Limon, Costa Rica
who thinks of Costa Rica It does so by imagining a tropical paradise in which the lush vegetation of its natural parks, its impetuous volcanoes, the waters that bathe its coasts and the leisurely rhythm that floods every aspect of the life of the Ticos are the protagonists. And yes, all this is absolutely true. but friend, when it comes to Lemon, there is even more.
Because here the Pura Vida is transformed into a Pure Caribbean that drives us crazy from the very moment in which we glimpse, there in the distance, its mesmerizing beaches. Those into whose sea we jump head first as soon as we arrive at old Port , the most atmospheric of all the cities that dot its coastline. This orchard of palm trees at the foot of the shore and children playing with the waves is the place we have been dreaming of for a lifetime and we did not know it.
Beach in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca... or the image that you won't get out of your head today
With a bathing suit on and a towel on our shoulders, we start our Caribbean journey touring every corner of its beaches, in which, between soaking and soaking, we still have time to contemplate in ecstasy the passing of the most authentic Costa Rican life.
Families enjoying the pleasure of cooking the day's lunch by the sea, parents and children bathing in its waters, couples lying on the trunks of the most photogenic palm trees and children, many children, playing jump from an old ship stranded a handful of meters from the shore of black beach . Of course: the souvenir shops and businesses dedicated to surfing tell us that we are probably in one of the most touristic spots in the province.
After cooling off in the warm waters of the Caribbean We decided to explore the town a bit more. The heat is pressing and the trunk of a bus turns out to be the ideal hiding place for some clever person to take their well-deserved nap.
Reggae music plays from the speakers of local businesses which, painted in pastel tones, welcome you with their signs in more than a dozen languages.
Aerial view of the coast of Puerto Viejo.
This is how we get infected with that calm, absolutely Caribbean mood, which reveals that in this area of Costa Rica things are somewhat different.
Starting with your story: At the end of the 19th century, countless families from Jamaica and the Antilles arrived here to work on the construction of the railway the Tico government began between San José and the Atlantic. Its rails would serve to transport the coffee production of the area to the capital.
Costa Rica was an important port for bananas and cigars.
Time later, that Afro-Caribbean workforce began to work under the orders of the United Fruit Company in his banana fields and settled permanently in the country.
Today, the legacy of that cultural mix can be seen in details such as the skin color of many of its inhabitants and in his dialect, the mekatelyu: a kind of English that is somewhat complicated to understand and that is most peculiar.
After having the occasional cocktail on any of its terraces, and paying a visit to the beautiful local craft shop Wanderlust Old Port, The time will come to continue the route: Limón has much more in store for us.
Cahuita National Park
CAHUITA OR THE EXPLOSION OF WILD NATURE
Barely 17 kilometers separate us from the Cahuita National Park , one of the most wonderful natural treasures of the country. One thousand hectares of land area, 600 hectares of coral reef and more than 22 thousand of marine area are home to the most fascinating wildlife and invites you to explore its extensive white sand beaches and get lost along the countless trails that run through its dense tropical rain forest.
And we do, of course! We did not think twice and we entered the park, following one of the marked paths, to let ourselves be enveloped by the most explosive nature: which is presented to us through a group of white faced monkeys who watch us from above, from some three-toed sloth that shyly allows itself to be seen from the top of a tree or from the chameleon lizards perfectly camouflaged among the vegetation that surrounds us.
Cahuita National Park, Limon, Costa Rica
The humidity takes its toll then and, after a few kilometres, the body asks for the sea. So there we go to the water while a whole family of crab-eating raccoons shamelessly cross us in their relentless search for something to eat and the sky, which suddenly turns gray, unloads on us an intense storm that tastes like glory. This is going to be the Pura Vida they told us about.
Back to Cahuita nothing like a walk through its quiet streets dotted with colorful wooden houses and small local businesses in which the Afro-Caribbean essence is felt more than ever. Not in vain, they say that this was the first settlement of its people back in the 19th century.
