Well lookie thur!

Look at what washed up on our beach this morning!
(double click any of the pics for an closer look)
It’s a black dolphin and even the locals came out to watch it being hauled off.  I don’t even want to think about meeting that thing out in the water!
It's a good thing his mouth is small because those are some serious "noofies"
(teeth in Fontenot family lingo)!

Our mornings are usually overcast and drizzly since this is the end of the rainy season, so Charlie and I took an hour drive to Manuel Antonio National Park.  The beach or “playa” there was suppose to be amazing and we had to see for ourselves.

The hike to the beach takes about 30 minutes and you can have a guide walk with you to point out the rainforest creatures along the way.  We opted for the cheaper version and just decided to keep an eye out for “Toucan Sam” and anything else interesting.

We saw this sweet sloth carrying her baby on her stomach.  She was moving pretty quick for a sloth and the baby had the cutest face!

The beach was well worth the drive and I picked up lots of coral pieces that I can't wait to bleach when we get home.

The other thing that made the beach trip memorable was the obvious presence of raccoons and monkeys; some the most mischievous creatures around and to the Ticos, they are just like aggressive squirrels.

They kept getting into our stuff even with a fellow sunbather shooing them away with a stick.

Oh well, at least they’re cute!

The monkeys reminded me so much of Ross’ pet, Marcel, on Friends. 

They kept trying to steal our stuff but we didn’t mind too much.

We grabbed some lunch in town before heading back to Jaco.

I loved seeing the horses walking on the beach.

They all seem to be very polite and haven't left us any steaming divets.

I guess I'm easily impressed.

Before we went back home for the night, we decided to check out this surfing competition we'd been hearing so much about.

While we waited for it to start I schooled Charlie in a game of darts.

Costa Rica must be agreeing with me because I never win when we're in Texas!

The surfing was amazing to watch and the guy M.C.ing the whole thing was hilarious.

He sounded just like Nacho Libre:

"Put yo hends togeder fur de sufers!"

"E love what E'm seeing yew butiful peoples!"

He did a great job and kept me laughing the whole time.

It was abother fantastic day in Central America and I have loved all the people we've met so far.

Everyone is genuinely satisfied with their lives.

The surfers are passionate about their sport and the futbol players are devoted as well.

I love seeing the families walking or riding their bikes through the streets together.

Life is life no matter where you are in the world.

Tico mothers kiss their sandy babies on the beach, dads playfully toss their kids into the ocean and you can be greeted with a fist bump by any stranger who will soon become your friend.

This is a beautiful country from their "Pura Vida" manifesto to their contagious thankfulness.