Puerto Jiménez, Sunday

Sat 18th 2106 Forgot to say during Spanish chat with hostel staff woman we talked about 4am bus from BD, she didn't know why so early when I asked but when connections with San Jose bus at Rincon came up she said that would be why, as there's apparently one (very slow) bus from PJ to SJ every day and it would leave PJ about the right time for that bus to be connecting with it, and that's probably why 4am not (say) dawn departure from BD. I guess this connection is useful for locals and tourists.

2114 Also, saw some scarlet macaws in a tree (only because a small group of people staring up into it) on walk back from airfield earlier. Quite cool. Guide book leaves mental picture the town is heaving with scarlet macaws (TBH its description doesn't generally tally with my impression, and I also don't think the petrol station here is only one on peninsula - saw I saw one from bus on way in the other morning) but putting that aside, was nice to see these in an "ordinary" non-national-park setting.

Can still just hear annoying conversation from kitchen but it's fine.

Sun 19th 1640 For some reason couldn't sleep, was awake until at least 0250 so got about 2h sleep, prob less, as had to be up at 0510. Tour OK, will write more later, bit tired at first but did get second wind.

Feel fucked re onward travel. Claro 30 day "packet" might have expired too but not sure as while they constantly message random shit it would be too useful to tell you "your packet had expired" or "will expire in n days" .

Basically decided fuck Golfito. It extends over 6km ish which is inconvenient on arrival, esp after already poorly coordinated bus times back from DB to PJ and then boat on to Golfito. Also no cheap accom (*poss* if guide book to be believed due to Costa Ricans visiting to take advantage of odd tax free zone). Sounds nice enough but I can potentially visit en route to/from Panama on a future trip. Getting boat would be vaguely cool but done a fair amount of boat travel on this trip already anyway.

Palmar Norte has no cheap accommodation and scarcely any accom. The lithic spheres are at airport - vaguely doable - and Isla Cano, which I have already declined to visit from Uvita and Bahia Drake. So they're not happening.

Buenos Aires has one airbnb with no reviews. I have no mobile data now (and nowhere easy to top up here, even if I had time - *just* maybe it can be done over phone via ccard, even as a foreigner?) which makes that edgier. No reviews not great. It is cheapish. There is very little in BA according to guide book but it isn't *too* far away and is in right direction and two nights there would be OK, esp given I am saving the time I'd already semi planned to spend in Golfito and PN - cutting one of those out already loosens up my schedule.

San Isidro appears to have little cheap accom but not checked too thoroughly eg not looked on airbnb. It feels too far to really want to go after DB hiking place.

I trogged into town (whining heavily) after a frantic burst of searching about 4pm and went to a bus terminal and tho shut that plus a bus site on web make me confident-ish there is a 9am bus from here (which fits with early minibus from DB to PJ) which goes via PN and BA.

So short of utterly revising my plans and trying to head over to eg Carribbean coast, which feels insane - and Cartago and places nearby may well be a good use of my time - I am probably going to have to chance this airbnb at BA and go there on Thu. But wanted to write this in case it helped me think. Going to hang on for 30ish mins at least as I'm feeling harried as fuck (internet access at DB is "guaranteed to be slow" and would hate to be relying on it to try to research and/or book).

1741 OK. The 9am bus probably goes to San Isidro in 5h. There is nothing super cheap on booking.com but airbnb has a half-decent looking option there (private room in family home) with free cancellation until Mar 22. I have been saying two nights but I could make it three. If there's nothing really to see in BA (I am not interest in indigenous people reserve stuff) it seems a bit silly to faff to stay there.

Chirripo is near SI, gut feeling is I would *not* try to go up it now (guide book talks about exhausting hikes taking 6h if you are extremely fit on 12h otherwise) but I suppose I would have time to poke around and maybe speak to local tour agencies. Climate in SI is probably cooler and if I just bum around a bit for a few days I think that's fine.

Since there *is* the cancellation option I may just go ahead and book this now for peace of mind. There's only one review for the airbnb but still probably not too bad.

