Hot Springs, Lake Arenal and Rio Tarcoles

Rocky can tell you all about why hot springs happen but that's not my area of expertise. So, if you want to know all the details... just ask him!

Anyhow, we heard about the hot springs around Arenal and we were definitely interested in checking it out but were trying to conserve funds and didn't know about spending the money to go to the hot springs resort.

AND THEN... we were told to park near the resort and look for a yellow gate... that's the FREE HOT SPRINGS area where all the locals go. So we set out to the hot springs on our way out of Arenal.

This is what you see when you walk down from the gate:

It's refreshing yet odd to be in a hot river...

Rocky is always doing something to make me laugh. I call him Monkey Man.

There were tons of these cute little lizards all over the place and Rocky caught a few great shots.

One of the best things about this place is that there's almost no one there. We found many candles burned all the way down and apparently it's a fairly popular place to hang out at night. There's one spot you can stand with one foot in the cold and one foot in the hot where the two rivers come together. Just weird!!

As we drove around the lake we were admiring the view and started to look for a place to eat. We found a place called India Pelado and were amazed before we even walked through the doors. The building was painted in elaborate murals that were absolutely incredible. The inside of the restaurant was also painted in the same style and there were paintings hung on the walls. We met the owner and asked about the paintings. HE WAS THE PAINTER! After talking with him, we learned that he simply picked up a brush two years prior and started to paint, no instruction. He was really an amazing person and the food was fantastic!! We sat and watched the World Cup, drank a beer and enjoyed some awesome food!!!

We got all his contact information and took a photo of him. I can definitely see him growing into a pretty big deal with this kind of skill.

On the way home, we stopped at the Rio Tarcoles Bridge near Jaco to see the 30 foot Crocodiles!!! THEY WERE HUGE!!!! And there were so many of them! Everywhere! I can only imagine how many of them were out of sight if that many of them were IN SIGHT!! That's definitely a river I don't want to swim in...

I just want to wear my green rain jacket and growl at them from a very safe distance...

Volcano Arenal

A six hour drive up a long and winding road - and one more flat tire, a drive down a very long gravel road and up a very steep gravel hill that I really wondered if we were going to conquer - later, we could see Volcano Arenal. Just to set your sight on this volcano is incredible. It's said to be the third most active volcano in the world. They didn't even know it was a volcano until 1960, when it erupted and destroyed two villages.

We were referred to "a wonderful place that's a bit of a drive out of the way" called Essence Arenal. When they described this place as a Backpackers Resort, they really meant it. This is nicer than any hostel I've ever seen. We opted to get a private room with a private bath. The view is amazing. You can see the volcano right from the window.

Nico, the owner, is an extremely warm and welcoming person. He makes everyone feel like they're right at home. I say it's his fault that we stayed the extra night than what we were planning. There was a gourmet chef on staff at all times with a fabulous total vegetarian menu and a communal dinner every night at 7PM. Part of the dinner process was that each person got to participate in making a part of the meal - one night we learned how to make our own crepes, another night was Moroccan bread.

Fantastic meals:

Banana Pancakes

Eggplant something or other that was just absolutely to DIE for!!!

View from the front porch

Rocky being silly (LOVE this photo!!)

We took a horseback ride through the mountains to a beautiful waterfall with a tico who we exchanged some English-Spanish lessons with. We had so much fun. Rocky had never been on a horse before, so it was also sort of entertaining for me. He seemed to take to it pretty naturally though. Then our horses were competing for the front of the line and I just could not stop laughing as they're galloping away.

Beautiful waterfall...

Small note: Costa Rica does not make good wine!!! We were warned but we just had to try it for ourselves...

After a nice walk on the trail and an interesting talk with the howler monkeys and seeing some very interesting bugs and insects, it was time to say goodbye and head out. Hasta Luego, NICO!!

Fun Times in the Alajuela and San Jose

Good Morning, Costa Rica!! This house has so many great views. The old windows in the bedroom overlook the street and part of the neighborhood. It feels much later when you wake up here because the sun rises between 530a and 6a, much earlier than back home. 

