Al: It All Comes Down To Choices (My Magical Weekend Part 2)

Sometimes it takes returning to the scene of the crime to make writers block go away. This weekend I returned to Drake Bay. Drake Bay and Isla de Cano are probably the most beautiful places I could imagine. As I said before, pictures don’t do them justice.

Everything in life boils down to the choices we make. The choice to be happy, the choice to get up every day, etc. I’ve been thinking about choices recently, how every choices we make dictates how our lives play out. Sometimes we make conscious choices that we know we will feel the effect of for years to come (ie I’m going to buy a one way ticket to Costa Rica). Other times we don’t realize we are making a choice until it is done. But every choice we make has a lasting effect, even if we don’t realize it. What if I hadn’t done x or I had done y? How would my life be different? The choice I made on that Monday morning was stupid. I don’t know whether I was so intoxicated by my surroundings or my mind was simply elsewhere but whatever was going on, I forgot to think clearly. So I guess it is time to pick up where I left off.

The second morning I woke up at 6. The night before had poured rain. Twice I woke up because it was raining so hard; I just laid in the dark listening to the sounds of rain, thunder, waves, and jungle. When I got up I was surprised by how rested I felt. I took my camera out and got some nice pictures of the beach and the rocks. I got some pictures of the ocean and the jungle. As I was coming in, everyone else decided to go take pictures. I went back out…why?!?! Why did I go back out? Why did I make that choice? I already had all of the pictures I wanted.

About two minutes before I ended up in the ocean

I decided to go back out to the rocks, even though the tide was coming in. After taking some of the best pictures I had gotten from the whole trip, I noticed that the tide was coming in really fast. I needed to head in. The ocean was cutting me off from the beach. I decided to try to climb on the edge of the rocks where the waves were hitting the lightest. As a wave went back out into the ocean, I tucked my camera into my shirt so it wouldn’t get wet and made a run for it. The second my foot hit the rocks I knew my balance was off. Before I could get a better grip on the rocks a huge wave smashed into my back throwing me into the rocks in front of me. I tried to get a grip on the rocks with my hands, but they were too slippery. As the wave went out, it took me with it. My first world brain couldn’t wrap itself around the severity of the problem. All I could think was “shit, my camera”. I ripped it off my neck and held it above the water as another wave caught me and pulled me back into the rocks. I finally got close enough to the rocks to hand someone my camera, just in time for the waves to pull me back out into the ocean. At this point my survival instincts finally kicked in. I took a deep breath and then let the water throw me around for a minute. As soon as it calmed down I bolted for the shore. Luckily, I had on long pants and long sleeves, so with the exception of a few scrapes, a bruised ego, and a ruined camera, I was ok.

At the time, I just sucked it up and moved on with my day. I dried out my camera as best I could. I removed the memory card and battery. Nothing worked. When I got home I took it all to a repair shop. The guy looked at it and said there was no fixing anything. Fortunately, I had downloaded everything earlier that week, so I only lost the weekends pictures.

After my ocean incident, we cooked breakfast at the ranger station. Then we loaded ourselves in a boat and traveled to another ranger station. This station is actually at the entrance to Corcovado National Park. It was beautiful and they showed us around. It is slightly bigger than the station on Isla de Cano.

After that we headed home. I had a very interesting afternoon of mixed emotions. I decided that afternoon that I needed to be more focused. I’d been trying to live in the moment every day since I arrived in Costa Rica, but I hadn’t always succeed. So at this point I made a choice to not only appreciate everything, but to be present, aware, and to fully immerse myself in my surroundings.

The next week I spent caring for dogs and booking all of my travels. I went surfing for the first time. I didn't want to be (even more) scared of the ocean, so I decided to get back in as soon as possible. I also went hiking to waterfalls in Matapalo. I've been having so many great adventures on the Osa Peninsula that I decided to stay in Puerto Jimenez for two more weeks. There is something about this place. It has my heart. As I keep telling my friends here, they aren’t done with me yet! I’ll be back!

My return to Drake Bay this past week was my biggest (Mis)Adventure so far. I will be posting more about that in the coming days, but as a little preview: it involves evil monkeys, the worst sunburn I've ever had, and stumbling on a potential dog fighting ring (no joke)!

Until then, 

Love you!

-Al

Al: Magic Must Exist (My Magical Weekend Part 1)

5/24/15

This weekend I traveled to the majestic Isla de Cano. I stepped out of reality and into a world where magic exists. A world where Jack Sparrow roams the seas, where Tinkerbell flies while the lost boys play, and a t-rex roars before stepping out from the fog in the trees; a world so magical I can’t believe it exists outside of novels and movies.

That may be a bit dramatic, but there really is no other way to explain the beauty that is Isla de Cano. I found my heaven on earth. I found the place where I can sit on a rock for an hour without moving. Where wind, water, and jungle truly become one. And it was only two short hours away!

