Montezuma, Costa Rica January, 2007

After our late arrival we slept in a bit (the howler monkeys were not close enough to wake us up too early). We had breakfast in the Ylang Ylang restaurant (fresh fruit, gallo pinto and French toast), "sauced up" (put on sunscreen, Robert's tropical sauce) and went to see what all the Kersploooosh sounds were about.

	It took a little coaxing the first day to get Robert interested in getting wet. By the time we left the beach he was ready to take on any of the waves and water he saw (or so he thought -- we're still working on swimming; now he needs to watched very closely).
But from the first day at the beach, he really liked making foot prints. (You may notice that as we relaxed more over the week shoes become more and more optional.) Interesting trivia: note the shadows. Because Montezuma in on the tip of a peninsula forming the Gulf of Nicoya, it gets Pacific ocean sunrises rather than sunsets.

	While our first introduction to wildlife was the French Toast bird (more on that later), our second sighting was all the pelicans who came by the beach to snack throughout the day.
Ylang Ylang is about a 10 minute walk down the beach from Montezuma proper. There is a small beach right in front of the cabins guarded by two rocky outcroppings on either side. While the waves did not look too big, watching them break on the rocks convinced us that the ferry rather than the small speed boat really was the right way to go.
	After our saltwater fix, we decided to try out the pool. The water was cooler than the ocean but it didn't' take too much coaxing to get Robert into the pool. He didn't like the life jacket we brought for him, preferring instead a Speedo vest generously loaned by Robert's new beach friend Lucy. Sarah also picked up an inflatable ring that was a fair substitute, but required closer supervision.
After that wet morning, we headed to the restaurant for lunch and then to find a quiet place for a nap. We changed our reservations at the last minute so we spent the first night in one Dome then moved to what we called our "Dome Home" for the rest of our beach stay. The move from one to the other happened around nap time so napped in the beach hammocks. Note Sarah's first foot photo of the trip below -- a triple footer.

	After the very long travel day previously and all the water play, Robert really needed his nap.
After a long nap, we moved into our dome home, played in the water a bit more, had a nice dinner and went to bed early. The next day we played in the pool and on the beach, walked into Montezuma proper, got a snack at the Sano Banano restaurant. (Run by the same folks as Ylang Ylang -- the same owners from my first trip when I stayed at what was then a much less fancy cabin without the pool, restaurant and attentive staff.)
	We walked out the far side of town to peek at the river. It was too late to get to the big waterfall, but the small one was still fun. Robert enjoyed his first jungle trek.

We kept running into Lucy and her family at the restaurant and pool. She and Robert got along well and tended to float between our two tables depending on who's toys seemed most interesting at the time.
	On our outing to Montezuma the 14^th, we discovered the playground in the middle of the block across the street from Sano Banano. Robert enjoyed the slides and swings and we all took a turn on the teeter totter.


After playing at the beach in downtown Montezuma (much smaller waves, but much more crowded and not as pristine), we stopped back at the playground on our way back to our dome home.

	After all that playing and beach walking, it was time for a dip in the pool... Note the borrowed swim vest.

While we were changing so many things (warm weather, no work, no daycare, no crib, lots of pool and beach time, etc.) we did try to keep up some routines: Robert is starting to get the hang of brushing his teeth. The next day I decided to take a few photos of the various pretty flowers all over the Ylang Ylang property. It really is a lovely setting and they clearly spend some time and effort keeping it up.


	On my walk around grounds I ran into a little bit of the harvest (below). They were picking water apples (AKA wax apples) from this tree next to the path across from the restaurant.


I also ran into this Iguana on the beach in the shade in front of the restaurant. Then I heard the monkeys in the trees. These are white faced (I've also heard them called squirrel) monkeys. We saw a lot of them but often when I was without my camera. When I heard them this time, I walked back into the forest just a bit in order to get pretty close. They did not seem to mind.




	As you can see above, they really blend into the shadows very well. Since these guys don't make noise most of the time, I discovered the trick was to listen for the tree branches shaking -- much like they do in the wind, but when there's not much wind it may be a monkey jumping from tree to tree. I continued my stroll around the grounds and saw this agoudi (below) not realizing that....

