Quepos, Friday

Fri 3rd 1551 Fairly successful day's touristing so far, low key but unexpectedly rewarding.

Before I write day up so far, let me waffle about where next. Looking at guide book there is some hiking type potential down in far south and as a carless person probably Puerto Jimenez is my ideal base. In the short term I need to edge down that way and it looks like Dominical or Uvita would be good intermediates.

Dominical has *no* cheap accom on booking.com for 8th March for two nights - not even dorms. Uvita has some cheap dorms, privates not so great but I will have had private at next place so prob dorm OK. Poking at buses there is a direct bus Quepos-Uvita though perhaps only the one that day at 1130, but despite being on the wrong side of the ferry that morning when I check out it may well be reasonable to get that. I think Dominical is a smidge easier as there are more buses, but both on a "distance covered towards south" and "price" grounds Uvita probably better, plus is may have a marine park of interest. I think there is also scope for a double bus Quepos-Dominical-Uvita trip in a single day, though buses not so frequent this is ideal. Will sleep on it but might book free cancellation hostel in Uvita now by way of hedging my bets.

1650 Back on balcony, popped out to get cash - wd 160k and got it all in 5k bills! This is convenient for spending but a bit of a wodge for my hidden belt, still, hardly end of world. Will write a bit and pop into town for beer and maybe quick chat first at bus terminal re buses to Uvita, if not may talk to them tomorrow.

Also bought 1 litre bottle (1.7kish, though have been stung for approx 400 glass bottle charge which may be refunded - will try tomorrow or morning after, a linguistic challenge if nothing else) of Imperial Original at supermarket this afternoon, which will prob have and offer to share if anyone wants some this evening in hostel.

So I woke up a bit in night - oh, first time was about 0030 for massive piss (drinking lot of coffee+water) and it felt like 4am - but slept broadly OK, confusedly thought room fan was rain noise at 6amish. Last up in dorm but was still out by 930 - had leftover bit of watermelon for breakfast because I could, tiny bit of chat.

Walked over to seafront bit by harbour, quite nice views and going there for sunset, then down to and round Parque Nahomi - few people about, quite nice views, could see a little cove off in distance. Open air gym there but no suitable bar so didn't try HP but did look!

Then decided I'd walk on down to Playa Macha which guy been speaking to in hostel had mentioned (Katie - German woman - told me he's Syrian BTW, though still don't know his name) and with aid of OSM and sheer pluck and getting lost a few times and lucky encounter with a French couple who pointed out a turn off I did get there in the end. It's quite a challenging walk, loose gravel and dry leaves (prob said before there's a vaguely autumn vibe here despite it being "summer" , and at one point a few days ago I constantly had "forever autumn" running in my head) but with care not lethal - that said, as you head down to the beach, there are some bits where the path has kind of caved in to leave steep slopes at right angle to path (and French couple had turned back as they thought these were slops you had to go down) and there's not much in the way of path surface left and picking my way across the narrow (but not long) pseudo-ledge across these gullies was a tiny bit stressful but exciting.

Lovely viewpoint up at the top, had had "Oblong of Dreams" in my head as walking up so listened to it on phone (speaker to ear - no headphones) there before pushing on.

Down on beach sat for a while staring etc, then some people from hostel turned up - Syrian guy came over to say hi. I had had a vague idea they were going but didn't really want to ask to join them and given I made it more fun to find way on own. They went for swim.

I tried to push on round to Playa Vaca but either I couldn't find the right path or there was a borderline nasty 60-70 degree slope of a couple of metres with seriously iffy looking footholds and I decided fuck it.

Oh, on way out I went down steep path halfway along the trail not shown on OSM and it came out onto the little cove I'd seen 
from park with gym earlier, which was kind of cool. I also unintentionally ended up back at other end of this cove on return trip as I seem to have missed the trail, so (with advice from couple swimming) I walked along cove "beach" to the place I'd gone down and up on the way out.

Couple of people around on both beaches, paths felt coolly but also slightly edgily deserted but after I did encounter some people nearer PM I felt even less edgy about it.

Felt like a fairly solid bit of exercise and the kind of cool little experience which the guide book would never bother to mention but which was fun to do. Beaches nice enough but viewpoint down onto beaches easily the highlight. Think I got back to town 1330-1400 ish, went into supermarket near hostel and got 455g (asked for 400g - it's a butcher counter) of steak for about 3k (7.xk/kilo, I asked- they only that the one type of steak) and a watermelon segment and 1.8l milk and some cheap coffee (as free hostel coffee was low and I'd drunk most of it and thought it might have been left by someone rather than hostel supplied, but when I got back the hostel (or someone) had replaced it so I will prob take my unopened pack on with me til I can use it) and came back to hostel and fried the steak (with half a jalapeno leftover from yday sliced and cooked with it and served on top, as I recall from arrachera in Mexico in 2006 - this worked well, I should do it again) and had it and drank some milk and had three cups coffee with milk and bit of chat with Katie and then sat down out here to research onwards travel which is where I started.

0210 Bed!