The back deck of the house is a better view of some greenery and more homes. It's so easy to get lost in being here and forget that there's somewhere else you call home.

One of the fun parts of traveling is all the new and exciting things you experience that you didn't expect. We woke up the next morning and wanted to make breakfast so we start checking out the kitchen to see what we're going to cook. Eggs. Check. Rice. Check. Beans. Check. Fruit. No fruit? What? How can we have no fruit in Costa Rica??? Oooohhh, we have to go out on the balcony and get the papaya out of the tree!! This is going to be interesting....
Attempt #1: Fail.

Attempt #2: Fail

Attempt #3: SCORE!!

Oh, what a yummy breakfast!!! Rocky is a great cook to boot!

We went to the market, bought some fruit and a huge pineapple. We got back to the house and decided to go to Galileo Hostel and hang out at their bar, The Rugged Pineapple.

A couple of Hashers moved down to Costa Rica to open this hostel and they are pretty awesome. Brian "Seizure Salad" and Mer "Monthly Cycle" run the hostel, which is always beaming with life, energy and new meetings. The bar is usually a pretty happening place to meet people as well. We had a great time hanging out with Tyson, the bartender and decided to stay the night. A good time had by all!!

The TicoMobile

The directions and addresses in Costa Rica are all based on landmarks and if you don't know these landmarks, you'll be totally lost. Most of the streets don't have names and the ones that do have names are not marked with signs. A typical example of directions would be "go past the Burger King, turn right to get on the highway, go under three bridges, take the exit where the dog died and take the second left after the Coca Cola bus stop" That doesn't seem so crazy, right? Except how the heck are you supposed to know where the dog died and the Coca Cola Plant is not there anymore. Combine that with the one-way streets, enough potholes to make you want to cry, motorcyclists and cyclists that basically have no rules on the road and the car drivers are just as crazy... AAAARRGGHHHHH
So, what does this give us the great idea to do?? RENT A CAR!!!
When we considered the cost , we realized it would be pricey... Not to mention that the locals recognize a rental and you can't leave anything of value in your car for risk of a break-in. However, Rocky would only be here for 12 days (really 10 days of fun) so having our own means of transportation would allow us to see and do a great deal more than relying on public transportation.

Max said he had a Tico friend who would rent us a car for half the price we'd pay at a rental company. We decided to go for it and ended up with "The TicoMobile." This was a metallic, electric blue, 1992 Nissan Sentra with an a/c system that only works on full blast! haha Really, it was great. It's 4 cylinder, great on gas, 4 door and best of all it had local plates. AND we're off!!!

Thank goodness we had a gps system that we borrowed. Otherwise, we'd never find our way around. The first night we had the car, we hit a pot hole and got two flat tires. In the dark. On a busy road. In a country where neither of us spoke the local language. Fortunately, we found a very kind Tico guy, Fabian, who helped us with everything and took us to a tire shop and we got everything taken care of. Whew.... what a night!!

Next stop: Volcano Arenal!

Bienvenidos a Costa Rica

So, I arrive at Juan Santamaria Airport in Alajuela, just out of San Jose and David's house mate, Max picked me up. Immediately, I could see this was a different world. There is so much GREEN everywhere. Granted, this is the rainy season and plants do like rain...

So many people here ride bicycles and motorcycles and the motorcyclists have basically no rules on the road as long as they're wearing a helmet and a reflective vest and most of them don't even do that. They weave in and out of traffic with seemingly no regard to their own safety or that of anyone else on the road. The roads are so neglected that you have to dodge potholes like you're playing a video game. The ride home from the airport was interesting, to say the least.

I was very lucky that David offered me to stay in this home even if he couldn't make it back down to Costa Rica by the time I got down there. I don't know how else to describe his home better than basically a big tree house. It's part inside, part outside, cloths for bedroom doors, solar shower, the kitchen opens up to a nine foot deep pool with no roof covering it. There are trees and plants throughout the house with incredible glass doors and windows and plenty of natural light. The balcony and the top deck are both great places to watch the sunset. It's absolutely gorgeous!

