We finally made it back. Ten years have passed since our last visit. The pandemic delayed it an additional 2 years. The surf camp has changed little, but the surrounding area is more developed. There are small “tiendas” selling snacks, flip flops and tank tops, restaurants and other hostals along the beach that were not here on our last visit. There are many more visitors to the area and English is widely heard spoken.
Today we crossed the river and saw many foreigners partying at a new bar on the beach. I believe many are attending the Bitcoin conference. There are even “lifeguards” blowing their whistles at people. The waves are higher and more frequent than I’ve ever seen even on this side of the river that is normally calm. We think it may be due to the full moon. Ricky had a great time playing in the sand and ocean. Later, a 9 y/o girl from the Yukon (Canada) named Erykah arrived at Saburo’s. I chatted with her mom Kelly as the kids played in the pool. Hopefully they will hit it off.
I am happy to see locals benefiting from increased tourism, but I can’t help worrying that this little known secret town will be overrun by tourists and look like every other tourist destination. I worry that there is very little infrastructure to support this much tourism and I worry about the increased garbage that I saw on the beach today 😔.
We have only been here three full days, but we are startng to see a routine take form. Kenny has been enjoying catching up with Saburo and that has filled most of our days. Yesterday we went shopping for groceries and returned via microbus – we splurged at $1.50/ person for a 30 minute ride from Libertad. Moving forward we will probably shop for produce every few days from the local trucks like we did today. We bought limes, oranges, avocados, a small watermelon and platanos for $5. We haven’t figured out where to buy meat, but we have access to nice seafood on the pier at Libertad. Up until now we have been eating out or ordering $2.50 lunches from a local lady.
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Three World Travelers 