Antillean roots in Limón
We come across a group of children returning from school on bicycles at the same time that a neighbor comes to reveal to us that, in one of the small houses, he still lives Mr. Walter Ferguson, who, at 101 years old, constitutes the living history of calypso, a fusion of reggae, salsa and Cuban son originally from the Antilles , which today is another of those treasures associated with the Costa Rican Caribbean culture. Indeed: at the door of his home a small table holds copies of his records in case some admirer wants to take a copy home.
Before leaving Cahuita we do not forget to stop at Mrs. Edith's restaurant , who with slow but firm movements moves between dozens of pots in the warm kitchen of his business. She while she with a wooden spoon she strives to stir chicken bathed in coconut milk, She tells us how she has dedicated her life to sharing Creole gastronomy with the world and how now it is her son who keeps the tradition alive.
In a mixture of Spanish and the curious mekatelyu that she is beginning to sound familiar to us, she reveals some of the golden rules for making the famous rice and beans: the classic Costa Rican gallo pinto adapted to the Caribbean.
The Jaguar Rescue Foundation works for the preservation of the species in the country.
JAGUAR RESCUE CENTER OR THE TRUE VOCATION
Limón is also home to one of the most beautiful projects in the entire province: the Jaguar Rescue Center It was born 19 years ago by two biologists who are passionate about nature. One of them, Enca, Catalan installed in Costa Rica for love and vocation, she welcomes us ready to open the doors of what is her home: not even five minutes go by and we have already fallen at her feet.
Because the love that is breathed in this rescue center in which every day they fight to welcome and serve as a temporary or permanent home for those orphaned and injured animals that need to be rehabilitated, It crosses all kinds of limits. Approximately 15 workers and about 30 international volunteers help in all kinds of tasks that Enca explains to us in detail.
Most mammals - receive, above all, sloths and monkeys, but also opossums, reptiles and even exotic birds — arrive here in difficult conditions after being electrocuted by power lines, attacked by dogs or run over by cars: this is what the development of the area has, which means more roads and more construction.
From Jaguar, which subsists largely on donations, They take care of their care and recovery until, in all possible cases, reintroducing them into their natural habitat with care and patience. The best thing is that they succeed in 40% of the cases: a complete success. To publicize their beautiful project and raise funds, they open the center to visitors every morning.
TIME FOR BREAK
But Limón is also the ideal place to pamper ourselves. And we do it betting on an elegant and modern boutique hotel immersed in the most exuberant nature: Le Cameleon It turns out to be an absolute oasis within the oasis itself that is already the Caribbean, the ideal place for lovers of places with personality and style.
And so chameleonic is our accommodation, that every day the service is in charge of changing the cushions and paintings that adorn the rooms, causing them to change color. A wink of the most original.
Calm, balance and serenity intoxicate us while we travel the open-air walkways wrapped in vegetation that connect the reception, where there is always a rich exotic fruit juice waiting to refresh us, with the rooms and the pool, that place that no one can get us out of.
The hotel also has another surprise: Noah Bar, a beach club in which we can enjoy the same thing, hammock through, with the extensive beach that unfolds before us, than enjoy a gastronomic evening with avant-garde overtones in its attractive restaurant or contemplate that sloth that moves in slow motion in one of the trees and that demonstrates, once again, that the display of nature in this corner of the world is a real joy.
PUERTO LIMÓN, END OF THE ROAD
“The best thing about Limón is its people”, reads a colorful sign next to one of its groynes, and most likely he is right. It is the capital of the province and perhaps the least attractive city of all, which is why many of the visitors who come here do so just passing through, with just enough time to make a brief incursion into the Vargas Park , stroll along its boardwalk for a while with views of the Uvita Island -Where Columbus made a stop on his fourth and last trip to the Americas together with his son Hernando's-, and stroll through the street 2 while contemplating some of its colorful buildings and reaching the small craft market where local painters show off their skill with brushes.
Once the route is done, it will be time to head for its small airport, from where several planes depart daily —provided the weather conditions allow it— that connect, after flying over immense banana crops and almost caressing the Irazú volcano with their fingers, the South Caribbean with San José de Costa Rica.
35 minutes to internalize that, much to our regret, paradise was left behind. Although, yes, the Pura Vida continues.