23 March 2010 * Playa Carrillo

A soothing land breeze blows over my back as I sit on the Club Carrillo restaurant deck. I sip tea and guava-pineapple-papaya juice, my belly filled with breakfast of fresh baked bread, gallo y pinto, papaya, watermelon, pineapple, and melon.

Before me, the great arc of Playa Carrillo curves around counter-clockwise from North to South. The bay is a beautiful turquoise circlet, protected on the seaward side by rocks and reefs. Slow waves sparkle, swell, crest, and break on the fine, light-tan sand, which separates the water from an enclosing ring of palms. The white foam of the surf shimmers brightly in the sunlight.

A sharply patterned bird -- white breast, black cap and eye stripes, and a brown spotted coat -- sings a clear and pleasant kee-whoop kee-whoop song, then alights to scavenge for toast crumbs.

Todo, we're not in the rainforest anymore!

View our slideshow from Playa Carrillo