We got on a country road by the sea on the Azuero Peninsula and looked at three hotels. The first was full of birds, including a parrot, emus, and a lot of little birds I can't name, but we didn't like the atmosphere. The second was more grand but too expensive. The third one we stayed in. It was called Eco Venao. We got a three-bedroomed house with a separate kitchen/dining room up on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean.We went to go and look at a beach before dinner. It was the type which is really good for surfing. It had grey sand, a few crabs, and there was so much surf it looked as though someone had spilled a giant cappuccino. We went out for dinner at the Eco Venao restaurant. I had red snapper with rice. The restaurant had a terrace called the monkey deck from which we could see lots of howler monkeys making a low groaning sound. As we were driving back there were a lot of crabs trying to cross the road. I didn't see them very well but Daddy said they were bright orange.
We encountered a grave problem when we were coming home. When we were driving our car up the hill our tyres got stuck so we had to take some of the cases out and walk up the hill in the dark. It was a long walk. Then Daddy and I had to walk all the way back down to the car again in the dark and get the rest of the cases. Some of the path was smooth but some parts were very bumpy like being on a ploughed field. The only lights we had to help guide us were fireflies and the stars. There was a pretty magnificent star display. We would have seen even more only there's a nearby small village.
That does sound like an exciting day. The hotel sounds fantastic, I love the idea of dinner listening to the howler monkeys, and then a little house overlooking the sea, with fireflies. It sounds really magical. Perhaps someone should suggest to Daddy that he buys a torch though. Arguably it would be even more useful that a hat when the unexpected happens on holiday. I was going to say that Uncle Stuart would have managed to drive the car up the hill but perhaps you should not tell Daddy I said so. We're really enjoying reading all about your holiday. I hope you have some fun in the waves tomorrow. love to you all, Wendy
ReplyDeleteAuntie Wendy: You're right, it was very exciting. It would have been good to have a torch. I have one back home with a recharge system so you don't have to replace the batteries. I totally agree with you about Uncle Stuart and the car.
ReplyDelete[My first thought was, 'No way. It was dark, steep, muddy, deeply rutted and slippery, and the car was both under-powered and front-wheel drive.' My second thought was that indeed Stuart would have kicked everyone out of the car, reversed downhill in the dark, then gone up at maximum revs slipping the clutch, spinning the wheels, and damaging the bottom of the car, and then spent time disguising it so the rental company wouldn't notice. I said to André, 'Auntie Wendy's right. I've known Uncle Stuart most of my life and he's completely mad. André replied, 'I've only known Uncle Stuart for a few years but I know he's bonkers.' Ed.]