It was one of those weekends where split second decisions and chance encounters could take you in any new direction, not a single plan other than the pursuit of ‘awesome’. Montezuma is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen, hands down. I’m literally itching to go back (I have like 100 bug bites).
It was Friday afternoon and I was at serious risk of staying in San Jose all weekend to work on my class presentations. Suddenly I noticed a facebook chat message from my friend saying that she was going to Montezuma with a few girls and leaving from the school at 12:40...well I got that message at 12:41. I made a split second decision, ran out the door, sprinted down the street, arrived at the school, got the bus info, sprinted back to my house, packed in 5 minutes, sprinted back down the street and jumped in a taxi with no idea where I was going...This is how the best trips begin.
Literally the only info I had for the driver was ‘Coke Cola Station’…vague at best. The guy tried to assure me that buses don’t leave from there to Montezuma, so I’m thinking ‘shit’ but that was the only thing I had to go on. So I said “just drive”.
Sure enough that guy was talking out of his ass, I hopped on the bus with my friends and we were off. Then one of those trip altering things happened, the bus’s tire blew. Consequently, we missed our ferry to cross the Nicoya channel by about one painful minute. We were stuck in Puntarenas for 4 hours until the next ferry left at 9 pm, keep in mind we still had no idea where we were sleeping that night and hostels don’t stay open that late. So there was really only one thing left to do, drink beer.
This is about the time where worlds collided. My friend, Hannah, from my Spanish class randomly walks into the same bar that I’m at with two guys from Belgium, whom she met on a bus in Panama. In true spontaneous fashion, I ended up hanging out with those guys for the whole weekend.
We finally made it to Montezuma at nearly midnight - one of the girls I had come with had met a guy on the ferry that hooked us up at The Hotel Montezuma. We were all exhausted from a long day of travel but that was no excuse to waste the evening. There was only one bar in town named “Chicos” right on the beach and it was bangin’. There were a ton of people dancing, drinking and smoking. The song “California Girls” by Katy Perry came on and that was my cue to take over the dance floor. After dancing up a sweat, I went for a 3 am swim in the cool pacific. I somehow always end up in the water by the end of the night.
The following morning, the girls I were with wanted to go zip lining but I had already done that. I met up with my friend Hannah and the two guys from Belgium, François & Chris, to hike to the famous waterfalls of Montezuma.
Getting there was like this mystical journey, I felt like Tarzan girl, barefoot climbing up rocks, crossing streams and stepping over/crawling under huge tree roots. We eventually made it to the first waterfall and it was stunning - everything that you envision Costa Rica to be. There was a cool jumping rock and I dived off of it a few times…and then I got a little too daredevily…
Wanna read about my near-death experience?! (sorry mom & dad) …
A whirlpool of water splashed around me as I gazed upwards, I was determined - I wanted to climb the face of the waterfall. I made a huge leap through the tower of water and grabbed the rock behind. Using all my strength, I pulled my body up onto a ledge.
Hanging by the tips of my fingers, I began to muscle my way up the face of the 30 foot monster. I hugged the rocks as tight as I could as a mountain of water cascaded behind me. The blurred outline of those standing at the waterholes edge flickered through the glassy veil. I continued to climb. I extended my arm to grab for a distant rock and then suddenly…time stopped...
The rock gave way… the lifeline grasped between my fingers crumbled in slow motion. Claimed by the jetting force of the water, my body ripped from the wall. I was going down. Falling, I bounced off a lower rock and rolled into the depths beneath. Held down by the plunging turbulence, I kicked hard to break the surface. I gasped for a breath and checked my vitals…
Not a single scratch.
Call me dumb & call me lucky.
Instead of continuing on to the other waterfalls, we decided to go make lunch. The boys and I stopped in at the grocery store and picked up some tropical fruits and all the necessary ingredients for a Mango Guacamole fiesta. We headed back to their hostel, ‘Luz en el Cielo’ and had an awesome lunch. It was really cool hostel too, this badass Colorado raised chick named Abbie started up the place at just 24 years old! She fell in love with Costa Rica and wanted to live there so she drew up a business plan fresh out of college and made things happen.
That night I went back to ‘Chicos’ with all of the Canadian, German and Swiss people I had met up at the hostel. My friend from Belgium, François & I started dancing up a storm. Before I knew it a large circle had formed around us and we we’re the only ones dancing in it. We were in the zone, that’s for sure.
Once again I went for a night swim and marveled at the gazillions of stars that filled the sky. The following morning I bummed a ride back to San Jose from an Ecotourism Class that was on a fieldtrip to Montezuma.
That place is incredible, I’m planning on staying in Costa Rica for 6 extra days after my classes end and I’ve decided that I’m going back to Montezuma and going to check out Santa Teresa and surf ‘Mal Pais’. Sorry for the lack of photos to accompany this entry, I forgot my camera in my hasty 5 minute pack job.
Pura Vida!
photo cred: Hannah Byers-Straus
wow... very lucky kels but yea there are also usually under ground caves that are made from the waterfalls that sucks in water just so youre careful. but im glad youre having fun! it sounds sooo awesome but i can't wait to see you!
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