After a long night of navigation, we dropped anchor in front of a pristine beach at Playa Blanca. Today was all about the local people. We had the great opportunity to visit four amazing Costa Rican families that have worked through hard times to maintain sustainable tourism businesses, surrounded by protected national parks. Each activity stole our hearts, including artisanal gold panning from Don Juan, visiting Johnny’s sugar mill, enjoying chocolate fondue with Alex at his chocolate farm, and tasting fresh palmitos with Dona Eida and her family running a heart of palm plantation.
After our morning activities, we came back to a surprise from the hotel team: a delicious picnic lunch, and for dessert not just great cookies but also beautiful Costa Rican dances, performed by the schoolkids of the neighborhood.
To end our afternoon, we learned about green sea turtles from the Sea Turtle Conservation NGO. They showed us a huge green sea turtle that had been caught in the night, which would then be released in the waters of Golfo Dulce, a place unique for its geology but its people too.
