Twas a whirlwind week, truly la vida luja (life of luxury), ergo I didn't have time to sit on mis pompis to write about it- I was too busy!
But now, from the frigid heart of winter, Colorado Springs (Current temp 27°F) and rocking out to Jane Child, I have time to recount my travels with Smamacita y Esteban (the Spanish names for Smother and Stan).
Well, as previously posted, heaven is not located in the skies or the great unknown, but rather about 5k from the Juan Santamaría International Airport; it is better known as The Marriott.
We boot-scooted out at a brisk 8 am though, there was much country to see and we could not relax in heaven forever. We bused to La Fortuna with a group of Swedish women, they laughed a lot and had a full foldout map of Costa Rica. La Fortuna is central, a little nothern, and at the base of the Arenal Volcano. And literally AT THE BASE of the Arenal Volcano is Las Lomas del Volcan, aka our hotel. Should you chose to google this hotel, I assure you their photos do not do the pool justice, as that is where we spent the afternoon admiring our (almost) view of the peak.
We had an afternoon hike to view this active volcano (fun fact: because there is such a concentration of elements with high melting points which I can't remember right now, the volcano only spews solid rocks, NO LIQUID LAVA, so suck on that Hawaii.) Our hike was with some fun Spaniards, well most were fun, there was one odd man we named Slingblade and his ladyfriend, but they mostly kept to themselves. While the viewing of the Volcano was not the fire-show we'd hoped for, the hike was actually really fun and we saw some serious spiders (see the pictures that I'm sure Smamacita will soon post).
Afterwards we went to Tabacón Hot Springs, it was like Glenwood Hot Springs, only at least 5 independent, clear, uncrowded pools with a swim-up bar, so wait- it was nothing like Glenwood Hot Springs. We enjoyed a few Imperials on tap, Smamcita rather chose a long island and then the three of us went down the waterslide train style- no bloody noses! Dinner was this feast of the gods buffet, and I even got a little shotglass of arroz con leche for dessert. Esteban befriended a nice waiter and mercifully snagged us a separate table from the group, who we liked for the most part, except Slingblade and his ladyfriend.
The next day we got up to go horsebackriding (is that one word?) to la cataracta de La Fortuna (La Fortuna Falls). Smamacita is fairly confident our guide was con goma (hungover) because he said he was sleepy and he reminded her of Ryan when he is hungover. Our horses were named Sudden Death, Killer and Terminator... supposedly. Truly they lacked the fire within that would have necessitated the goofy helmets (a surprising show of safety in an otherwise regulationless nation).
To truly understand the waterfalls you must see Smamacita's photos (both of my cameras are malfunctioning. I know, I don't want to talk about it). The falls were spectacular, they look like what Splash Mountain seemed to be when you were 5 at Disneyland. On the way back we stopped for a presentation about the Malekus, one of the 2 remaining indigenous tribes of Costa Rica. The only thing I remember is that as a greeting they knock on each other shoulders as if knocking on a door and say Kapi Kapi.
As I write this and my eyes grow heavy, I realize so, too, must yours. So I am cutting this post at La Fortuna, and you shall have to wait for baited breath to see what excitement is yet to be told of Puerto Viejo de Talamanca...
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