Playas Del Coco - Costa Rica

After our amazing trip to Cuba it was time for us to go to Costa Rica.
We arrived late in the afternoon in San Jose ( which doesn't look like a nice town at all), we spent a night in San Jose and took the first bus the next day to Playas Del Coco.

Digby is doing his Dive Master there: basically he is an intern for the dive compagny for a month and have to learn how to be the perfect Dive Master!
Everyday he has to dive, to help the dive instructor to teach diving , study lots of diving books and doing some exams.

As we have to stay in Playas for a month we rent a cheap flat. We did a reservation online before but did not pay a deposit or anything.
When we arrived at the place it was kind of dodgy! The studio was ok, we had worse but not clean at all, speacially the kitchen , and bathroom.
Also after had bedbugs in Mexico sophie was checking the bed,she founds 5 long black hairs. So not clean at all.
For a night or 2 it will be ok, we are used to but for a month...we wanted something a little better.

We decided to have a look in town to see if we can find something else.
As soon as we walked in the direction of the beach we saw a nice place  so we decided to have a look and we arrived in heaven!

Huge residence with swimming pool in the center wich has a bar in the swimming pool!
The studio is really nice , really clean , and with a small terrasse in front of the swiming pool.
Of course it's double price of the other place.

We don't know what to do, in one mind we are backpackers, it's the end of the trip ( after this month we only have LA and NY left) we have to save the money for don't miss out on things , etc....
in the other one, we stayed in dodgy place all over the world so we can now have the luxury
to have somthing nice specially for a month, and it's the end of the trip so we can enjoy ourselves!
Also Sophie wanted to do her open water dive but she decided to don't do it and with the monney take the more expensive one.
Digby thougths it was stupid to don't do the dive here, so he decides to offer her the course for her birthday ( and if she is lucky it can be Digby the teacher!)

So now we are staying in a fabulous place , we really love it !
Also we were July 9th so... Digby's birthday!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DIGBY!

We went for the occasion to a nice restaurant on the beach, and had some nice cocktails! but not so late, now Digby has to dive everyday on the morning and it can not drink 12h before diving! He also gets up at 5:30am.
The next day, Sophie bought in secret some candles and put on Digby's desert, he was really happy and surprised! A birthday is not a real birthday if there is no birthday candles!
Our 2 first weeks went really fast and were really nice.
Digby is enjoying diving a lot and learn really fast, maybe there is a chance he finish the course earlier.
Sophie is enjoying the beach and the swimming pool! as well as lots of time for the perfect sun tan!

Here the beach is exactly how we immagine Costa rica would be.
Brown/black sand, long beach, lush green vegetations everywhere, thousands of huge coloured butterflies and dragonflies everywhere.

Digby see's a lot of ray's, leopard ray's, eagle spotted ray's,sharks , etc when he is diving, but he is sad as an other group saw 2 big pilot whales up close last time! He also see's dolphins most days from the boat, but not while diving.

Playas del Coco it's a really nice place to stay , it's chill out, not so much thing to do except the beach though.
It's a small town with only some restaurants and souvenirs shops, one paseo in front of the beach with 3 bars and a volley ball area , that's it!

We stay mainly at our flat at night as now we have a kitchen so we can cook ourself and it's cheaper!
We celebrated also our 4 years anniversary! our present was to buy everything we love and we normally don't buy because it's too expensive as Camenbert cheese, gouda cheese, pate, saucisson, chorizo, iberico ham, Tbone steack, etc... it's was AMAZING!!

We loved it here and it's really nice to have a small home!

xx
D+S
























































































 

Varadero - Cuba

So we headed towards Varadero. Outside the bus station a taxi told us he would take us direct for 1$ less each, so saving $2 and we would get there faster. So we climeb into the back of a 1949 Willys Jeep. It was also much less comfortable than the bus, but allot more FUN!

So we got to Varadero were our cassa was actually an appartement with a spare room, balcony, bathroom etc.
But the best bit was we are right on the beach front. We have breakfast overlooking the Carribean turquise blue water and pearly white sand, as beautiful as all those other places we have been but here you can eat a home made pizza for 35p, or sleep in a beach front apartment for £20 for two.

Sophie enjoys soaking up the rays, Digby takes brakes from the sun in the shade or tasting rum and cigars in the tourist boutiques pretending he will buy vast amounts to take home.

One of the nights we go to a burger stand and buy a 70p carton of local rum and discuss life with the locals, as we get drunker they seem to become more honest and crtitical of there country.One is a lawyer and earns 38$ per month. He wants to work in tourism to earn tips and open his own guest house so he can earn a good living.

They drive us to a local bar were they only sell rum by the bottle, Digby does the equivilant of buying a magnum of Krug Champagne in a London club, by buying a 350ml bottle of havan club for $1,95 and 350mlcoke at 0.5$ remeber here the average person earns $12 a month, we are drinking almost a weeks salary for most of these people.

The next day its really hot, drinking = sweating = hot and bothered. Digby spends most of the day sleeping in the shade in between dips in the sea.

Our last morning we quickly grabsome more rays on the beach before cathing the 3.30 bus to Havana.

David & Sofia
 xxx