Green Life volunteers offers a variety of volunteer projects all over the Osa Peninsula. They are currently adding a new park ranger project. We were going to check out the project, get some pictures, and figure out how to promote it. On Sunday morning, high off of Friday’s realization that I am in the right place (if this statement is confusing, you clearly haven't read my last post), I packed a small bag with a change of clothes, my camera, sunscreen, and bug spray and headed out.

The drive from Puerto Jimenez to Drake Bay took about an hour. We drove through some amazing small towns. We even drove THROUGH a river. You read that right, we drove not over, but through a river. Drake bay is stunning and I am planning to make it my first stop when I start backpacking, so for now I will skip over that and talk more about it later. At Drake we got into a small boat. The Island is about on hour off shore. It was foggy out and we couldn't even see it. There is something so surreal about being on a boat headed to a place you can’t even see. As we rode, the water began to clear. By the time we were half an hour out the water was so clear and blue that no picture could even do it justice.

You can see the ranger station where we stayed in this picture. 

We arrived at the ranger station around 2 p.m. Isla de Cano is a national park, mostly known for it's clear blue water, excellent snorkeling, and the best diving in Costa Rica. The ranger station is the only building on the island. In fact, the only way to stay the night on the island is to be a ranger or a volunteer. That is part of what made this experience so unique. We were literally getting to participate in something that very few people in this world can and will ever do! It is the kind of once in a lifetime experience that is so hard to describe. It is actually half of why I have been having so much trouble writing this, I want to fully be able to explain every amazing detail.

When we arrived, they showed us to our room. It was one large dorm room with a couple of bunk beds. They showed us the outdoor bathroom; I mean there was a toilet and there were technically walls, but they were mostly made of netting (using the bathroom in the jungle was actually oddly nice. Who knew an outdoor bathroom would be so high on my list of cool things from this trip?) And they showed us the full kitchen. Once we settled in, they showed us the solar panels and the hydroponic water system that they use for all of their water and energy. After that they made us a delicious typical Costa Rican lunch of rice, beans, and meat in a tangy spicy sauce.

After lunch I decided to go sit out on the rocks. I sat there for about an hour, as all five of my senses sprang to life. The smell of trees, plants, and beach blended together and tickled my nose. I could taste the salt from the ocean in the air. The wind whipped around me, pulling my hair in every direction so I had no choice but to tie it in a knot on top of my head. The rocks I was sitting on dug into my hands and legs, not in a painful way, but in a way that made me feel one with nature. I watched the birds fly around in trees so green I couldn’t believe my eyes. I turned the other direction and watched the majestic blue waves flow back and forth into the ocean around me, reaching the rocks and immediately creating an enormous explosion of water. But of all the senses, sound was the one that sent shivers up my spine. The wind roaring around me carrying the sounds of birds, frogs, and other jungle creatures. The occasional howler monkey would call out to their friends, who would respond in ever louder howls. Every few seconds as the waves would crash into the massive rocks, booming so loudly that even the loudest of jungle birds was momentarily silenced. When I closed my eyes, everything seemed perfect, magic, in place. I was able to forget everything going on in the world around me and just be at peace. It was exactly what I needed. And so I sat and I continued sitting, soaking up every sound, finding my bliss. At some point someone got a picture of me just sitting. For that I am very thankful. I will always have that to remember this moment.

Finding My Bliss

 In the afternoon we went on a hike to a lookout point then we went swimming in a gorgeous blue water. While we were swimming, the rangers took the boat outside of the no fishing zone and caught us a huge Red Snapper for dinner. We helped them make ceviche, fried fish, and rice and beans for dinner. I could not believe how fresh the fish was. It had literally been swimming a few hours earlier. Ceviche takes quite a while to makes, but these guys actually taught us some amazing tricks. All three rangers are very good cooks. They have to cook all of their meals and they really work well together, planning and executing their meals.

After dinner, there was a lightning storm. I sat in the upstairs hammock for what must have been hours, watching the lightning and listening to the sounds of the jungle at night. I even recorded about 15 minutes worth of jungle sounds so I could replay them later. At around 9 p.m. it started to rain. I was falling asleep in the hammock and decided to call it a night. I wouldn’t have minded sleeping outside, but I think I would have gotten a too cold in the rain.

The next morning we decided to go take more pictures of the island…I was being stupid and not paying close enough attention and that is when disaster struck…but I will save that for the next post, because I’d like to leave this post on a happy note and I’m not quite ready to go into that day yet…that day is the other reason I have been having trouble writing about my magnificent weekend, and so I have decided to separate the two days…so just be patient and I will fill you in on day two very soon! And so, I will leave you with one last goofy picture (it was a failed attempt at a panoramic picture). 

Until Later,

Love you!

-Al

P.S.- If two weeks to a month in this magic place sounds like something you would be interested in, just let me know. This volunteer program is nothing short of amazing. They are constantly looking for volunteers and I'd love to put anyone interested in touch with the right people. 

~Also, note that the pictures I am posting are not mine. They were all given to me by friends. more about that later~