Monteverde

Monteverde was by far the best trip that my program planned for our group. The bus ride was three short hours on one lane, dirt country roads through the mountains to arrive at our destination. Because we stayed with our program, we were given great accommodations yet again. We stayed at El Establo; an old stable turned 4 star hotel owned by a nice Quaker couple. Let's just say, the beds at El Establo are my favorite thing about Costa Rica. I felt as though I were literally sleeping on a cloud in a cloud forest. One of my favorite parts about our accommodations was the view from our room. It was complete with rocking chairs to enjoy all of the sights. 

Another big plus about this weekend was the fact that all of our food was provided by the hotel. I am still not used to being pampered by all of these gourmet things! On Saturday morning we woke to find this strange animal outside our hotel room. 

I believe that this animal is called a Tayra, but do not hold me to that face. Our day continued with a canopy tour and a terrifying Tarzan Swing. The zip lines took us flying through shades of green and over lush valleys that took my breath away. 

I have a huge fear of heights and this adventure surely pushed my limits of comfort. I was composed until it was my turn to jump off or a hanging bridge and put all of my trust in the Tarzan Swing. For those of you who have not seen/experienced this, here is a youtube video of some people who I do not know taking the plunge: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA5cr5BuO1E

We survived!

The next day a small group and I explored La Selva Biological Reserve. This consisted of a relaxed hike through a cloud forest, with a dense animal population, to a scenic overlook, back down and across a hanging bridge, and onto a path in a humming bird garden. 

This was the first and only time I have seen a snake in Costa Rica. He was a pretty little guy so he was not so bad in my opinion. We completed our journey with some fresh Quaker ice cream, made from the local cows that Monteverde is famous for. This is one of the most adventurous and daring weekends I have had thus far. It is safe to say that I really enjoyed my time in Monteverde.

Volcan Arenal and La Fortuna Waterfall

Our second weekend of excusions brought us to Volcan Arenal. Yet again ISA provided us with a beautiful place to stay at Los Lagos Hot Springs and Spa. We were very lucky to have a few clear days to see the volcano. Apparently, this is a rare occurrence most times during the year because of location of the volcano. We spent the weekend hiking to a lookout point near the volcano (third picture down), exploring the town of La Fortuna, and playing in the pool and hot springs. On our last morning in Arenal, we hiked to La Fortuna Waterfall. It is known for it's extreme height and perfect stream of water falling into the small pool beneath. This hike was the best part of the weekend. We ventured a few km down waffle-like cement and dirt stairs until we reached the hidden waterfall. Although the water was frigid, we all enjoyed a dip in the ridiculously blue water. In the horizontal picture below, you can see my roommate, Alexa, and me looking pretty small in comparison to this massive waterfall. This is the first of many volcanoes that I hope to see while in Costa Rica.

Tamarindo

Tamarindo was my first weekend in a series of three weekend excursions provided by my study abroad program, ISA. Going into these next few weeks I realized I would be pampered with really nice hotels and meals in touristy locations. Tamarindo did not disappoint in these areas. Many of the local Ticos refer to the Pacific Coast town of Tamarindo as "Tamagringo". Upon arrival, it was clear to see why. The main part of town in set on a beautiful stretch of beach lined with resorts and over priced restaurants. Our group stayed in the hotel, Tamarindo Diria. The hotel was complete with three pools and a delicious buffet breakfast. My days were mostly filled with eating good food and reading by the pool. The beach views were spectacular and the sunsets were some of the better that I have seen thus far. Although it may not have been the most cultural of my Costa Rican weekends, it was definitely enjoyable in a relaxing sort of way.

 The beautiful hotel.

 Beach pictures

Bocas Del Toro, Panama

This previous weekend, I was fortunate enough to visit yet another beautiful country, Panama. I went with my study abroad program and 25 other students to Bocas Del Toro, Panama. The main purpose of our trip was to not only experience a new country and culture but most importantly to renew our 90 day tourist visas. Costa Rica gives two visa options to international students a free 90 tourist visa or a student visa good for the entire time you are studying (costs $300-$400). In order to renew these tourist visas, travelers must leave Costa Rica for 72 hours before returning. It was a 3-4 hour trip to the border crossing station near the Caribbean side of Costa Rica. We got our exit stamps and walked across the border into Panama. The entry process on the other side took a bit longer but it was an interesting experience overall. After making it back to our bus, we drove another hour to a port where we met our water taxis that we would take to Bocas Del Toro. For those of you who do not know, Bocas Del Toro is a small chain of islands off the coast of northern Panama in The Caribbean Sea. The water taxis took us an hour east to our destination of Bocas Town, the largest town in Bocas Del Toro. We stayed right on the water in La Terraza Hotel. I really enjoyed the nautical scenery. It was a nice change from all of the sand beaches I have become accustomed to.