Later that night, we picked up Rocky from the airport and spent a quiet night at the house since he got in pretty late. It was nice to see his face and I was very excited that he wanted to come share part of this adventure with me.

Naji Wedding at The Royal in Playa Del Carmen

A short transfer bus and an even shorter taxi ride, totaled about 50 pesos ($5 USD) delivered me to The Royal Hotel in Playa Del Carmen. This place is amazing! It's right on the ocean and the entire property is spectacular. Iguanas and several bird species roam the grounds.




When I booked the reservation, most of the others had already done theirs. Omar suggested I try to room with Ricky and Frank to get a cheaper rate but when I asked, it actually was cheaper to get my own room... and it's FABULOUS!! This is seriously royal treatment. The beds are incredibly comfortable, there's a hot tub in the room and every room has its own balcony. Of course it's an all inclusive resort, so there's no additional charge for things like dining at any one of the six restaurant, wine, beer, liquor, room service or the the in-room mini bar, complete with a four-bottle personal liquor dispensor. I didn't even spend enough time in my room to even touch anything in the mini bar other than the crackers and a Sprite that I took with me when I left.


As everyone gets settled in, we all mingle and take full advantage of the amenities. A few of us find an inviting space at the lobby bar and make quick friends with the bartender, Tony, who they nicknamed "Teabag Tony" and he seemed to be just fine with that.


Meeting the familys of the bride and groom were some of the highlights of the evening. Everyone was just so happy to be there and be a part of this special occasion for two amazing people, Omar and Nelinda.


The wedding was perfect! The ceremony took place in the sand, ocean side and there were 30 of us in attendance. The simplicity and setting made it a very intimate experience. The white setting, including the bride and groom and guest's attire was nothing less than beautiful. There was a champagne toast immediately after the ceremony and a cocktail reception at the cabana. The dinner party was as delicious as it was entertaining, filled with the cutting of the cake, toasts to the bride and groom, dancing and LOTS of tequila shots!

The next morning we went to Omar and Nelinda's penhouse suite to say congratulations again and head to the airport, while they stayed and enjoyed their honeymoon.

CONGRATULATIONS TO MR AND MRS OMAR AND NELINDA NAJI!!

Mexico #2 (yes, I realize it's severely delayed)

I thought the rain would never stop! As soon as it did, I took my chances and went for a walk down to the marina with Mumpkin. The path to the marina and shops was gorgeous! There is a long paved side walk that weaves in and out of the gold courses and along the bay. The neighborhood is quiet, calm and beautiful. The homes are simple and definitely have an influence of Indian. This area is in the same neighborhood as a major hotel so there is a bit of commercialism and tourism is high.

I came across a sign near the bay that caught my attention and I actually stopped to consider the possibility of buying a water-front villa in Puerto Aventuras for under $70k USD... this would be a nice vacation spot....

My accommodations were very comfortable. I had my own bedroom and bathroom. I loved the tiles in the bathroom and it took me just a second to realize why the faucets were labeled F and C, rather than C and H. I felt a little silly when it dawned on me that I was in another country where a different language is used.

When I got to the marina area, I found various stores, shops and restaurants. A wide selection of Mexican handmade gifts, trinkets, clothing, silver and lots of tequila lined the shelves of these establishments. I arrived just in time for the Dolphin Discovery dolphin and manatee show. From what I understand, Dolphin Discovery removed the fence between the park and the ocean last year and allowed the animals to leave in an attempt to introduce them into the wild and every animal returned the next day.

It's always been amazing to me how intelligent dolphins are. They really do have strong personalities and respond so well to human emotion. There were some students who were not as comfortable getting close to the dolphins as others. The instructors would have thedolphins approach the hesitant students and it was apparent that the dolphins were feeding off the hesitance of the humans and were slow and gentle to touch and nuzzle.

Just around the corner from the house, down the main road and under the overpass for the highway, there's a small taqueria called El Arbolita. They open at 6a and close when they run out of food. For less than 30 pesos ($3 USD), you get three tacos with your choice of filling and a fresh pineapple juice drink. Best Mexican Breakfast EVER!!