1810 FFS, what a performance. Phone has been running like a dog (text messages to verify ID "processing" for about a minute before being readable) - Android must be managing all the processes for me like a champ, heaven forbid I should have visibility or control. However, I have booked this sole airbnb in San Isidro for three nights in borderline central location with free cancellation up to 3pm Wednesday so modulo crap internet access I can choose to cancel this if I have second thoughts or someone in DB gives me a better idea. Just possibly there will be somewhere near SI I might like to go after, we'll see.

I also asked hotel staff guy who turned up to check some people in and after I prompted him he agreed the 9am bus goes to SI, and check in is after 3pm so this works fairly well with 5h trip. He thinks I can buy ticket on day, ideally 20 mins or so beforehand, but if I am on 7am minibus back from DB that should be easy. Push comes to shove I can get the 1pm bus from here.

airbnb pricing highly deceptive with service fee and cleaning not shown up front, but even with these rolled in it comes to less than USD20/night and it was that or nothing anyway. Of course this being airbnb it might get cancelled last minute by host and I'll perhaps just get my money back and be left with nowhere to sleep, but what can you do?

At least I have something booked and it is cancellable.

1927 OK, washed uw, hidden belt and top (as had dorm to self - the couple from last night left about 4am but we have a new couple, who I had brief chat with as they wanted to check in, but they are out), had shower, cut nails (outside on terrace as pseudo-compromise wrt "disgustingness" , and I picked the trimmings up and put in bin, and was here alone) and had a (bad - need to switch to my second new razor soon really) shave. Now making myself a coffee to have with second half of galletas de guyaba (or whatever they are called) got at supermarket post tour when bought onions and some (oddly disappointingly flavourless) pepsi zero . Bit lardy but not too bad.

Incidentally sleeping badly poss due in part to forgetting tablet (did I forget night before too?) but prob not entirely. It *wasn't* the burn, that seems to have been a non-issue. Right eye bit sore 2amish and for first part of tour today and did wonder if a tiny bit of hot water might have splashed skin near eye but prob just lack of sleep. Mind churning *slightly* but not over anything tremendously disturbing.

Tour as I say OK, borderline good and fun but TBH not *that* novel and arguably I didn't need to do it and it was maybe not worth USD95. Anyway...

Five of us on tour inc me, a pair of Air France cabin crew and a German couple, both on short-ish trips. German couple had rental 4WD but AF guys and me went with tour guide (and company owner, apparently) in his 4WD (incidentally at first I was being super gentle with door despite it being in slightly ratty condition but he kept telling me it wasn't shut properly so I tried to act "normally" with it but struggled a bit), I sat in front.

We kept stopping to look at wildlife (phantom auto-deleter on high activity as I write) by the road, which was sort of cool but also vaguely annoying and with moderate heat and tiredness these brief slogs up and down road felt a bit of an effort. We did see all four CR monkey species (capuchin and howler had seen before, spider monkey poss only in that rescue centre and don't think had seen squirrel monkeys before. We also saw a stick bird (v cool) and a couple of caimans and an otter (which I couldn't see). Some of this via telescope and some photos with it but not of all. Also some scarlet macaws, I think some green parrots too.

At beach Matapalo we saw more scarlet macaws and then we walked up to the top of a mostly dry waterfall, which I found a strain at first but is also the kind of thing I like and got a bit into it after a while. Splashed water on ourselves from pool at top to cool down, also second part of route up in primary forest which is cooler due to more leaf cover etc, came down a different way with tiny bit of "climbing" , sort of cool.

I wasn't entirely sure if I liked the guide or not, he seemed a bit not-entirely-funny praising his own ability to spot things a bit. But overall a decent enough chap.

After that we drove over to his/his brother's private 310 iirc hectare estate (their grandad had 1100 or so but rest sold I think) and walked a fair distance down a slippery trail to his off-grid house with nice views over golfo dulce (if that's what water is called) and he cooked us a fairly generous casado - didn't eat with us. I managed to chat fairly well with everyone, they were using English as lingua franca anyway.