 Walking across the border.

 Our seaside hotel.

 Your typical water taxi.

Despite waking up to rain Saturday morning, my friends and I enjoyed a delicious breakfast and waited out the storm. By the afternoon the sun began to poke out. We decided to take a bus to Starfish Beach on the other side of the island. I had never seen so many starfish in one place and so close up other than behind glass at an aquarium. We had a pleasant afternoon of swimming and relaxing in the sunshine. Instead of taking the bus back to the hotel, the group of students and I decided to hire a water taxi. I am really glad we chose to do this because it allowed us to see more throughout the islands. I was surprised to see remote cottages arranged over the water. I came to the conclusion that Bocas Del Toro would be a much more affordable option for a romanic getaway than The Maldives.

Fun with starfish at Starfish Beach.

Views from our water taxi.

 Little crabs who call this boat home.

On Sunday, we woke bright and early for an all day tour planned for us by our program. First thing on our tour: dolphin "watching". This pretty much entailed a fleet of water taxis, following two dolphins around so we could catch a glimpse of a fin or two. It was interesting to see dolphins in the wild but I could not help but feel guilty that we were so invasive in their environment. I would be against doing the dolphin watching in the future. The next stop was Isla Zapatilla. I can safely say, this was the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. It had the bluest water and the softest sand. This was probably the highlight of my entire weekend. Later in the afternoon we went snorkeling off the side of the boat. We saw colorful fish and crazy coral. If only I had an underwater camera!

 Isla Zapatilla

I did not want to return to Costa Rica after this far too short visit to Bocas Del Toro. I definitely want to return to Panama. It was amazing to see such a difference in culture after just crossing over the border. Before I return to Colorado, I would love to venture down to Panama City, see the canal, and see what else Panama has to offer.

Osa Peninsula, Corcavado National Park

I am so glad I got the opportunity to visit the Osa Peninsula. Many people, even in Costa Rica, are not familiar with the area. It is one of the farther destinations from San Jose, but it is well worth the drive. The Osa Peninsula is one of the most biodiverse areas in the entire world. Because of its secluded location, you will be able to see a wide variety of animals and will likely be the only person on the beautiful beach.

I probably would not have been able to go to the peninsula without the help of my roommate's parents. Clare’s parents came to Costa Rica, from Colorado, for a week long vacation. Lucky for us they rented a car and invited us along for the adventure. The drive was long, but was so much better in the comforts of an air conditioned Rav4 rather than on a hot public bus. About an hour into our trip we came to a river full of crocodiles. This is one of the few places you can see fresh water crocodiles, in the wild, in Costa Rica. Why they chose to make their home near the bridge of this fairly busy road as opposed to down river, I will never know. After around four hours of driving, we reached the small town of Dominical. This is where we spent our first night.

 Our little Dominical bungalow.

The next morning we got an early start to the Osa Peninsula. After a pit stop in the main town on the peninsula, Puerto Jimenez, for the keys to our lodging and supplies for the next few days, we began our trek to the very small town of Carate (population: 22). Little did we know, the 22km road from Puerto Jimenez was little more than a one lane, washboard, gravel road full of pot holes. Did I mention we had to drive through creeks as well? Had it been the rainy season, this road would have been un-passable. After some four wheeling and only slightly getting high centered, we made it to our beach house. We definitely found out why only 22 people live in probably one of the most secluded places I have ever been. It was quite an adventure to say the least.

 Some lovely water blocking the road.

Pretty views from the road.

Our house

The amazing private beach.

On the third day of our trip, we woke at the crack of dawn for a guided tour around Corcavado National Park. Our tour guide, Eric, showed us a variety of birds, lizards, monkeys, bugs, feline-like animals, and sloths. Without him, we would not have been able to spot half of the things we saw. We drank fresh coconut water and picked bananas right off of the tree. These bananas were the sweetest I have ever tasted; it was unbelievable. We ended our day by hiking up to a waterfall. Eric found this waterfall when he was a boy growing up in the hills of the Osa Peninsula. It still remains one of his favorite spots.

 Parrot

Gross spider

Toucan

Sloth

Howler monkeys

 

 Water fall

 Our tour guide.

 Squirrel monkeys

Eric using his machete.

The amazing banana.

On our way to and from the Osa Peninsula, we stopped at a little coffee shop in the hills. We drank our fresh Costa Rican coffee and enjoyed the view. Drinking delicious coffee, right in the hills where it is grown is an amazing experience.

View from the coffee shop