THE DETAILS104 OCTOBER 2017 / TRAVELANDLEISUREASIA.COM
GETTING THERE
The most economical flight
itineraries from Southeast
Asia to Costa Rica require
two layovers, but if you can
fly out of Hong Kong or
Singapore via Los Angeles,
you can get to the capital,
San Jose, with just one stop.CUR R ENCY
Don't bother getting the
local currency, colones. U.S.
dollars are commonly used;
jus t be sure to br ing cr isp
bills of US$20 or smaller.HOTELS
Casa Chameleon Las
Catalinas An adults-only
boutique resort with 21
exquisitely designed private
villas. Each infinity pool has
an incomparable and highly
Instagrammable view. casa
chameleon hotels.com;
doubles from US$495.
Nayara Springs Bask in
your own mineral-water
plunge pool while looking up
at the majestic Arenal
Volcano at this romantic
property. You can also enjoy
the tropical flora and
fauna—including sloths—
and feast on local culinary
delights at Amor Loco, the
hotel’s fine-dining spot.
Arenal Volcano National
Park; nayarasprings.com;
villas from US$850.RESTAURANTS
Café y Macadamia Lago
Arenal Stop here on the
way to Arenal and pick up
delicious baked goods for
the remainder of the trip. Try
the banana-and-macadamia
muffins—made with nutsfrom the café’s own trees—
which pair splendidly with
the Costa Rican coffee.
Laguna de Arenal; fb.com/
cafey macadamia arenal.
Soda y Restaurante El
Estero Azul This shack on
the beach offers fresh
cooking and incredible views
of the Pacific Ocean
sunsets. Have the morning’s
catch alongside guacamole
with fresh shrimp. Playa
Flamingo; mains US$6–$13.
Surfbox A stylish beach-
adjacent breakfast and
lunch spot that offers açai
bowls, avocado toast and
Montreal-style bagels—a
nod to the owner’s
Québécois roots. Playa
Flamingo; fb.com/surboxcr;
mains US$8–$12.ACTIVITIES
Eco Termales Hot Springs
A soak is one of the most
relaxing ways to pass the
time in the Arenal area, and
these natural volcanic hot
springs are open during the
day and in the evening. La
Fortuna; eco termale
fortuna.cr.
La Fortuna Waterfall It’s
500 steps down to the falls.
A dip in the chilly waters is
the best way to cool off from
the hike, so make sure to
bring a bathing suit.
arenal.net/la-fortuna-
waterfall-costa-rica.htm.
Mistico Arenal Hanging
Bridges Park This wooded
refuge has walkways
suspended high above the
rain-forest canopy, each
with a bird’s-eye view of the
greenery below.
misticopark.com.Nayara Springs, our villa had its own plunge pool complete with
volcano views, and it was even more fun to walk out onto the porch
and slip into the magmatic water in the nude.
Having skinny-dipped to our heart’s content, we were ready for
the after-dark rain-forest walk at Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge. It
wasn’t long before we realized that a jungle at night is unsettling for
a stroll. At every turn our flashlights were met by spooky green
animal eyes, shining back at us through the leafy gloom. Trying to
repress a host of creeping phobias, we took cues from our guide—a
laid-back local naturalist—and eventually found it was indeed
possible to relax in the presence of bristly, striped-legged tarantulas,
blue-jeaned poison-dart frogs, and venomous yellow snakes.
By the time we visited Arenal’s La Fortuna waterfall the next day,
we were so relaxed we had no problem signing a release form
acknowledging that the hike down would bring us “in direct contact
with nature which can pose implicit dangers...including death.”
Cooling off in the pool beneath the 75-meter-high falls, we could feel
the immeasurable energy pouring into the frothing water.
During our time in Arenal, we realized that confronting one’s
fears is in itself a form of pura vida. This understanding hit me at
Mistico Arenal Hanging Bridges Park, where I faced my long-
standing dislike of heights by walking over a series of rickety
bridges suspended high above the forest canopy. Michelle, wearing a
wicked smile on her face, had described the activity as a “trust
game”—knowing full well how intense my vertigo can be. While I
was certainly nervous, I also managed to surprise myself by loving
almost every minute of it. It was strangely calming to stroll across
br idges spa nning a n unsor table mess of flora , above trees drenched
in epiphytes strangling one another in a death embrace and leaf-
cutter a nts ma rching by in solem n pa rade, ca r r y ing off t heir phy to-
remains. Everything was either eating something or being eaten by
somet hing. Despite being so high up, we felt li ke we were deeply
im mersed in t he circle of life of t his incredible place.
Our final activity of the journey was also our most anticipated:
the time had come to meet the sloths, the poster animal for pura
vida indolence. We had signed up for a volunteering session at
Proyecto Asis, a wildlife-rehabilitation and education center not far
from La Fortuna. There was only one hitch: they had no sloths in the
sanctuary at the time of our visit. We fed cubes of papaya to tie-dye-
billed toucans and ornery peccaries and monogamous macaws. But
no sloths. “We often get injured sloths in here,” the coordinator,
Adriana Aguilar Borbón, explained. Sloths in these parts often get
burned when they mistake power lines for tree branches. Once their
wounds have hea led, t he tea m at A sis sends t hem back into t he
forest, where they belong. “It’s actually good news that there are
none at the moment, as it means they all got better,” she said.
Over dinner at Naya ra Spr ings t hat evening, our last in Costa
Rica, I consoled Michelle about the fact she hadn’t been able to hang
out with any sloths. After our meal, as we crossed the sky bridge
over the forest that connects one section of the resort to another, we
noticed something shifting in the trees, just a few feet away. “A
sloth!” Michelle cried. “A sloth!” I cried. The creature looked back at
us, curiously, with its robber-bandit eyes. Symbiotic algae
camouflaged its back. Entire colonies of insects appeared to be
thriving in its fur. That sloth was an ecosystem, all of Costa Rica
reduced to a single shaggy-coated tree dweller. In that moment,
sharing a gaze with that amazing creature, we’d found what we
came for: Michelle got her sloth, and I got a richer lesson in pura vida
than I could ever have imagined.LOCAL
SPECIALTY
Be sure to order
a plate of gallo
pinto while visiting
Costa Rica. The
classic dish, made
with rice and beans,
is often served with
fresh tortillas.