Tuesday, Jan 29 - Day 9 of holiday and Day 7 on board Island Princess

Puntarenus - Costa Rica

The morning started a little differently as we had finally made it to Coata Rica.  We were docked in Puntarenus as small coastal town with a long beach that ran the full length of the town.  We had a small breakfast  upstairs in the Horizon before going on an early tour that allowed up to see a bit of the countryside by coach, see a bit of the jungle area by small boat and then to spend some time in a Bird Sanctuary which is privately funded to restore sick and wounded bird to strength so they can be returned to their natural habitat.

Peace

Alligator being disturbed and returning to the water

We met on the dock at 7:20 am and boarded the coach.  Veronique was our tour guide and she was a spunky 39 year old native of the area who lives in San Jose now.  The bus was filled with a good cross section of the population of the ship.  It was a group of about 50 people.  We drove for a short period when we were ushered past a small church to a flimsy dock.  The security claim was that only 5 people were permitted on the ramp at one time.  We boarded a small craft that was only large enough for our group.  The twin 150 hp Yamahas were put into action as we trolled the shoreline with the guide pointing out rare birds and of course the ever present alligators basking in the sun on the shore.  We found our first one but it slithered into the water too fast for us to see it.  Finally we found one that looked like it was stuffed until it decided we were too close and he slithered into the water also.  We did see a couple of others as we drove through the narrow waterways along with a large snake, termite nests and a variety of birds such as osprey, blue herons, snipes and a spoon billed shrimp coloured, shrimp fishing bird whose name escapes me.  The 50 minute boat ride was entertaining and we did manage to see some wildlife.

Spider Monkey

Free Macaw

Once back on the bus we drove through the countryside on a paved and then a dirt road to the bird sanctuary.  I dozed during that ride.  Once at the sanctuary we disembarked the coach and were guided through the sanctuary.  We saw many different types of parrots and indigenous birds as well as some that were from Brazil and other countries that had been taken from the black market for exotic birds.  Some of the birds would never return to their natural environment but many of the Macaws would be treated and returned to the wild.  There were some photo ops but it was hard to see these beautiful birds in cages.  We were guided by Veronique who proved to be very knowledgeable about the sanctuary and its inhabitants.  We also enjoyed some fresh fruit and water half way through that was really appreciated in the 30+ humid environment.  We had water melon, mango and pineapple along with fresh bananas.  Nice treat.

The drive back to the ship was pretty quiet and we arrived as planned to be deposited right at the ship.  We thanked our tour guide and driver and headed to clean up in our stateroom.  That was followed by a quick lunch in the Horizon and a walk down the pier to the flea market that was set up along the beach.  We walked the length of the market and checked out some things but generally were not impressed with the churned out souvenir type items.  We did buy some fresh coffee from a Canadian guy who had been in Puntarenus for the last 40 years.  Most of the stalls had variations on the same themes and it only made me think that some guy was pulling this stuff together and distributing it through sellers who all got their product from his warehouse.  Although the environment was not pleasant the people were very warm and inviting when you stopped to talk to them.  I purchased some small tacky items from a very charming older woman and Freddi picked up a nice wooden box for" somewhere".  We wandered back to the ship where we examined a Cunard lines ship called Queen Elizabeth.  It had birthed right next to ours and our respective staterooms were like being in West Vancouver high rise apartments.  This ship had departed from South Hampton, gone through the canal and was on its way to Thailand , India and Africa before returning to South Hampton.  It is one of the round the world cruises that take 3 months.  It was a very pretty deep grey ship.

Two for the day

I worked on my log for a while and Freddi read and did a laundry as we killed some time before we resorted to a lounge chair in the indoor pool.  The 30+ degree temperature and the humidity outside made the indoor pool a good choice.  After a little sleep and some reading we went back to the stateroom to watch our departure from the town.  It always amazes me how easily these huge ships maneuver in tight quarters. 

Once free of the dock and turned to point seaward we went to the dining room for dinner.  We joined two couples and had a nice evening chatting about travel, work worlds, distant cities and of course our meals.  It was a nice couple of hours and a quiet walk back to the stateroom for a sleep.