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Costa Rica, where the coffee comes from has been
rated as one of the most attractive retirement destinations in the
world. Sandwiched between Nicaragua and Panama, it has a low cost
of living and a stable government.
A naturalist's heaven, it covers only 0.01 per cent of the world's
land surface, but provides 5 percent of the oxygen and 5 per cent
of all known species, from sloths and iguanas, to butterflies as
big as your hand. It also includes most of all existing habitats.
It's easy to understand why Stephen Spielberg chose Costa Rica to
film Jurassic Park. You can hike through tropical forests, drift
through mangroves, swim in the Pacific, cruise in the Caribbean,
windsurf and go white-water rafting. Hollywood stars such as Tom
Cruise, Don Johnson, Kevin Costner and Antonio Banderas love to
go deep sea fishing in the blue Pacific Waters.
The hotels, food and service are all excellent.
The difficulty is in selecting which areas to visit. I experienced
the Osa Peninsula in the far South which includes rain forest and
beautiful beaches, the Arenal Volcano in the North - one of the
most active volcanoes in the world - the Rio Negro in the far north
and the Pacific beaches of the North West.
Positives
Nature, Local Hospitality, Good Hotels, Food, Service.
Negatives
Travel light as internal flights have low baggage allowance. Phone
service not 100% throughout the country. Voracious sandflies known
as 'no-see-ums' on certain beaches at certain times of year - check
locally. Try sulphur powder or coconut oil to ward them off - no
mosquito repellent will work. 35,000 varieties of insects and counting
- check shoes and underclothes before dressing.
 Activities
Bird Watching, Turtle Watching, Hiking, Sailing, Cruising, Deep
Sea Fishing, Surfing, Windsurfing, White Water Rafting.
Best time to travel
October through May to avoid the rainy season.
Clothing
Light, non-synthetic for humidity in rain forests. Rainwear
with hood for the rain forests. A sweater for higher altitudes.
Light boots for walking. Hotels usually provide wellington boots
for jungle walks.
Food
Tropical fruits, huevos rancheros (eggs with black beans and
rice), gazpacho, tacos, grilled fish.
Shopping
Salsa music. Rain forest remedies for headaches, slimming or any
other ailmen
Article first published
in Harpers and Queen October 1997
At 7,600 feet we encountered an air current going in the right
direction -- toward the rain forest. Once over the trees we dropped
to a mere 100 feet, brushing through the lush green canopy, past
brilliantly coloured toucans and parrots; gazing at families of
Howler Monkeys; peering at rootless 'air' plants; swishing past
swathes of Spanish moss hanging from the teak branches; and identifying
medicine trees such as balsam and calamine/camphor.
All too soon we were bumping back to earth in a
ploughed field - our flying machine stripped back to basics: a silk
bag, two gas tanks and a wicker basket. At dusk we walked through
the forest. Shy, white-faced monkeys bobbed in and out of the foliage,
hummingbirds flitted past orchids and helaconias, while an army
of leaf cutter ants bearing neatly cropped leaves crossed our path.
We emerged from the dense greenery out onto the lava flow, a moonscape
of barren rock left by the volcano's eruption in 1968 - when two
villages were wiped out. Amidst the lumpy, ashen rocks, a handful
of tiny ferns were just beginning to take root - thirty years on.
Overhead the comet Hale Bopp streaked across the sky and flashes
of summer lightning added to the eerie sense of primeval forces.
Later, at the base of the volcano, we soaked in
the steaming sulphur springs (a beneficial healing treatment for
the body). In the darkness we watched as burning rocks the size
of houses tumbled down the hillside as the volcano spewed molten
lava.
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