We were a bit unsure whether we would get breakfast or not. It was included in our accommodation but we hadn't actually 'checked in'. Yesterday, we were shown a room and told to check in later but we hadn't got round to it yet. We walked into the restaurant and it was dead...perhaps we weren't getting breakfast as we feared. A quick peek into the kitchen showed a couple of plates of freshly cut fruit, maybe we were expected after all. As we sat down at a table to wait, the owners wife turned up to serve our breakfast. And a very nice breakfast it was too - fruit, fresh juice, excellent coffee and the best gallo pinto (rice and beans) we have had so far on our travels.

Feeling full after our breakfast, we walked down the dirt road to Parque Nacional Marino Ballena. The marine park, although small in size, is considered very important in Costa Rica for protecting colonies of seabirds, pods of dolphins, nesting turtles and migrating humpback whales. We were there an hour before low tide so we were able walk out across the huge, almost flat beach to a spit connecting it to the outlying rocks at the far end. When viewed from the air, the spit and rocks look like a whale's tail. There were loads of rock pools filled with little fish, crabs with one big pink claw almost the size or their entire body and even a small eel.

After we were finished clambering over rocks and examining the pools, we went for a swim. The water was warm and the really shallow water washing over the sand was actually hot. We were keeping a close eye on the tide because we were told we only had 2.5 hours each side of the low tide and the beach being so flat meant the water would rise and cover the spit quicker than you thought. A group of girls weren't quite so vigilent, their belongings were soaked by a surging wave and would have been swept away had David not moved them to a higher rock.

As we returned towards the park entrance, we saw a boat having trouble getting taken out the water. There are no boat ramps and it seemed that boats were literally dragged up onto the sand before being winched onto trailers (to prevent cars and trailers going into the soft sand under the water). The winch rope to pull the boat onto the trailer had snapped and with each wave, the trailer with the boat half on was getting closer to sinking into the sand. Time for David's second good deed of the day and not a second too soon either. The trailer's wheels were nearly sunk to their axle and the surging waves were just short of the jeep when he got there. With a bit of extra muscle, and a couple of attempts, the trailor and boat came unstuck and was driven of the beach. The most surprising thing was that it was a professional dive boat operation - you'd think they would be better prepared for problems.

We broke the walk back to the hotel by stopping at a cafe for an ice cappuchino with real, thick cream and a shot of Baileys thrown in for good measure. Really tasty and filling enough to keep us going until dinner.

As usual the rain started at 4pm with a rumble or two of thunder but we were busy undercover working out where to go next - stay in Costa Rica or move on to Panama? Maybe Panama on Monday, we'll decide tomorrow.

It was still raining when we wanted dinner so the easy option was to run across to the hotel's restaurant. Maria decided on a chicken lasagne while David had Asteka, a spicy chicken soup. Delicious!!