Surfing Playa Grande

Tajalines crab, they are everywhere!

Playa Grande saw its first rain storm about a week ago and it hasn’t let up since then. It is that time of year where the land crabs better known as “ Tajalines” appear in the thousands around the beach and streets from their underground homes. We started seeing these just before it started raining which is a good indication that rain was on its way. Get ready to use that mosquito repellant as this is the perfect time of year for the mosquitos, bugs and crazy insects to show their presence.

Onshore winds have dampened the surfer’s spirits as surf the past week has been in poor conditions. As I remember, the onshore winds have arrived at an earlier time of day than it has in the past few years. Thus, leaving us a smaller window of opportunity to surf some clean and glassy waves. Hopefully we will start to see some better weather so we can get some Playa Grande waves that we are all used to surfing. I think everyone is getting really anxious to put in a great session. It has been very frustrating for everyone in town and we haven’t seen such poor conditions like this in a long time. Hopefully the sand bars will change shape with this new huge swell we have this weekend so we can get some better shaped sand bars for some better waves.

The bright side that we are all looking forward to is all the vegetation is going to become full of life and color. As you can see the difference in the photos below how much of a impact the two seasons (wet season vs. dry season) can have on everything.

Playa Grande - Rainy Season

Playa Grande - Dry Season

So there I was, in the ring with the bulls at the latest fiesta in Matapalo which is the next town to Playa Grande.  These fiestas are great culture experience for those who want to experience Costa Rica.  For us who live here we enjoy the fantastic food, bull riding, cervezas, dancing and mingling with the locals.  As I decided to take some action photos of the bull riding events I decided to take some video clips of the bulls while I was in the ring.  I was well aware of my distance from the bull at all times.  Unfortunately for this local, he got caught being at the wrong place at the wrong time.  The bull bucked off his rider then zoomed in on this man.  It looked like the guy had a chance as he started sprinting toward the fence, but as within seconds as we were watching the bull tracked down the guy and hit him right when he reached the fence.  The man was knocked out for a good 5 minutes as people came to his aid to make sure he recieved medical attention as the rodeo clowns distracted the bull.  The crowd grew silent and hoped that the guy was alright.  He got carried off on an ambulance but I was told the other day that he is okay and received some good cuts and scratches.  Pretty lucky if you ask me.  As for me, I am pretty sure I will never jump in the ring again based off of what I saw.  It is definetely worth the adrenalin rush but not worth the risk of getting gored or chased down by a bull.  If you forward the video clip to 2 minutes 45 seconds that is when the bull is released from the gate.

Dear Clients,

We hope you are well and headed our way in the near future. Here is some news on the happenings in our area.

Parque Marino Las Baulas and Construction:

There have been a lot of rumors floating around recently regarding Las Baulas National Park and the SALA IV (Supreme Court) decision regarding the buffer zone. Eddie and Johnny attended a meeting in Playa Grande last Saturday where Emel Rodriguez, director of SINAC-MINAE, was the main speaker. Don Emel is in charge of the national parks in this part of Costa Rica.

Don Emel made some important clarifications. The first clarification that he made was that there are two different issues at the moment. One issue is that the SALA IV has attempted to halt construction unsuccessfully and has asked the MINAE to submit a report stating the impact of development up to 500 meters inland for areas including, Playa Ventana, Playa Grande, Tamarindo and Langosta. There is a six month time frame that started in late December. Although the report is not complete yet, Don Emel’s comments about his work to get the national park clarified by congressional vote on a new law says a lot about the MINAE’s opinion about the situation.

Don Emel is currently working to have a law passed that will clarify the boundaries of Parque Marino Las Baulas and what will be called a zone of mixed use, which is a sort of buffer zone where building will be allowed, but with greater restrictions than a normal lot outside of this zone. Should the law pass, none of the lots in Palm Beach Estates will be inside the national park. The beachfront lots, lots across the road, the two large parks, and some of the lots going inland on the ends of the figure eight will be in the zone of mixed use.

In Playa Grande Estates and Playa Ventana, no lots will be in the national park, but the first and second row as well as lots inland as far as the eastern border of the large undeveloped portion will be in the zone of mixed use. It is important to note that the MINAE will not require alterations to building structures in this zone. Responsible use of light will be required, however.

Building permits will be granted within the zone of mixed use, but there will stricter requirements. A portion of each lot shall be left natural, perhaps 20%, low density, responsible use of light, etc. You will be able to get building permits for a lot in the mixed zone as long as they meet the requirements. Don Emel confirmed that even beachfront owners in Playa Grande Estates and Playa Ventana will be able to get building permits but shall be required to plant a heavy buffer of trees to block out ambient light towards to the beach. He also said the length of this buffer will be determined on a lot by lot basis so that all lots will be usable.

Some other clarifications that Don Emel made are important as well. He says the MINAE has no plans to expropriate as they do not feel that the national park should be in direct conflict with citizens’ property rights and also because the cost would make it impossible. The Costa Rican government has roughly $2,000,000 a year for expropriations including road expansion a year budgeted nationally, and the Leatherback Trust has roughly $5,000,000 available. To expropriate only the un-built lots in southern Playa Grande would cost more than $400 million, so it is completely out of the question.

Another clarification he made is that the SALA IV’s decision to attempt to halt permitted construction has not been received well by the rest of the Costa Rican government included Oscar Arias. Many in the government feel they are out of line and are putting pressure on them to rectify the situation.

Hidden Coast would like to thanks Oscar and Leonel Marenco, who have spearheaded a campaign to keep locals aware of what is actually going on, as well as Don Emel Rodriguez who has attended multiple meetings in the area in the last few weeks and is working with the community to reach a solution that works for everyone.

