BEHOLD!! A story SO GREAT and SO EPIC we couldn't even think of a title... (Part One)

Once upon a time there were three girls ready for an adventure, three stunningly gorgeous girls. Katie the main driver and main photographer,  Kirby the navigator in the backseat and shell collector extraordinaire, and Shuli our fearless negotiator and yogini master. The best way to start any adventure is to choose a mode of travel. Would it be horse? Bike? Cart and oxen? No, not this time. This time the three brave, beautiful, young girls decided upon a car. Not just any car but a fabulous low budget Toyota Yaris conveniently picked up at their local Alamo-Rent-A-Car. Once the car was stuffed with all the necessary luggage, snacks, and sleeping gear they were on their way. 

Although they had no strapping male to accompany them along their journey, what they did have was a map. Not just any map, but a map that would guide them to the beach of colored rocks in Montezuma on the Nicoya Peninsula. 

Their journey started out just like any other road trip. Good music pumping through the speakers, yummy snacks being passed around, and laughs being shared. Although the car had a peculiar smell from past renters possibly having a car full of wet dogs who maybe rolled around in a mold patch, the girls enjoyed the freedom of the open road and let the wind blow through their hair and air out the car. 

They had a little checklist that provided many handy tips on how to stay safe on the foreign roads. One of the tips included not driving at night so although the girls were excited to be on their way, they had gotten a later start than planned and needed to find a place to stay for the night as the sun was setting. Shuli had the bright idea of asking a bar along the road if there was a good place to pop out their tent and sleep near by. The family that owned the bar was so nice and accommodating they offered the floor right there to the side of their bar! Since the day was rapidly coming to a close and the girls were very sleepy, the concrete floor under the shelter of the bars roof didn’t look so bad. They even had bathrooms and a shower available for them to use. While Shuli quickly regretted this choice of rest area, Katie and Kirby popped out the tent and found a nice patch of concrete close to the lovely lagoon in the back of the bar. After quick cold showers the girls were ready to settle in for the night. Poor Shuli ended up not having the best nights sleep for a variety of reasons. Partly because of the crack in the concrete underneath her very thin sleeping bag, also because she had a sneaking suspicion that the bar guests may be peeking through the roof of the tent to catch a glimpse of the Gringas sleeping, but mostly the fear of a crocodile slipping up from the lagoon and taking a bite out of the tent is what kept Shuli awake most of the night while Katie and Kirby slept like little angels beside her. 

The girls tent in the bar! 

After surviving their night in the bar and laughing about what a good story it would be to tell to their friends later, the girls packed up their gear, climbed back into their Yaris and hit the road. A quick breakfast of corn flakes in a field was the first order of business and then they were off. With all possibilities open to them they decided to take the long way around the Nicoya Peninsula to enjoy all the sights along the way. Little did they know.... the roads of Costa Rica had other plans for them! The drive started out just fine, smooth clear roads, no obstacles in sight. It wasn’t until passing the dock at Playa Naranjo did the flat asphalt road turn into a bumpy dirt road. The girls were excited at the untamed beauty that awaited them down these fantastic adventure roads. 

The view at Playa Naranjo Dock

Nothing could stop our fearless driver Katie. She plowed on, avoiding pot holes, dodging rocks, and hugging turns. Once she was tired and wanted a break, Shuli took over and it was good timing for our tank driver to be behind the wheel. The hundreds of hours she spent in the Israeli Army as a student and then an instructor of maneuvering large scale combat vehicles were the perfect preparation for what lay before the girls. A puddle the size of a lake spread fully across the road with its depths unknown. Go around it? No, they must go through it! Kirby put on her boots and investigated the depth of the enormous puddle in order to report back a plan of action to the driving Captains. After much consideration and a few deep breaths the girls forged through, creating a big splash and lots of laughs as they celebrated their victory of making it through the puddle of doom. 

