We’ve just arrived at the Linda Vista del Norte hotel near the town of La Fortuna. The (still quite active) Arenal volcano dominates the skyline, and is making it’s presence felt by chucking out rocks and ash right before our eyes. Unfortunately my pollen allergies have started to play up after 8 days of being completely unaffected, so we’ve not managed to do much since arriving…

The 150km drive up from Canas has to be one of the most impressive since we arrived. The usual green rural areas full of grazing cattle and horses were soon joined first by an… (more)

It’s been a busy few days, and we’re just settling in for the evening after a busy and extremely varied couple of days. Our accommodations here have been basic, and there have been times I’ve spent pining for the creature comforts (like locks on the doors) but, on the whole it’s been a very positive experience and we’ve met some interesting people over the communal dinner table…

We’ve been staying at La Carolina, an eco-lodge off the beaten path near the town of Canas and about 100km from Santa Elena and Monteverde (avoiding rough roads). Accommodations here are very rustic,… (more)

It’s our second day in Santa Elena, and after a fairly relaxed day yesterday we faced a busy walking day ahead, with an early trail at the Sendero Tranquilo Reserve followed by a night walk at the Bosque Eterno De Los Ninos.

We were extraordinarily lucky with the sightings today; we were on a mission to catch sight of the white-faced capuchin monkeys and within half an hour of walking we could hear trees rustling overhead. At first we couldn’t see anything, but when half-eaten fruit, twigs and other missiles start falling around us it wasn’t difficult to track them… (more)

Despite there being plenty of walking trails in the nearby area, we took a respite from jungle trekking on our first full day here, instead choosing to visit a number of small live animal attractions.

As Emma is a huge fan of bats, it was logical that the first place to visit would be called Bat Jungle, a place run by a “World Famous Bat Expert”. Not really knowing much about bats or the worldwide bat expert community I couldn’t really vouch for the authenticity of this claim, but if the quality of the exhibit was anything to go by… (more)

We’ve just arrived in Santa Elena, a town neighbouring the Quaker settlement of Monte Verde. It is a popular centre of eco-tourism in Costa Rica, and although difficult to get to without 4x4 due to steep inclines and very rough roads, It’s a thoroughly modern town which at first glance appears to be thoroughly optimised for visitors. There’s plenty to do here, ranging from night hikes to conservation showcases, almost all within a stones throw from wherever you are staying.

We had our wits about us on the road this time, so we didn’t get too lost on our journey… (more)

It’s our second day here Bosque De Paz, and so far we’ve been extremely impressed by the hospitality and activities here. The owners and staff a both friendly and accommodating, the food (albeit being a fixed menu) is delicious and we couldn’t be more fascinated by the sheer amount of flora and fauna we’ve seen just by being here for a day and a half.

We enthusiastically booked ourselves onto bird-watching hike this morning, so at 5:30AM we were up with the dawn chorus, making a bee line for the tea and coffee before we head out. We were met… (more)

We’ve just spent our first full day in Costa Rica, having landed here late yesterday evening. We spent our first night in the Tripp Family Inn, a large guest house very near the airport in Alajuela and after picking up our hire vehicle we’ve arrived at Bosque De Paz - a private reserve in the Central Valley which is renowned for bird-watching.

Getting here was far more of a chore than was previously indicated - although only 75 or so kilometres from the airport, thanks to poor road signs and dithering on our part we managed to miss a turnoff… (more)

We’ve come to the end of our visit in the Big Apple, and are now on our way out of the US and heading south to Costa Rica on the second leg of our journey. We managed to get ourselves booked onto a first class flight, so instead of the usual cramped conditions we’re cruising down to Central America in relative style…

Although I’ve enjoyed my time here in New York, I think we planned our departure just right. Four days is long enough for anyone to spend in major city before the hustle and bustle gets to you, and… (more)

We’ve just come back from what I consider to be the crowning event of our trip here, and yet another activity you shouldn’t miss on a trip to New York - a jazz gig.

Since we decided to come to New York, one thing that I had insisted on doing was taking in some live jazz. Last time I did this, I went to a beer soaked, basement dive on Bleaker Street where the booze was watered down and the music was loose and crunchy. It was an excellent experience, but as we were with polite company (our New-Yorkian friends… (more)

We’ve just spent our fourth day here with a New York state resident couple, with whom Emma corresponds with regularly. Our time here is quickly drawing to a close, and the one thing we haven’t done yet is taken in some live jazz - something we’re going to rectify today.

After eating the local stodge (you can’t seem to get anything for breakfast here without copious amounts of eggs and cheese), the four of us headed to the next block over from our hotel. There was a photo gallery run by the International Centre of Photography that I had been… (more)

We’ve just come back from the theatre across the street from our hotel, where Patrick “Captian Jean-Luc Picard” Stewart was playing as Macbeth. Of all the shows in the area ranging from The Lion King To Spam-A-Lot, we decided to go all high-brow and get a little culture in us…

We didn’t have much time to wash up and get ready between arriving “home” from down town and seeing the show, so we had to eat locally. Bearing in mind the disaster of last night’s Irish Pub travesty, we picked something a little less likely to give us stomach problems… (more)

We’ve just arrived back at the hotel after journeying a bit further afield today, visiting Brooklyn and the Financial District.

We decided to visit the Brooklyn Bridge today, which required a trip downtown on the NY Subway… which was as rough around the edges as a mass transit system could be. The stations we passed through were dark and sinister, and the trains were a bone-rattling white-knuckle ride compared to some of the asian underground train networks (or even London’s tube system). It literally felt like metal was falling off the trains as we pelted through the subway tunnels at… (more)

We were especially lazy today (especially in light of last nights extended sojourn to China Town) and decided that we would eat dinner at O’Luney’s - an “Irish” pub across the street from our hotel.

Unfortunately, the only thing Irish about this place was the Guinness (at least in name only). We ordered what would normally be a safe choice of “Banger’s and Mash” and a cheeseburger, which you might expect for the to get right bearing in mind the kind of establishment they are. What we got was what could be described as “greasy spoon” sausages and one of… (more)

It’s our first full day in the Big Apple, and we’ve just arrived back at the hotel from a marathon day of streetwalking and museum patronage. Amazingly, we’ve managed to stay out for the full day without completely flaking out after just a few hours and we’re on our way out again in a few moments…

Amazingly, jet-lag doesn’t even seem to be an issue for us this time around - despite feeling a little ropey after 7pm last night, we both got a normal night’s sleep and were up and out of the door by 9:30 this morning. Coupled… (more)

We’re currently cruising over the Atlantic at about 36,000ft, and we’re just settling in for the main bulk of our flight to New York after tolerating enjoying a tinfoil lunch of chicken, rice and cold apple crumble. As usual, my tolerance for such things is minimal, and as the guy in front of me has just reclined his seat (reducing my typing posture to that of a decrepit t-rex) this will be a short inaugural entry.

As far as traveling experiences go involving airports, I have to admit that today’s was one of the most hassle free we’ve ever had.… (more)