annoying but not a killer.

2152 In bed. Really is very noisy outside with the crickets and some other chirping things. Not exactly bad, but odd.

Incidentally while watching some YT while snacking was feeling oddly "upset" about the payment stuff up at the bar/restaurant tonight. There *wasn't* a scene and it was all amicable enough - I certainly didn't try to insist on anything (beyond saying I had paid less on a card that afternoon) and I don't think there's a problem, but somehow it left a "sad" feeling (not anger/annoyance) knocking around. Meh. If I'm being billed in CRC anyway I might just pay cash for drinks here, I might try to put a possible extension of stay on card though. I'm fairly well supplied with cash but don't want to have to cut short my stay through lack of it, though that feels unlikely. I'll also see if I can catch that woman (owner's wife??) and ask her about extending in case that helps.