Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

[BND1999]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: loops</div><div class="ubbcode-body">you know the deal...a third spanish, a third facial expressions and a third hand waving. lol </div></div>

now you're talking.... thats it for sure..... scharades...

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

ennyways...i wish i could say i have pics from this road trip, but i don't. we did pretty well once we found our way out of Quepos and up the main road to Jaco...until we headed inland. Somewhere in Esparza we got turned around again...discovered this only when several miles up the road we stopped for a brew and i found some english speaking folks. Are we headed for San Ramon? San Ramon she says...we just came from there...pointing to the road we just came from. SIGH. little backtracking to do after this nasty Imperial....in the meantime, here's some costa ricans. you can see why i don't take people pics.



the wrong turns had us both stressing a little...so i was hesitant to ask the hubby to pull over cause i saw something pretty to shoot. lol once we found the right road inland...its was up and down over and around...gorgeous drive through two cloud forests high high in the mtns...reminiscent of the blues. the area appeared to be an agri area specializing in plants for the foreign houseplant markets. a patchwork of tropical plants for miles and miles. amazing, with a few waterfalls falling over the higher hills. we'd drive through misty areas here and there...stopping once more in a little area called Los Lagos for a break. I noticed the gal there was decorated for christmas already....lol...i guess when you don't celebrate thanksgiving, the decorating starts even earlier. we also noticed roadside vendors selling straw creches, i'd say the equivalent of our roadside christmas wreath sales here.

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

after a long day of driving, we finally arrived at our destination for the next 3 nights. The Arenal Volcano....it's has been continually active since 1968. it was late in the afternoon and the area was shrouded in mist, little did we know it would stay that way for the whole time we were there....well, actually mist is a kind word for much of this stay. oh well, i'm still enjoying myself. heck, we've arrived in time to see the Pats and Colts play. Middle of the 3rd quarter, Pats down....but go on to win the game! We chuckled our butts off laughing at the commentary in spanish. it sounded something like babble babble babble Tom Brady! babble babble babble Peyton Manning hahahahah...we loved it so much we listened to the after game recap too. [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/704555_dwl.gif[/img]

here's our cabina at The Arenal Paraiso Lodge

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

the cabins here were pretty basic, with a front porch facing the volcano and a back porch facing the rainforest, and ranchlands in the distance. we sat on the front porch wondering where the volcano was while we drank our coffee. it's a good thing we were up early because for a brief moment, the right slope appeared, then the left, and finally the whole Arenal appeared before us. 3mins later it was gone...very mystical place this was, you can see why much folklore is associated with volcanoes. the misty clouds seem to sorround the thing all day, at times wanting to lift and teasing you with a peak of a slope, then just as quickly, the misty clouds would roll in again, enveloping the whole volcano. grrrrrrrrr....and oooooooooo at the same time. lol

we were glad to have a car here, as the road beyond the hotel was interesting and reminded us of driving the paper company roads at camp, except it was more of a jungle than a forest with bromeliads growing thick on all the trees...amazing. we took a drive up to Arenal lake which is the biggest lake in the country, 20 miles long, manmade. I imagined how much prettier this would be if i could just see the damn volcano...oh well. We drove the dirt road behind the volcano to the Arenal Observatory lodge, when its clear and you go here at night, the volcano is a show of spewing lava! damn the weather.

[R00TS]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

[img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/704555_dwl.gif[/img] remebering we laffed so hard during football in Mexico also

babble babble !BOOM! babble [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/704555_dwl.gif[/img]

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

next time i go here, i'm bringing a thin raincoat. there was so much to do here, but it seemed every time i stepped off the porch with my camera, the mist would turn to rain.

i made lemonade and shot flowers much of the time.




our love for bird watching saved us here as we find them a constant source of enjoyment...oh yeah...did i mention they have 8 hot springs on the property? lots of hot springs in the area.

[BND1999]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

bummer about the weather... especially having wanted to see the volcanoes so much..... guess you will have to go back..

my first volcanoes were in guatemala last year..... majestic.. quite a few of them... but when the clouds rolled in.. they sank low.. almost stuck inside them.. looked like snow...

ok.. ill come back for more later... time to dress

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...



the next day we vowed to get out and see something regardless what fell from the sky...we headed out fairly early to check out the Hanging Bridges at Arenal. Back on the road up towards the dam and lake...we soon came across this creature in the road.



it's a coatamundi...we're told usually you see one, there are many behind.

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

the hanging bridges were very cool. they're located in a corridor followed by birds migrating from north to south america, the trails and bridges bring you close to the birds, floweres and lush vegetation of the primary rain forest, thanks to a series of hanging bridges and beautiful trails.









see what i mean about the bromeliads? this one was attached to a vine hanging in mid air.

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

scuse me while i upload a few more shots and try to get something done around here.

brb [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif[/img]

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...





found this fat girl on the trail.

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

another hiker along the trail spotted this large poisonous snake curled up beside the trail. hows this for a nice pic?




yep, thought the batteries need replacing...but not so! that's right folks...the pic comes out better when you take the lens cap off! duh. [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/ideathink.gif[/img]

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...



ok...lens cap removed, we continue our hike through the canopy.



you can see the edge of Lake Arenal in the distance.

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...







this last pic from the hanging bridges was supposed to be a volcano view. DAMN the weather.

[loops]

Re: Join me on the country bus to Costa Rica...

on the other hand....we were really fortunate that we weren't rained on at any time throughout this 2 mile hike...so blessings are appreciated.

after we left there, we decided to check out another lodge down the road i had considered, but rejected due to the location. Arenal Lodge was high up in the same area so we stopped by to take in the place...and it was stunning. I would def choose this next time, knowing now that the trek is not that bad. The lodge is more intimate and remote...much our preference...with beautiful gardens and a great infinity pool. The bartender there told us he feeds a blue macaw on the property, but he wasn't to be seen today. Still, they had an incredible variety of wildlife/birds/flowers up here. As we sat, the day gave way to mist, then finally outright pouring. sighhhhhhhh.

at least not before i got a few pics up here.



this is a painted oxcart, a folkloric symbol of costa rica.