... Those very same monkeys had been terrorizing Robert as he snacked on the porch at our dome home. While they don't make much noise, the white faced guys take much more interest in people than the howlers. Our dome home was under the traffic pattern of their daily trip up and down the beach. This afternoon, Robert happened to be eating animal crackers on the porch when they came by. They decided they really wanted animal crackers.
	Sarah says she heard a shriek from Robert and stepped onto the porch to see one on the roof staring intently at Robert. That was not too bad, but when they climbed onto the rope railing, she and Robert retreated (with the animal crackers). Watching them look over our drying line, Sarah was reminded too forcefully of a DVD we watched not too long ago about crazed monkeys spreading some killer disease. These were just normally curious guys a little too used to the humans they share the beach with. We didn't have Robert's sun hat tied up at that point, so it went off with the monkeys. I think it was fair trade for the close encounter, but I'm not sure Robert agrees.
The next morning, while we were getting our act together for breakfast, it was the howlers who were crossing overhead. They paid us much less attention and were happy to dine in the trees around us. They still sound to me like lions roaring and it still surprised me to see how small they are compared to the sound they make.
	Fifteen years ago, in almost the exact same spot, I was awakened one morning by the howl and really had to work hard to convince myself that there would not be any animals around Montezuma that would pose a real threat. Later that day, I ran into Patricia, one of the Sano Banano (and now Ylang Ylang) owners and she explained that I'd heard the howlers. I don't know if these photos are of the same guys or their kids, but I'm sure some of the trees are the same.
Our dome home did not seem to suffer from the attack of the monkeys. And we checked in on the pelican population on our walk into Montezuma.
	This time we left early enough to get up the river to the big waterfall. Apparently there has been a landslide and it's no longer safe to dive in -- not that I ever did that before. We took turns watching Robert and swimming in the pool, which was very refreshing after the walk along the beach and the hike along the river.



While Robert didn't get to swim in the big pool -- we didn't think to bring his floaty ring -- he did enjoy his jungle hike in the river.
	We got back in time for the afternoon monkey migration; however, without animal crackers they passed by with just a quick glance. After Robert getting a little tired on our walk, we could really relate to the mommy monkey carrying the baby on her back.




	After that foot photo opportunity, it was time for a nap.
Then a refreshing iced tea (blended not stirred -- for some reason, Robert liked to watch drink blending at the bar) with dinner. Robert really liked the little glass and straw his new friend at the bar used for his iced tea. Then it was off to bed.
	If you look across the table you'll see the "French Toast" bird. The first breakfast we had at Ylang Ylang, this guy (or someone just like him) snatched a piece of French toast from under our noises. After that, we were on the lookout. After breakfast, we watched the morning commute of the howlers before heading to the pool. With their all black bodies, the howler monkeys also blend well into the shadows in the trees.


Did I mention that Robert had a good time at the pool? Both in the borrowed vest and his ring.


	This time the white faced monkeys came by the pool to see what the humans were up to (and if there was any cool stuff they needed). Robert was still a little monkey-shy. Lucy felt pretty ho-hum about the monkeys by now.



The next day, we battled back the "French Toast" bird, took a couple group pictures and headed off on the next round of adventures. We walked into Montezuma, took a cab to Mal Pais (which Sarah thought was very aptly named) and picked up our rental car. That was in preparation for our departure from the beach the 19^th.

	On our way back with the rental car, we drove by Cabo Blanco -- the park at the very tip of the peninsula. We took a quick walk around, seeing this spider.

Robert was very good at pointing out that according to the map we were in Costa Rica.
	We noticed this small Montessori school on the road between Montezuma and Cabo Blanco.
With the rental car secured and parked in town. We walked back to Ylang Ylang for our final night at the beach.

	After a last inspection of the tidal pool (while the waved crashed on the rocks), we showered, had dinner and went to bed. The next day, we said goodbye to our dome home, the monkeys and this friendly iguana. Ylang Ylang's Land Rover took us (and our stuff) across the beach to Montezuma and we drove up to Arenal. If you are interested, there are a few more Montezuma photos.

Costa Rica 2007 Introduction Map (courtesy of Google) Montezuma: beaches and monkeys Arenal: butterflies and volcanoes Monteverde: cloud forests and butterflies Heredia: wrapping up Centro Panamericano de Idiomas Photos only (for those who don't want the story) Other parts of the site: Personal section Other vacations Robert's section