Puntarenas, Costa Rica.

The weather was hot, as usual. Our crowd met, as usual, in the Atrium on Deck 5 and left the ship accompanied by the usual constant beeps of people's cruise cards as they were dipped into the scanner. What wasn't usual, however, was that we didn't find a minibus. We should have walked to the very end and out to the street but we settled for a small bus tour. It wasn't full so we thought it would be OK.

Big mistake!

When we got to the street entry the bus stopped and a horde of people got on. Miserable grim-looking people!

The town stretched along a palm fringed black sand beach to a point from which the town took its name. 'Puntarenas' is Spanish for 'sandy point'. We were driven around the town and our guide pointed out things like the 'famous soccer field' and the 'famous' church. While we looked we couldn't fail to notice that every building had barred windows and even bars around the gardens! Hmm. High crime rate, no doubt!

After the town tour, which was brief as the town is not large and has few places of interest, we were taken into the countryside to see some capuchin monkeys. A family living on the site feeds them and we were asked to pay $2 each to contribute to the food. I'm not sure if that was food for the monkeys or the people but either way, it was cheap and we were happy to pay. Some of the miseries on the bus refused to pay and I saw one non-paying man get off and take some photos. Mean and miserable!

I liked the small monkeys with their black coats and white heads, looking like miniature versions of the monks after whom they are named. There was a female that had a baby on her back. The baby's head was the size of a walnut and just as wrinkled! Very quaint.

After the short stop we resumed our tour. The woman seated next to me didn't smile the whole time we were out. I learned later that it was her 4th world cruise! Why would you do it four times if you took so little pleasure from it???

The road crossed a bridge where the bus stopped and unloaded some of us. The river below was a favourite spot for crocodiles where they basked in the sun on the banks. Sure enough, there were five or six on the bank and a few snouts were protruding from the river. As we were peering down at them, the guide of another group came along with a handful of clumps of grass which he threw over the rail. Instantly, the crocs sprang to life and converged on the clumps, jaws open to snap up the prey. Boy, can they move fast!

Our 'tour' continued on and up into the hills where at one stage we had to stop. A landslide had occurred some time earlier and workmen were clearing the road. Some of the grumps didn't have the patience to wait (for all of ten minutes!) and wanted to go back to town. Fortunately, they were outvoted and not long after we were on our way again. The road was steep and narrow, so narrow that the sides of the bus were brushed by foliage as we crawled upwards. The road led to a hotel high on the hill from where there was a spectacular view of the coast. It seemes to me that Costa Rica strongly resembles the Pacific islands in living standards, climate and vegetation. In Vanuatu, for example, housing is basic, wooden fences sprout and road surfaces are often dirt and are badly pot-holed, just as in Costa Rica.

The one good road in Costa Rica was the one we were travelling on. It had only recently been built and the locals seemed justifiably proud of it. It led to the capital, San Jose, and had cut travelling time in half.

Once back in town, after a long a uninteresting drive back, the men went to the bar and we went to look at the market stalls along the beach. It was still very, very hot and we had our swimmers but the beach didn't really invite us. It looked dirty whereas the market looked interesting.

The toucan motif was common on many of the items for sale and we all succumbed to the purchase of a sarong or two. I wish I'd bought more as they'd make gorgeous wall hangings or cushions. When we'd loaded ourselves up with all we could buy, we gathered the men from the bar and hopped aboard the little tourist train that took us along the dock to the ship's side.

Docked on the other side of the pier was a US Navy hospital ship, the USNS Comfort. It spends a lot of its time in the area and gives free medical treatment to locals when needed. It was recently sent to Haiti to help out after the earthquake disaster.

That evening we did sail off into a beautiful sunset as we set our course for Nicaragua with the sailors on the Comfort waving farewell.