Up nice and early for breakfast after getting my stuff organised to move on. Hostel Playa 506 really is in a beautiful setting. Right out the front of the hostel is the beach. Waves gently crashing is a tranquil soundscape to chill to, but there is much more of this enticing country to experience.
I got information about where and when to catch the local bus to my next port of call, Cahuita, and waited well beyond the scheduled time. Just as I was about to give up and try hitching with three Aussie travellers I had met at the hostel, it slowly rumbled up. Clearly this bus was on Tico Time! We continued on into and out of Puerto Viajo and up to the tiny town of Cahuita. Lush, verdant countryside passed by as the bus stopped on a regular basis, picking up and dropping off locals. I chatted with the three Aussies who caught the bus with me, swapping travel stories.
In what seemed no time, we were in Cahuita. I looked where my hostel was and walked the couple of blocks. Secret Garden is a lovely little property located on the edge of the National Park and right in town. It is beautifully appointed and set amongst landscaped gardens. Unfortunately, the dorm room I was staying in wasn’t as salubrious, with five bunk beds crammed side by side with little space in between. Still, each bed had its own little fan, light and charging station so it was all that was really needed.
I had settled into doing some much needed washing when I got a message from Maria, my Chilean friend. She had moved up to Cahuita the day before and was staying at a nearby hotel. We met up and wandered to the beach at the National Park just up the road for a swim. It just so happened that the hotel at the edge of the National Park had two for one cocktails for AUD10 so I felt compelled to avail myself of a few after our swim.
It was then back to our respective lodgings where I met up with some other travellers from US, UK, Switzerland and the Netherlands. We chatted for a while before deciding drinking card games were in order and wandered up to one of the local supermarkets to buy beer. There may have been shenanigans and requests to keep the merriment down by management later in the evening, but no-one was kicked out and we eventually called it a night before anyone was. And so endeth my first night in Cahuita.
Wild Woman Wandering 