Casas Pelicanos, Playa Junquillal, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Cooking School and Casitas for rent directly on the ocean
After three days at this sublime retreat, I cancelled the remainder of my Costa Rica plans and stayed put. Casas Pelicanos has the best situation on this something- for- everyone beach. The main house is on a point with a sweeping vista of the bay. The owners’ (German Expats) have lived in this area for 30 years; their knowledge of the area is vast and they are eager to assist/ inform if asked. For the past several decades they have been improving this former cattle ranch with tropical landscaping and amenities such as a pool and deck for guest’s use and pluperfect sunsets. It is a lush oasis in a mostly arid environment.
The Facilities:
2 houses for rent (to call them cabins would belittle them). One sleeps two people and the other sleeps four. They are handcrafted out of traditional cement, tiles and a local wood – teak perhaps? The chalet-like woodwork is enchanting, detailed and engineered extremely well. The kitchen is full sized and designed for a gourmet cook. They have even arranged for gas cook tops. This kitchen is so fully stocked , I easily could have prepared and presented a dinner for 15 guests (if I could have found 15 people on this empty beach).
There is no air-conditioning and no use for it. There are good ceiling fans...Casas Pelicanos, Playa Junquillal, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Cooking School and Casitas for rent directly on the ocean
After three days at this sublime retreat, I cancelled the remainder of my Costa Rica plans and stayed put. Casas Pelicanos has the best situation on this something- for- everyone beach. The main house is on a point with a sweeping vista of the bay. The owners’ (German Expats) have lived in this area for 30 years; their knowledge of the area is vast and they are eager to assist/ inform if asked. For the past several decades they have been improving this former cattle ranch with tropical landscaping and amenities such as a pool and deck for guest’s use and pluperfect sunsets. It is a lush oasis in a mostly arid environment.
The Facilities:
2 houses for rent (to call them cabins would belittle them). One sleeps two people and the other sleeps four. They are handcrafted out of traditional cement, tiles and a local wood – teak perhaps? The chalet-like woodwork is enchanting, detailed and engineered extremely well. The kitchen is full sized and designed for a gourmet cook. They have even arranged for gas cook tops. This kitchen is so fully stocked , I easily could have prepared and presented a dinner for 15 guests (if I could have found 15 people on this empty beach).
There is no air-conditioning and no use for it. There are good ceiling fans and ample screen windows. The breezes were incessant day and night in mid March.
You might want to bring some earplugs to sleep at night; the pounding surf, howler monkeys, scuttling iguanas, geckos and gusty winds in the palms are comforting yet surreal to wake up to at 3 in the morning.
The Beach:
To access the beach you walk about 30 seconds through the lime trees and iguanas on a paved path. There are shade trees and driftwood for perching. The volcanic rock outcropping makes this beach front special. Local fisherman cast lasso style from these rocks. At low tide, the tidal pools are filled with wonder. And there is much variety and quantity of shells.
Walk a couple of minutes to the left and you’ve got a brown sand beach with an aquamarine shorebreak. Consistent 3-7ft waves for bodysurfing. Walk a minute or two more and there is a break a little further off the shore for some good board surfing. (never more than 5 lined up here, yet I would see surfers walking a good trek to get here).
Walk about 7 minutes to the right from Casas Pelicanos and there is a white sand beach that is sheltered and provides good snorkeling. The break in “Endless Summer” is down this way too.
Cooking School:
Sibyl is highly accredited, yet more important to me, she is a highly instinctual chef. For $50 you receive 4-6 hours of personalized instruction. Her delivery is humble. Because I was a resident for some time, we would get some yeast rising in the AM before my beach time and when I had had enough sun, it was time to knead, punch and form some dough. I asked for schooling in doughs and we learned chapatis, pizza dough, Flammekuche (killer snack from Alsace), and her own cross breed of tortillas/crepes. Her kitchen has professional capacity yet it is homey. Her vast spice collection hints she is fluent in many styles. She has an herb garden with a regional variety of cilantro and even a smoke house in the outdoor kitchen that fronts the ocean. Upon departure I was presented with printout recipes from our school time. When you don’t feel like cooking, there are enough restaurants nearby to help out.
All my pics from this place are located here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/virginiaivy/COSTARICAMore
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