Paradise found

After my fun little adventure in Puerto Viejo, I didn't really take any other weekend trips out of Heredia but spent most of my free time with my family or on short trips, such as to San Jose. However by the time last weeks' weekend rolled around I was getting a little Heredia claustrophobic and seriously needing a get-away; that being said I decided to join some IFSA friends in a trip to Uvita.

Since my first hostel experience was the "lovely" Rockin' J's, I have to say I was a bit apprehensive upon our arrival at the Toucan. However, this worry was short-lived as it was an amazing hostel; clean, hot water, and coffee all day = hostel paradise.

We spent most of that Friday traveling (6-hour bus ride) so we weren't up for much once we got there. Luckily there was a waterfall within a 15-20 minute walking distance, so after putting our stuff down we went to go check it out. Right as we start to head down the stairs to reach the waterfall we hear this loud noise that seriously sounded like something out of a horror film. It was more than just a little creepy. Thankfully the experience got better; down at the bottom there was a waterfall that led to a bunch of different pools as it went down the side of the mountain. They were fun to swim in, though at some points it was less swimming and more the force of the water pushing you in certain directions :P On the way back I was glad we were in swimsuits because like Costa Rican weather at this time of the year it poured our whole walk back. This made us very happy for the free coffee at the Toucan.

Saturday we took a tour, the beginning of which was whale and dolphin watching. I had done whale watching on Cape Cod before so for me this wasn't all too exciting, especially as it was just how I remembered, really slow with not much to see. The dolphin watching was really fun though; at one point there was a whole school right next to our boat!

After this we swung by some caves that the ocean had carved out which were really pretty and then headed to a shallow area for some snorkeling. I had never done snorkeling before, but have decided that's definitely a new love of mine. I didn't see much coral, but there were some really cool fish and I finally got to feel like I was really in Central America.

After our tour the boat dropped us off and a great spot on the beach. By the far the best beach that I have been to in Costa Rica. Even better than Playa Hermosa, which was also gorgeous. However this one was like looking at a 3D postcard: blue skies all day, soft sand, crystal-clear warm water... just absolutely perfect. We stayed there all day so that we could see the sunset. I stayed in the water pretty much the entire time because honestly, at that beach it was near impossible for me to leave it :)

The only downside to that weekend was the worst sunburn that I think I have ever gotten. The walk back to the hostel was absolutely painful. However, I had so much fun I would definitely recommend it to anyone, though sun-screen application every half an hour is definitely a must.