After a day at sea spent recovering from our three day landfall streak, we arrived in Costa Rica. We would remain overnight this time, so it felt like less of a rush to go out and see the sights before dock time arrived all too soon. The ship took the opportunity to bunker more fuel, while we left our schedule open on the first day.
We flagged down a taxi with the intent of finally finding that relaxing beach visit we were denied in Honduras. He drove us down the coast for about 40 minutes to Cahuita National Park and dropped us at the end of a street leading onto Playa Blanca.
It seemed a bit of a random place to drop us at first, but the view opened up and we were treated to a beautiful sweeping coastline with gentle waves lapping against the white sands. There was also a nature trail that ran parallel to the beach 30 feet into the woods which we explored a bit to find leaf-cutter ants, lizards, and many beautiful flowers.
It was exactly the type of leisurely day in the sun we had imagined we would find in the Caribbean. (there was also a story about a machete here I think.) We returned to the ship that evening for dinner and woke up in the morning ready to tackle day Two.
We left on an excursion to Estero Negro, which we had driven past the previous day, for a mangrove kayak tour of the estuary. (not pictured) The slow moving water were a pleasant boulevard to paddle through and get a closer look at the forest and wetlands. We saw the numerous mangroves reaching up out of the water as well as various animals like sloths and monkeys. In the Playa Bonita afternoon we again lounged on the beach but frequented the much closer Playa Bonita. (not pictured) As the sun fell to the horizon again, the MV Explorer pushed away from the pier and set course for our next destination. We made ourselves comfortable on board at the lounges and viewing decks that we knew so well.
The next port of call is: