Disembarkation and Home

Tuesday, 6 October 2009 - Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica

At precisely 8:30 am we vacated our cabin. The cabin stewardess was patiently waiting with her nose to our door to fumigate, desand, and debug our suite for the next guests, and we waited just as patiently in the Observation Lounge for our transfer from Puerto Caldera to San Jose where we will be put up in the Camino Real Intercontinental Hotel for our 10 am flight tomorrow to Dallas.

At precisely 9:45 am the expedition staff leave their gazebo to load our luggage which had been sitting in the 90 degree F (-14 C, I believe) heat on the door. (The staff needed to be in the shade to be able to wave to each and every guests as they disembarked the ship in small groups from 8 am on). The luggage was warm to the touch, and the Godiva chocolates--15 days worth of evenings, you know--and we boarded a bus for a 2 1/2 hour "1 1/4 hour" drive over the coastal mountains to the outskirts of San Jose, the capital city of Costa Rica. A tour guide for the transfer bus who was briefed by the Costa Rican Chamber of Commerce, extolled the virtues of Socialism and Democracy. He told us that there was 4.7% unemployment, free first 2 hours of cell phones, free 200 KW-HR of electricity, and maybe he said 2 free brothel visits each month for all citizens, but I had become distracted by the wonderful inland scenery. The guide lost steam after a while and retired to the LOCKED drivers cab where he apparently continued his narrative to the driver only since we made lots of apparently wrong turns and endless circles past beautiful homes behind chain link fences with barbed wire on the top. No doubt the first 100 feet of which is supplied free each month by the government.

We arrived at the very imposing Intercontinental, checked out the gigantic shopping mall across the street, and then settled in for a couple of Imperial cervazas and a typically Costa Rican meal of sushi, teryaki, and tempora at one of the hotel's restaurants.

Wednesday, 7 October 2009 - Boulder, CO

Flights home went on time (except for American Airlines posting a one hour delay for about one hour and then rescinding it and leaving Dallas on schedule).

Super but exhausting cruise with my trying to do both Silversea and expedition activities (i.e., eating fine meals, drinking fine booze, and then having to ride Zodiacs and get muddy). Oh well, someone has to do it. Looking forward to Sydney to Hong Kong via Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam in January. Stay tuned.

MB 9 Oct 09

The Walk Not Taken But Monkeys Later

Monday, 5 October 2009 - Quepos, Costa Rica

The planned "expedition" for the morning was another walk in a rainforest. Lots of people signed up a few days ago but after the "moderate hike in the rainforest" switched to the afternoon Mangrove Boat Ride. (What a mangrove boat is, I do not know).

We took a now familiar theme park like Costa Rican ecotourism small boat through the mangroves where a very enthusiastic docent pointed out the various abundant wildlife. Very enthusiastic I say as he described every snail, lizard, bird, or tree for heaven's sake as "beautiful." First he pointed out small crabs, then familiar birds, then "very rare" sightings of (beautiful) birds and snakes, and then he said as we approached the end of the 2 hour tour was that we lacked seeing was monkeys. Oh horrors. But sure enough, just as Disney would have done it, as we approached the dock at the parking lot there was a troupe of capulin monkeys all over the trees on both sides of the river, doing monkey things. The guide was besides himself about this "unusual event", as he said, until we noticed the cages and food supplies put in that spot to encourage the monkeys to remain in the very area. Even the not working guides were standing on the dock pointing at the more or less tame monkeys who were not going away from their human generated food supplies. Costa Rica, except for the "moderate hike" is show business, but nice I suppose, but it's easy to worry about the condos and retired North American folks who will crowd the wildlife into smaller and smaller true theme parks.

For all it's worth, I did think that the the Emberra village in Panama was legitimate, but with a government school and some telecommunications they were not quite as wild as they appeared to us. The loin cloths were brand new as was the paint tattoos, no doubt donned (and partially discarded) for our visit. I suspect a lot of western garb would have been visible on a normal day, and as they become more and more of an "attraction" for eco-tourists.

A Very Wet National Park

Sunday, 4 October 2009 - Corcovado National Park, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica

A 6 am breakfast for reasons unclear gave us ample time to prepare for the ever popular wet Zodiac landing on a beach to access the tropical rainforest national park in a huge, really huge, conservation area. We were offered either a short easy hike, a longer moderate hike, or not quite as long "let's cut this very wet, slippery, dangerous, steep, and scary longer moderate hike short" hike. We chose option three and had a wonderful time. Nobody got hurt, but some people got very muddy. Of course, it's a rain forest for heaven's sake. (That's a bat in the leaf, by the way.)

We safely returned to the ship at noon and watched a baby and two adult orca's frolic and squirt. We have just anchored off a coral reef where "the drifting Zodiac" (clearly the name of a pub in South London) will provide a platform for the snorkelers. We have chosen the margarita option.

A Most Unaccessible Orchid Garden

Saturday, 3 October 2009 - Casa Oquideas, Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica

 

A couple from New Hampshire started the Casa Oquideas 25 years ago. They located it on the magnificent Golfo Dulce on the Pacific Coast of Southern Costa Rica. The Prince Albert II carefully navigated to the site and immediately made a 180 to go to the place 8 miles away that the couple moved to a few years later. The Captain didn't make any more announcements about our location for the rest of the day.

 

As garden has no boat landing we made a "wet landing" in the Zodiac. The reef walker shoes became our very soggy hiking shoes as the Casa Oquideas site is many hectares (equaling many more acres in a quirk of science). I took pictures of lots of, uh, flowers and stuff.

 

We had dinner with the Staff Captain, a delightful Ukrainian who speaks a few English words very well. The Puilly Fume went well with the Swordfish with capers.

Overnight sailing 2 Oct 2009

On a Desert Island with 5 Advanced Degreed Experts

Friday, 2 October 2009 - Granito de Oro off Isla de Coiba, Panama

Just spent a number of hours on a half acre island off Panama. We
looked at hundreds of hermit crabs, snorkeled, walked on the beach
(for the 50 feet of it since it covered just half of the island
around), and came back to the ship at 1:30, just before the dining
room closed for lunch. (The beef short ribs went well with the iced
tea or was it a crisp white wine, a food fashion risk.) Most of the
other 49 guests went on a hike in the mud with the bird guy while we
snorkeled. So we had a marine biologist assigned just to me, an
anthropologist to act as life guard, and the assistant cruise director
running a "rescue" Zodiac, just in case--JUST FOR TWO OF US. Oh, the
way of the traveler is so, so difficult.

No pix for this stop. Still taking sand out of my swim shorts. Got
yesterday's shoes back after calling the Reception Desk and just
having to say, "The butler took our shoes." She started laughing very
loudly and asked, "I bet you want them back. I'll call him and make
your request." I'm glad I didn't tell him to jump over the railing.
Then we wouldn't have ever gotten the shoes back.

Whoops, tea time. Gotta go. Ciao.

PS. The Captain came with us on the Zodiac to the tiny island. We
paddled a plastic imitation Kayak, but tried to look very regal. Then
the three Chinese laundry men appeared for probably their first R&R
since Greenland. They each sat in other plastic kayaks which were
sitting on the sand but didn't go into the water. Then they build a
sand mound and put a sea shell (without crab) on the top of it. Boy,
these guys know how to party. Now, our laundry will be late. Oh well.

Embera Village Trek

Thursday 1 October 2009 - Darien Jungle, Panama

Prince Albert II anchored 3 miles from the mouth of the Mogue River. A very rare Oil Bird was sitting on the anchor chain, no doubt mistaking the anchor locker for a cave. What a start of the day! We Zodiac'ed across the bay and then into the jungle for an additional 5 miles to the Embera Village. Some of us seemed to enjoy the long Zodiac ride. The Embera's live throughout Panama and into Colombia in their traditional ways, really traditional ways. This village is one of the most accessible, meaning that many of the passengers had to get out of the boats to pull the Zodiacs over sandbars since the tide was a couple of hours from cresting and the mud on the trail wasn't more than knee deep. We then walked about a mile along the mud track accompanied by the native children who were assigned to us. I'm sure they felt like the folks who entered the space ship by Devil's Tower.

The village was clean, well organized, had a government school, and a curious telecommunications facility, but life there is otherwise untouched by the modern world. Dress is, uh, appropriate for living in 95 degrees F/95% humidity all the time, and paint tattooing is the only garments except for brightly colored loin cloths purchased from the proceeds of village grown fruit and an occasional fish. Our ship's Captain even came along--driving one of the Zodiacs no less with his wife and looked appropriately out of place but seemed to enjoy himself.

This visit was something that can not be described. Enjoy the pictures. The trip back was faster with the river current with us but wetter with the sky opening up. I suppose that have a policy of "if you don't have children, you will be assigned a couple of ours" or perhaps they were just afraid we needed escorts to find out way out. At any rate, our dress was not nearly as appropriate as that of the locals. I looked all over for loin cloths, but found they had nothing in a 43 regular with pleats. We washed off the mud on our clothes, our butler took our shoes (so far not returned) to removed the mud further, and the beef tenderloin was super with the Chilean Merlot.