Costa Rica Train Ride
San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, is about two to four hours away from Puntarenas Beach and it is longer taking the local steam engine train to it. However, taking the train would let us see the countryside and see a lot of the people outside of San Jose and the surrounding towns.
Our family would get to the station about 7:00 am and get our tickets and seats so we would get a place where all four of us could sit together. The train would then depart at 7:30 am and the trip would begin. As we left the city itself and moved through the suburbs of San Jose I could smell the train. Trains have their own smell and if you had grown up among them as I did you would love the smell of oil and coal. On some of the houses we could see people moving around in or about their houses, going about their usual business on a Saturday morning.
As we left the suburbs the geography changed to farmlands. We could see cows and horses in their fields. The greenery of the fields was deep and plush. The train was picking up speed. We could still see steam coming up from the ground as the warmth of the sun warmed up the fields.
The train started to slow down as we approached our first station or stop. As we got to the station we noticed a lot of vendors of food and drinks and other stuff. The other stuff were hats, purses, and jewelry. We bought some hot empanadas cooked in banana leaves and some cokes. We did this by lowering our window and calling out the product that we wanted. This was done by several people that sat by us. The food was good and refreshing and as the train left the station we waved back at the vendors who waved at us.
After an hour of traveling the scenery changed from farmlands to lush jungle. We could still see a few farms but these were full of banana trees and mango trees. We noticed too that we were heading down to the plains. The train itself was traveling at a good pace between valleys and hills. We could see the forests of trees that stretch forever it seemed. The smell changed as well. It was a sweet smell of trees and flowers. The colors we saw were beautiful. We saw deep greens to the very white pedals of some unknown flowers that grew at the top of the trees that we passed.
We made several more stops and we brought some hats for the beach and lunch. Again the people were so friendly and nice. We had a dessert that was made up of shaved ice with strawberry flavoring topped with condensed milk poured on the top of it. It was very sweet but very good. After one of these stops we could see the silver shimmer of the coast and the Pacific Ocean. We were finally at the beach!
We stopped at the station in Puntarenas about 11:00 am and got off our train and walked to the beach where we could get our bearings. There were restrooms and showers right off of the beach and lockers to put our stuff at. There were local vendors with snacks or food and restaurants if you wanted a full course meal. We went down to the beach and swam around for a while enjoying the warmth of the ocean and saltiness of the sea. It was in the 90s and it was hot which made the sea even nicer. The coconut trees that lined up the beach looked so tropical like we were on a pacific island. It was beautiful.
Around 2:30 pm or 3:00 pm we took showers and got changed to go out to one of the restaurants. We had fish of course, fresh from the sea, cooked in spices and over an open fire. It was very good food. We had to get back to the station by 4:00 pm since the train left to go back to San Jose at 4:30 pm. We finished our meal and picked our stuff up and walked slowly back to the station where we could already hear the train hissing and getting ready for the journey back. We got onto the train and back into our seats. We watched the other people get onto the train or milling around the station while the train started its whistle countdown warning people it was about to depart.
Suddenly after a final whistle the train lurched forward and we were heading back to San Jose. I looked back and waved goodbye at the sea. The train was moving uphill and little faster this time and we could see with the afternoon waning a beautiful sunset. After an hour of travel time already gone by it started to get dark and we could see lights starting to come on. Within the train there were little lanterns that suddenly came on and these were hanging from the ceiling of the train. As the train got deeper into the forest plains, we saw less lights and the darkness started to surround us.
About this time occurred an incident that we will always remain dear to me. I had to excuse myself to go to the restroom at the very back of the train which entailed me going through several carriages. As I was coming out of the restroom there was a big jolt and the lights in the carriage went out and I could see the train was leaving us there. The carriage had somehow become unloosed from the train. I heard a deep voice telling people to calm down and that the train would come back for us. It did and it took another 30 minutes for the hookup to be complete and I went back to my seat with my family who were a little concerned but it was ok, an experience one will remember for a lifetime.
As we traveled we could see lights occasionally and especially when we stopped at the stations. We bought more food and drink and my mother bought a purse. The stations were all lit up like Christmas trees so it was nice to see so much light after darkness. As we got closer to the farmlands we saw more lights and especially when we hit the suburbs of San Jose. We got into the final station at San Jose at around 10:00 pm and it was a tiring trip and we were ready to get some rest plus I could feel the sunburn on my back. But I was also saddened about leaving the train. It was a great trip and I will always remember it.