German guy had a drone which he asked if he could fly before we left so he did and they may be going to email me video. Cheapest "non toy" drone, apparently, about 500-600EUR worth.

After that we walked back up slippery trail and drove back to town and that was it. Think I already said I went into supermarket and then back to hostel and called Mum for Mother's Day (my card had *not* arrived, ffs, she wasn't upset but I'm a bit annoyed) and engaged in "ffs" accom/onward travel planning (I had kind of come to non-executive near decision during today's minor exertions feeling hot and tired and sweaty that Golfito would be taken off the menu for this trip - also if didn't already say its 6km stretch probably easier to negotiate if arriving by bus and perhaps getting a boat *from* Golfito to the more "normally shaped" (and already known to me) Puerto Jimenez) and so I think I'm now caught up.

Have *not* packed for tomorrow but just double checked and minibus is at 11 and be good to let stuff dry etc so plan is to get up about 9, have coffee in hope of forcing dump and pack and head over to minibus 1015-1030 - checkout here is at 11 so no issues there. I am slightly edgy about this new hostel but think it will be fine - was relieved to note last night it's *gas* stove, I had wondered about how hard it would be to cook over wood stove as I had thought it was. Do have horrible feeling it's gonna be congestion-tastic in kitchen as *everyone* there will have to cook for themselves but see how it goes.

I will probably go to bed 9ish.

I do sometimes feel I haven't done the best/"hardest" tours as I speak to eg couple arriving tonight who had done 14km hike from some off-grid hostel on edge of national park, and the people on today's tour who were doing Sirena station from here, and the guide today saying eg La Leone is a gruelling (not his exact word) hike along beach but you don't see that much. But I am *not* out here to prove how fucking tough I am etc. I want to be able to do things that interest me etc without feeling held back by my physical abilities, and yes to challenge myself, but I don't have to go fucking nuts.

I need to be careful not to turn hiking at this place in DB into a chore - I am *not* gonna see everything and I am probably *not* gonna extend even if they have space (I can come back, plus I will only be taking supplies for three nights, plus I am getting near end of trip and don't want to "waste" time - tho the latter is maybe silly, and although it's just sheer bad luck I couldn't sleep last night, I did kind of feel if I'd had less time pressure I might have been better having an extra day/night of "doing nothing" here just to allow some R&R time etc). I need to feel I've made a solid effort and not slacked off, but it is supposed to be fun etc!

Is that it? Will stop for now and see if I think of anything else.

1959 Had half of 360g galleta con guayaba (little round biscuits with tinyish dot of "jam" in - quite similar except they had two choc chops to biscuits we were given on San Pedrillo tour at end) earlier, had another quarter now and will have last quarter tomorrow morning. Don't plan on taking them with me as don't want crumbs going everywhere in bag, lugging food out going to be a faff as is (mainly in terms of volume not weight - I may have to carry my daypack separately, which will be a faff on "aggressive" (!) 30 mins hike in as well as on bus - weight not irrelevant either, but not biggest concern, we're maybe looking at 2kg-ish of food and I was already lugging around maybe 900g of that in the form of a half-ish bag of 1.8kg rice).

Will probably finish pepsi zero in morning too. Although I'm still drinking coffee (not *super* smart before bed but I do this kind of thing a lot), I will probably go to bed once I've drunk it (just need to clean teeth) and read in bed and fall asleep on my own schedule.

Just looking casually at some photos on phone, being in Drake Bay feels like years ago! I guess this is kind of good as it shows a certain amount of variety/novelty instead of time just flying past.

2026 In bed. Couple just come in and prob going to bed, also we have a new solo guy just checking in.

FWIW I *may* have seen lithic spheres already, eg vague recollection of some stone spheres around in Uvita. But I have no idea if these are genuine "historic" ones or modern recreations or indeed just stone/concrete spheres with no intent to be recreations.