Snorkeling off Isla Tortuga Additional Photos 
A panga, driven by our guide, Juan, transported us to our snorkeling site (in the background). Click on photos for larger images.
¡Buenos días!
OK, good news, bad news time. First the bad news. Unfortunately, I was sick with gripe (which is basically a head cold in Spanish) last weekend from Friday through Sunday, so I missed out on the Caribbean trip. But don’t worry, there’s another group of students going this weekend, so I’ll be able to go anyways. Some more good news is that I managed to go to Isla Tortuga last Thursday with my friend Melissa, and had a great time before the gripe set in.
Melissa and I were interested in going to Isla Tortuga because we had both heard and read so many good things about it, and also because its close enough to take a tour, snorkel for a couple hours and return to Puntarenas in a single day. We were also attracted to the cheap price of the tour--a mere $25--which also covered, snacks and drinks while on the island. Melissa didn’t have snorkeling gear, but we discovered that the tour company had complete sets available to rent for only $5 extra. The island is located near the southern tip of the Nicoya peninsula, which is across the gulf from Puntarenas. The tour company we chose to go through is based out of Curu National Park, which has one of the closest beaches to the island.
 This is some of the merchandise at the souvenir store on Isla Tortuga, which included many carved tropical hardwoods.
When we got on the ferry at 8:30 a.m., we were a little worried about the ominous storm clouds that were coming in fast from the east. We could still go snorkeling with a little rain, but if it really started to come down then the runoff of sediment would cloud up the water and reduce visibility. However the storm passed by farther to the north, and when we arrived at Curu the skies were clear and the sun was out in full force. The surrounding dry forest reminded me somewhat of Santa Rosa, although there was some wet forest flora mixed in. From the beach we hopped on board a panga (a kind of small boat), were introduced to our young guide Juan, and promptly began the tour.
 This is the pizote that we saw near the beach at Curu while we ate our lunch. He seemed so cute and harmless at first, kind of like a raccoon with a long flexible nose and without the stripes on its tail. Then suddenly it jumped into my open pack and snatched my banana before I could react. When I tried to chase it and retrieve my fruit, it snarled and snapped at me. I finally gave up and decided instead to take a picture of the thief.
We saw so much wildlife; it was incredible. This included more white-faced capuchin monkeys, beautiful scarlet macaws, a mischievous pizote (kind of like a long-nosed raccoon, ee pphoto on right), dolphins and more, not to mention the patch coral reefs we snorkeled on with their schools of colorful fish. The water was so clear, we could see all the way to the bottom from the boat in all but the deepest of spots. Contrary to what one would think, there aren’t many sea turtles around Isla Tortuga (which stands for Turtle Island). The island got its name from its shape, which has a rock protrusion at one end that looks almost like a turtlehead, and a steep dome shape that mimics a shell. This is also visible in one of the pictures. Isla Tortuga is actually made up of a small archipelago located about two miles out from the mainland.
 The horizons look like paintings. At sunset, the sky looked on fire or like there had been some kind of volcanic eruption in the distance.
Since we went on a Thursday and the summer tourist season hasn’t quite begun yet, we were surprised to see as many people on the island as we did. Juan told us that in the peak tourist months around March the place gets packed, with people from all corners of the world coming ashore to bask in the rays and take in the gorgeous scenery. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, and to top it off we witnessed a breathtaking sunset on the return ferry.
 Chloe's photo of a sea slug (right at the end of her fingertips) is interesting. Sea slugs are the only marine mollusks that lack shells. They make up for this lack of protection by being extremely toxic. Chloe's other underwater photos are in the photo gallery.
Obviously, I was unable to take any pictures of the reefs at Isla Tortuga because I lack a waterproof camera. However, I happen to have a friend in the program from Australia named Chloe who owns a very expensive high quality camera with a waterproof case. She went on the trip last weekend that I missed, and was kind enough to give me some of her excellent pictures. They’ve given me some foreshadowing on what to expect when I go this weekend. We’re leaving at 6:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, and won’t return until mid-afternoon Sunday.
I am so excited to be heading to the Caribbean side of the country for the first time, and I can’t wait to leave. Hopefully the weather stays as nice as it’s been these last few days. As always, I’ll be taking as many photos as possible. I thank Chloe again for her contribution to this article, her photos reveal the fascinating submarine world that is so hard to describe in words.
Hasta la semana que viene, ¡chao!
Additional Photos
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