Uvita - Day of Gathering Strength (14.02.2022)

Strengthened by plenty of sleep and the care of Kathi (and some tablets from the extensive travel medicine cabinet), things were already looking up for Johannes today, and in retrospect it was a fortunate coincidence that we had chosen today as a "flexible day" without a fixed plan. As a result, the story for today can be quickly told, it was primarily about gathering strength and replenishing sleep so that the digestive system can fully participate again. Especially since there is another long tour ahead tomorrow (about 200 km = about 4.5 hours).

Maybe a few impressions of Uvita. Uvita itself is a very manageable place, which partly has unpaved roads (e.g. the road to our apartment). About 3,500 inhabitants mainly live from tourism, which here clearly focuses on the Ballena National Park and Whale Watching. Hardly any area in Costa Rica offers such high chances of observing humpback whales in the wild as here off the coast. Our motivation for Uvita was of course driven by diving, so one of the best dive sites in Costa Rica - Cano Island - can be reached by speedboat in just under an hour, and the Corcovado National Park is also easier to reach by sea than arduously over the road.

So who is Uvita worth a trip for? For all those who love diving, it is almost a must-visit. In 2 days we have seen whales, turtles, rays in large numbers and numerous sharks. For anyone looking for nature and tranquility as well, as there are two worth seeing places with Ballena and Corcovado National Park. Culinary and in terms of partying, it is definitely modest (which can also be a plus for some ;-)).

For us, it was definitely an exciting stop, tomorrow we'll be back on the road. We cross Catargo, the 3rd largest city in Costa Rica, and stay overnight in Turrialba, as the direct route to Puerto Viejo is a bit too far for one day.

The daily two:

Insight: After having a lot of time to read today, a short note about the settlement of Costa Rica. 75% of the approximately 5 million Ticos live in the "state" Valle Central. Both the capital San José (1.4 million) and Heredia (350,000), Catargo (230,000) and Alajuela (190,000) are located here. This means that all cities with over one hundred thousand inhabitants are located in this climatically favored part of Costa Rica.

Moment of Happiness: The fact that we were able to have a normal "dinner" again today, after the rather tough evening yesterday.