“Fe de Agua” to Film in Tamarindo and Playa Grande:

Many locals are working together to produce a short film based on the story of a local boy who becomes a professional surfer. The film will be roughly 20 minutes long and will feature local talent in front of and behind the camera. Filmmakers hope to generate enough interest to produce a feature length film.

Preparations Underway for the National Stadium:

Temporary housing is being set up already near the site of the future national stadium to house the 600 Chinese workers that will begin the project in earnest shortly. The estimated cost of the stadium is $80,000,000US, but it will be paid for as a gift from the Chinese government. Some 2,500 containers have already arrived in Puerto Caldera with supplies for the project.

As I prepared for my third trip to Nicaragua, I found myself again trying to figure out a way to get to the border. In this article, I will share with you my experience of getting to Nicaragua from Playa Grande on a budget along with some tips that may help you should you decide to head to Nicaragua from Costa Rica.

Every trip that I have taken to Nicaragua has been different thus far and somewhat a different adventure. I was lucky enough on the first two times to get a ride to the border with the people I traveled with avoiding trying to figure out which way would be the cheapest way to get to the border. Of course there are the options of taking a shuttle or a taxi to the border but I was on a budget and wanted to experience taking the local buses to the border to save money. If you are in no big rush, it is definitely a way to go and to save some money.

Costa Rica to Nicaragua: So I decided to leave on a Thursday and was lucky enough to get a ride from Playa Grande to Huacas. The bus arrived near 10:00am and cost 850 Colones (Approximately $1.54). Typically the trip from Playa Grande to Liberia is just under an hour, but because I took the public bus it stopped about ten to twelve times along the way to pick up other people at the designated bus stops in other towns. It took roughly 2 hours to get to the bus station in Liberia. It may take longer depending on the day and time. From Liberia, I had to take another separate bus to head to the border or what they call “Fronterra.” I was lucky enough to only have to wait for ten minutes when the bus showed up. I believe that they have buses that leave every half hour to go to the border. The cost was 800 Colones (Approx. $1.45). It took about one and a half hours to get to the border but as mentioned above it may take a little longer than this depending on the day and time. Once I got off the bus, I needed to go to the Costa Rican Customs to get my passport stamped, this is required. You need to fill out a Migration Registration form which will be handed to you or they have at the front of the line to fill out. This is the sheet that you fill out on the plane when entering Costa Rica. You then have to walk about 200 yards while your are checked by a Costa Rican and Nicaraguan border patrol man to make sure the passport was stamped to get to the Nicaraguan Customs building. They may check your luggage as well so be prepared. Once I got to the customs building I had to get my passport stamped to enter Nicaragua. To me it always seems as if the lines are longer here in all my experiences. You will also notice once you get into Nicaragua you will be surrounded by Nicaraguans asking you if you need a taxi, money exchanges, etc. This can be sometimes overwhelming especially if this is your first time or don’t speak Spanish. As I stood in line to get my passport stamped, you will get people asking you if you want to buy a Migration Registration form which is required to fill out. These forms are free but it is $1 to get from one of the people selling these. I typically just pay for one so I have it when I get to the front of the line so I don’t waste anytime. I was approached by a local to see if I wanted to pay him some money so he can cut in line and expedite the process. I call them runners and they always do this to foreigners. I have mixed feelings about this for a few reasons. I was giving my passport to a stranger, and he was cutting in line in front of 25 people or so who have been waiting there for an hour plus. I have done this before and have been taken advantage for a decent amount of money. Typically they will charge you $10 to do this. This time though the runner only charged me two dollars which was a deal. You can bargain this amount with them. I saved an hour of standing in line. I would recommend staying within 10 feet of them when they go to the front. In addition, there is a $7 entrance fee to Nicaragua. Once you get stamped and paid your entrance fee, I decided to take a taxi to San Juan del Sur which is an hour away. This is probably your best bet plus it is a cheap taxi ride for an hour of traveling. It won’t be hard to find a taxi driver as there are probably 50 to choose from. I bargained with my driver and paid $25 for my trip. Before we got to his car, we had to go through another inspection point in which they check your passport again for the stamp and charge an additional $1 municipal fee. Here is the breakdown of the cost to get from Costa Rica to San Juan del Sur.

Bus rides: $3
Migration Registration form (Nic): $1
Entrance Fee to Nicaragua: $7
Cost to pay runner to cut in line to get passport stamped: $2
Municipal Ticket: $1
Taxi: $25
Total: $39

Nicaragua to Costa Rica: I coordinated the time and day with the taxi driver on when I wanted to be picked up from San Juan del Sur on my return. The fee was $25 again. Once you get to the border you have to pay another $1 for the municipal ticket. You then have to get an exit stamp for your passport at the Nicaraguan customs building. I decided to stay in line and not pay a runner to cut in line. I did pay $1 to get my migration registration form so I could fill out when I stood in line. The exit fee for Nicaragua is $2. I then walked back through the border check points of Nicaragua and Costa Rica then went to the Costa Rican Customs building to get my entrance stamp on my passport. There is no cost to enter or leave Costa Rica. I then waited half an hour to get a bus from the border to Liberia, same cost and time duration. From Liberia I got on the bus to Tamarindo which stops in Huacas, same cost and time duration. I then got a ride from a friend of mine from Huacas to Playa Grande. Here is the cost breakdown to get from Nicaragua to Playa Grande, Costa Rica.

Taxi ride: $25
Municipal ticket: $1
Nicaraguan exit fee: $2
Bus rides: $3
Total: $31

I hope this article may help you on your travels from Costa Rica to Nicaragua. Overall I had a good experience and plan to go this route in my future trips to Nicaragua. If you have a unique experience traveling through the border I would like to hear it. Feel free to comment or write something about this article.