Once through the puddle, nothing could stop the girls! They were on their way towards the beach and a few bumps and puddles could not get in their way! The drive was truly breathtaking with rolling mountains, billowing clouds, and countryside passing by. Passing through towns as they went the girls were so speedy on their adventure they soon caught up to a long line of cars stuck following behind a slow tractor. As the road widened cars began to pass each other left and right. It was every man for himself along this dirt road and the girls powered through like desert renegades, weaving their way through the free-for-all leaving the others in the dust. 

Stopping for a little break from the hot stinky car the girls pulled off at a nice looking open restaurant right by a bridge with a lovely river flowing underneath. The restaurant owner was very happy to see the girls and offered for them to use the facilities and informed them that the river was great for dipping in to cool off. The girls refreshed themselves in the river water and when they came back up to the restaurant to change the nice owner had fresh coconut pipas waiting for them to enjoy free of charge. Feeling invigorated from their hydrating stop the girls were back on the road again in no time!

The girls finally made it to their first destination, the beach at Montezuma. They found a great place to camp right on the beach and wasted no time breaking out the tent once more and setting up a cozy camp for three. While the campground seemed quite safe, the girls were still a little unsure since they were alone and had a rental car and some valuables. Always ready to find out the info, Katie ventured over to a couple of guys chilling on the beach to ask them about the security situation at the campground. These guys proceeded to say that they worked at the campground and that it would be $5 each for them to keep an eye on our stuff. Kirby called their bluff however, thinking it a bit suspicious that the random guys on the beach actually worked at the campground. Luckily, the girls did not fork over any of their dough and remained safe in their tent through the night. It was the first time the girls had encountered any sort of meanness or  sneakiness among the Costaricans. It was a good wake up call and a worthy lesson in learning that not every person can be trusted. 

The next day the girls awoke to many birds flying around their tent, squawking and welcoming the sun. They headed to a nearby cafe to enjoy some coffee and breakfast at a bargain price of course! Many animals came to greet the girls at the cafe including a opossum, an iguana, and more birds. Turns out the little cafe was the critters top choice for breakfast as well since the kitchen offered up some yummy treats for all. 

 After their tummies were full and their skin was sun-blocked they headed out to find the beach with the colored stones. Many people spoke of a beach in Montezuma where a river meets the sea and many colored stones and shells can be found along the river bed. The girls hiked for a bit along the water letting the ocean mist kiss their cheeks. As the trail opened up to the beach the girls were so excited to hop into the water they quickly flew out of their clothes and went straight into the warm waves. Many times along their journey Shuli had expressed how unbelievable their experience was, questioning, “Is this real life?”. And yes. Yes it was. A beautiful perfect day. Perfect waves. Hot sand. And the best part of all a cool fresh water river to wash the sticky salty waves away when the three were done swimming. 

Kirby and Shuli soon turned their attention to the amazing rocks and shells mixed in the sand, forming collections of the most beautiful ones. Slowly their rock collecting turned competitive, each boasting that they had found the best shell or most uniquely colored rock. The two reached a truce deciding that since they each had their own eye and style for picking rocks that both were excellent collectors. Katie enjoyed taking in the scenery and setting up the perfect shot for a photo shoot. The Montezuma beach was the perfect setting. The girls leapt and jumped for joy at the natural beauty that surrounded them and Katie’s trusty Lumix snapped away taking the best possible pictures. 

Once their beach day was coming to a close it was time to return to camp and pack up all the gear and get back on the road. Although some of their plans had been thwarted by rain and bad road conditions along the peninsula, the girls had come up with a new plan to go back around the way they had come and get to the beaches of Nosara. Back on the road again the radio was pumping tunes and the girls were beat bopping along until they met a slowing in traffic due to some construction. When approached by the kindly gentleman holding the Stop sign, he began to speak fast Spanish, speaking of “la bomba”.

Not knowing what la bomba was the girls smiled and nodded, but slowly the three girls began to feel uneasy. The construction worker continued to gesture at the car and call his fellow workers over and speak in fast Spanish. Although Katie and Kirby were quite proficient in their Spanish speaking abilities they were unable to understand what the worker was trying to say to them. The nervousness in the car began to rise as the girls discussed what was happening. Should the girls roll up their windows? Does the worker wish them harm? Has their luck finally run out? What will become of our three heroines??