Drinking from coconuts
At the entrance to the beach, a large old station wagon was parked in the shade, its open hatch back full of coconuts.
Some were au naturel, with the brown hairs still on, and others were shaven ready to drink. (The one in the picture is smooth-skinned.)
As I approached, the man looked at me, grabbed a nice big coconut and gave it a judicious tap with a small headed tack hammer. No words were exchanged but communication took place.
In went the straw and in a trice he'd handed over the coconut and I'd given him the coin -- 500 colones, I believe it was.
Delish! Refreshing and satisfying. Small bits of fresh coconut meat came through the straw with the juice.
Turns out coconut water is not only healthy, it's also very fashionable. Gwyneth Paltrow, Rihanna and Madonna and others use it to stay svelte and to rehydrate after exercise.