Puerto Viejo is full of stories — if you know where to look.

Starting at Cacao Huasi, take a slow walk through just three blocks of the old town, all within sight of the Caribbean. You won’t travel far. Instead, you’ll look closely at what is growing around you and discover some of the stories hidden in this small corner of Puerto Viejo.

Look at everything from weeds growing along the pavement to medicinal plants, tropical fruit trees and cacao, as well as remnants of old orchards that tell us something about how people once lived here.

Along the way, plants become starting points for stories — about food and medicine, the people who have made Puerto Viejo their home, what everyday life was like in the past, and the changes the town has seen within living memory.

Some stories begin with a tree. Others with a building, a garden, an old photograph, or simply something in the landscape that most people walk straight past.

This isn’t a botanical tour or a history lecture. It’s a storyteller’s walk through Puerto Viejo, weaving together plants, personal stories, local history and everyday life to reveal a little of what lies beneath the town you see today.

The walk lasts approximately 1½ hours, follows flat streets over just three blocks, and begins and ends at Cacao Huasi.