Pura Vida Merilla
Where Did It Happen?: Montezuma, Costa Rica
When Did It Happen?: 7/17/25
What Happened?: The sun was barely breaching the horizon. The howler monkeys were busy waking the seaside rainforest with their cries, and the thunderous surf was breaking on the volcanic boulders scattered along the coastline. The Montezuma air was thick with salt and humidity, but it was comfortable as we walked along the empty beach to find some breakfast. A Soda was opening, and the staff were setting up the chairs around the tables; a calico cat appeared to be supervising them from the railing. The staff invited us to sit wherever we’d like, and we chose a table by the railing to watch the beach and pet the cat. Menus and waters were delivered quickly with a warm welcome in broken English. We looked over the menus, pet on the cat and listened to the howling monkeys. Their howling was so loud that it sounded as if they were in the restaurant with us, but we knew they were playing in the treetops. We ordered our eggs and toast and watched the foamy surf swirl around the rocks on the tree-covered shoreline. The scenery was as beautiful as it was unique to these two tourists. The waves created giant breaking curls that looked perfect for surfing but absolutely treacherous as they crashed on the rocky shore. Our food came, and we enjoyed the “typico” Costa Rican breakfast we’d ordered and tried to earn a little favor with the gatto that had joined us on the rail by sharing small morsels. As the rising sun cast an ever brighter light across the sandy shore, the contrast of the white foamy surf flowing around the dark rocks created a stunning image of both beauty and strength; the rocks withstood the pounding, and the ocean was relentless in its assault. Jess dropped her fork to her plate as she grabbed my arm and drew my attention back to the shoreline. Something was moving along the giant volcanic boulders. What could possibly brave the onslaught of water that was pouring over these rocks? As we stared at the rocks, a creature surfaced. The giant animal emerged from the foamy swell and moved toward the top of the largest boulder on the shoreline. We could then see that it was a giant ape-like beast. Much larger than the monkeys bounding in the treetops. This was a gorilla—large, powerful arms with enormous hands to hold the giant rock it was climbing. It had a broad and muscular chest with an inquisitive but friendly face. Our breakfast companion caught notice at about the same time and quickly retreated to the kitchen. Jess and I reached for our phones to capture the moment, but the gorilla was faster than we were and pushed off the rock and back into the sea. As he pushed off of the rock, though, he made a giant splash and threw foam into the air with a giant tail. It wasn’t a gorilla. We looked at each other in disbelief. What was this mystical creature we saw? We both jumped out of our seats, over the rail and onto the sandy beach. We ran to the edge of the surf to see where the creature had gone. As we started to lose hope of seeing him again, he broke the surface, 40 yards from the shore, and jumped through the air revealing his masculine torso and beautiful glistening emerald tail once more. A stunning mermaid tail and powerful gorilla body. Neither mermaid nor gorilla. This mystical creature was The Merilla.
Your Name (or Code Name): Curly Headz
