Costa Rica Archives - The Weekend Country Girl

The City of Tamarindo

March 24, 2014March 25, 2014 Karen

I have been down for the count. I mean seriously ill. I really don’t blame Costa Rica, I promise, but it has been a rough haul getting over my stomach infection. Well…getting toward getting better. Enough of that, I just wanted to let you know where I have been and why I did not finish showing you Tamarindo.

This picture is from James Kaiser. http://www.jameskaiser.com

It gives you a good idea what the city is like as it curves around the beach.

We stayed here:

This was our one trip out to a bar. The water was great there. The singer is an expat from Austin, Texas who sings a bluesy style of music. He was great.

Playa (beach) Tamarindo is beautiful, and the little city is located right up next to the sand. The city is a crazy quilt of little shops, restaurants and bars. The main street that runs parallel to the coast is paved and it is a very walkable little community. The sidewalks are sketchy, but drivers are conscientious.

It is surprisingly small. There are only 500 permanent residents with there being about 5000 in the city at the height of the season. The city is all about the beach during the day. Surfing, excursions and sun rule the daylight. At night, the restaurants and bars get hoppin’.

The food is good. There is a small food court with Tico Tacos we really liked,

Longboard’s serves fried plantains, fried yucca, and fried sweet potatoes instead of French fries. The BBQ sandwiches were really good.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g309253-d1847240-Reviews-LongBoards_BBQ-Tamarindo_Province_of_Guanacaste.html

My favorite was Patagonia. Argentinian food. Yummy. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g309253-d3781345-Reviews-Patagonia_Argentinian_Grill_Restaurant-Tamarindo_Province_of_Guanacaste.html

The cost at the restaurants is comparable to the US and all the restaurants we visited took US dollars. Here is the Trip Advisor’s list of best restaurants.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g309253-Tamarindo_Province_of_Guanacaste.html

My advice is go to the packed restaurants unless you have a tougher stomach than me. I am almost certain I got sick at a restaurant that did not have many customers. Crowded restaurants sell a lot of food and don’t have stuff sitting around. The expatriate community will tell you where to go. We found out the next day from some expats they did not recommend the restaurant because it had a new owner and was not dong well. Too little, too late.

The hotels and condos are all walking distance from the city center. We only rented a cab one day to take us out to Playa Grande. Cabs are not cheap and you are lucky if you find one with cold air conditioner. The ride from the airport to Tamarindo is about $25.00 each. You have to reserve your ride from the airport to the beach in advance or it is crazy expensive. If you have a large group (4+), check into getting a car it is about $85.00.

We loved our visit and can understand why Hubby’s brother and Sister in Law fell in love with the place and bought a home there.

Pura Vida.
Karen

Blogging, Costa Rica, Photography

Tamarindo Costa Rica Excursions

March 19, 2014 Karen

Here are photos from our excursions. My tummy trouble stopped me from visiting the volcano, but my Hubby took pictures for me.

First Into the Estuary.
We took a trip up the river that flows through the area and into the sea by boat. Our guide, Pony, did not speak English. I got to practice my Spanish. It made me laugh to follow Pony through the mangroves to see the Howler monkeys. He was barefoot though the rocky soil but had a pink High School Musical backpack.

We saw birds, monkeys, and fish. Our guide was shocked we did not see any crocodiles. I guess they needed beauty sleep. We were first on the river that morning. The other boats came up the river as we were going back.

http://www.seabirdsailingexcursions.com/
We went snorkeling, ate great food cooked on board, and toasted the sunset on this beautiful boat. It is a great deal for those who want to see the beautiful rocky seashore, get out on the ocean and snorkel. I will be honest and tell you the snorkeling was hard work. I was spoiled in Hawaii but it was fun to see the fish. They have promised to post pictures from our trip but not up yet.

http://www.villascostarica.com/tamarindo-turtle-nesting-tours.html

No photos of the turtles. It was dark. I love the ecoturism in the area. They take good care of their turtles because they know that people come to Tamarindo just to see them.

Finally,

Here are Hubby’s photos of the volcano trip. I will admit to being a little jealous.

My students would be proud. #noediting

Costa Rica, family

Tamarindo Beaches

March 15, 2014 Karen

I promise not to bore you to death with our trip to Costa Rica. I plan on showing you the beaches, the city and the excursions we took. Three posts will be my limit and not all at once. I promise.

First, the beaches are unbelievable. The sky is the most amazing color, the water is clear, I like low tide the best, because you can see the shells that watch up. Boats are always anchored just off shore. We took one of the small boats out to a catamaran to go on a sunset tour and snorkeling trip. Enjoy.