The second full day in La Fortuna promised abundant showers although not continuously. It was the rainy season after all and it rains, and people deal with it. Frankly, the bright sunshine of the previous day was a fluke. So we understood all of this ahead of time and we devised a plan. We’d stick close to town and focus on activities were we could seek shelter if necessary.
Natura Eco Park
However the rain wasn’t expected to start immediately. Actually, the first part of the morning looked pretty promising. Nonetheless we didn’t press our luck and we went to Natura Eco Park nearby (map). It was smaller than the places we’d explored in recent days although it included a lot of the same stuff in its compact area. It’s exhibit of poison dart frogs was particularly noteworthy.
Then I noticed a grove of cecropia trees and of course I scoured them visually for signs of sloths. The trees are very recognizable and sloths love to eat their leaves. I learned to recognize these particular trees but I never did see any sloths during the trip… except in captivity. Unfortunately I couldn’t compel nature to entertain me with a steady stream of wildlife on command. So I failed to spot a sloth during our several hikes even though I saw plenty of other fascinating creatures.
Tourist Central
Parts of La Fortuna are so unabashedly tourist that it’s not even worth trying to rationalize them otherwise. We passed a massive tchotchke and knickknack shop on the way back from Natura and I simply had to stop (map). It must have covered an acre, filled with every object imaginable that could possibly hold a Pura Vida logo, all priced in U.S. Dollars of course. Everything.
Truly, I love kitsch. Even so, I’m not much of a shopper — I don’t buy much — but I sure enjoy looking around. The boys bought some cheap items for the friends back home and I think I got a magnet with the Imperial beer logo. That was my only souvenir other than photos and memories. But that wasn’t really the point.
Then the rain started. We were safely indoors so it didn’t really matter. The initial wave passed soon enough although more was predicted for the rest of the day.
Rainy Afternoon
I guess we were feeling a little overconfident because we decided to walk from our house into downtown La Fortuna for lunch. We could have driven there but it was only about a kilometre away and exercise is good, right? We even made it to one of those open-air restaurants just as the next wave of thunderstorms rolled through. It was a wondrous stormy sight from the safety our shelter, as we enjoyed a plate of casado and a couple of beers.
Then we made a fateful decision. The second wave passed and we headed home. Unfortunately the weather turned quickly and the next storm overtook us about halfway back. I had an umbrella and a rain jacket keeping me dry but the local infrastructure couldn’t handle the deluge. You’d think a place living with torrential downpours would be designed for it, but no. Water overran roads and sidewalks and the spray of a passing truck drenched me from head to toe. Hardly a disaster but I had to completely clean up once we got home.
Rainforest Chocolate Tour
Thunderstorms transitioned to light, intermittent showers by mid-afternoon so we headed back outdoors. This time we decided to tour through a cocoa farm to learn about artisanal chocolate (map). These opportunities exist all over Costa Rica so we had abundant options, but we chose the one closest to our house. It was with easy walking distance. This time we drove.
Tours don’t get canceled for rain, even heavy rain. Otherwise they’d have to cancel everything all the time. Generally the show still goes on unless lightning drifts uncomfortably close. So we headed out with our rain gear and our umbrellas and learned all about small-batch chocolate production. The samples at the end of the tour made it even better.
It stayed cloudy the rest of the day although rainfall finally diminished. That gave us one final evening to explore La Fortuna (map) and the next day we moved to a warmer, drier destination.
Articles in the Costa Rica Series
- Intentions and Observations
- In the Shadow of the Volcano
- Exploring La Fortuna
- Brew Day
- Relaxing in Tamarindo
- Beyond the Beach
- On To Monteverde
- Completing the Circuit
See Also: The Complete Photo Album on Flickr
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