Swimming with Mel Gibson

I'm sipping on a lukewarm "Bamboo" as I post this, so please excuse any typos (Bamboo is a canned local beverage of rum & coke - meant more for the Lauren's of the world than the Matt's).

Yesterday we made a 12-mile round-trip trek to Playa Barrigona, which rumor has it, used to be owned by Mel Gibson.  We didn't see any signs of Mel (or Danny Glover for that matter), but it was a nice spot for some peanut-butter and honey sandwiches (and a 30-minute siesta for yours truly).

The walk to Playa Barrigona was SUPER rural, and Lauren and I saw a plethora of Howler Monkeys (one of which had an extremely low-hanging pair of cojones).  It should also be noted that we are the only non-ticos embarking on these long day walks.   We are not consuming many snacks in between meals, and I mentioned to Lauren yesterday that I felt like I was at some sort of Fat Camp. 

The greatest discoveries (thus far) in the "eating department" are Lizano Salsa and La Lechera Flakes.  The Salsa is sort of like a tangy salsa verde, and it goes on just about everything we eat (hard-boiled eggs, tortillas, toast, etc).  La Lechera Flakes are quite possibly the greatest cereal ever created, and as an avid cereal-lover, I'm going to have to find a supplier in the USA.  They are basically cereal flakes coated in sweetened condensed milk, and Tony el Tigre would definitely exclaim "Suuuu Gran!".

In closing, I was awoken this morning around 5:00AM by a chorus of Howler Monkeys.  If this is a regular occurence, than I can see why these loud primates are now listed as endangered (just kidding).