Last Tuesday I arrived in Costa Rica. Immediately, I caught a bus from San Jose to Puerto Viejo de Talamanca. Puerto Viejo is a small town on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, very close to the border with Panama. I had never heard of it until the week prior, when my cousin suggested good surf there during this time of year. I went into this trip with less research and planning than normal. Upon arriving after dark, I had trouble finding vacancy in hotels throughout town. I ended up staying my first night in a buggy nook behind a restaurant for super cheap. The next day and after a surprisingly good sleep, I got the hell out of there as soon as possible. After exchanging money and walking around a lot, things finally came together. I was graced with a decent place to stay across the street from Playa Cocles and a surfboard rental for two days.
I surfed two nearby beach breaks my first full day. The waves weren’t the greatest but there were definitely waves. The water was crystal clear and warm, so nice to be in. The next day I woke up at 5 am and, after quick preparations, walked 20 minutes to the renown surf break known as Salsa Brava. This is a technical wave, a reef break accessible by paddling through a specific cutout in a vast shallow shelf of rock. I knew where to paddle into it because I had watched guys do so the day prior. I got into position and immediately head high A-frames were sucking up out of the blue. The waves were perfectly clean. I made some quick drops on the left hand side and pulled out as the wave died shortly after. The right hand side was definitely the longer ride. I proceeded to catch a few rights. Big but smooth drop-ins, bottom turn, and then race to clear the section or smack the lip once before pulling out. I was out for about two hours and caught several fun waves. There were only 2 or 3 other guys in the lineup. This was not an issue though because waves were peaking up in various locations instead of the same spot, so everyone had a wave come to them. I surfed two more times that day back at Playa Cocles.
After three nights and two days surfing in Puerto Viejo, I hopped on the bus and headed back to San Jose. Today I spent a full day exploring the city. I walked through the colorful Escalante Barrio and then along the downtown Avenida Central. The former was very empty and peaceful, the latter was crowded and bustling. I did transit through some very sketchy seeming areas, especially on the outskirts of downtown, particularly where the bus stations are. But mostly I felt safe, kept to myself, and kept my head on a swivel. San Jose has never been on my list of top destinations, but I’m in Costa Rica for two weeks and I don’t have anything particular to do. I’m very much taking each day one at a time. Tomorrow I’m heading to the Pacific Coast to catch more surf, there’s a swell inbound.