tropical holiday

well i'd been itching for some international travel for quite some time. i managed to make a break long enough for a little sojourn in december, taking advantage of the christmas/new years holidays. my mother and i decided on costa rica (i voted for mexico, but no matter). we were both anxious for some international travel but didn't think we had enough time to venture too far.

we flew into san jose, naturally, of which we saw very little. we took a taxi directly to our hotel in alajuela around 10 in the evening, where we were greeted by the gregarious night owl owner and shown to a room that was practically on top of the local church. lovely view. we even managed to connect to the internet and watch part of wedding crashers in spanish before hitting the hay.

a rare glimpse at the lagoon below

up super early the next morning, we managed to watch the sun rise over the dome of the aforementioned church before heading down for a very quick breakfast. just as we were finishing, our taxi had arrived, set to shuttle us two sites up the mountain and back all before 1 so we could catch our next bus. ambitious, no? we first wound way, way up the mountain - marveling at our first real sights of costa rica along the way. what stood out most were the plentiful hydrangeas dotting the hillside and stands of fresh strawberries for sale around every bend in the road. our driver bought some and, thinking back, we should have, too. hindsight. we arrived at vulcan poás fairly early, in hopes of getting a good view of the volcano before the clouds completely obscured it. it was a bit of a walk to the actual crater overlook, and quite chilly at that hour (of course the one time on the trip when i misplaced my jacket), but we did stop to admire some interesting plant life along the way (and try out my very nice new camera). we lucked out and got a few glimpses of the lagoon inside the crater in between the rolling clouds that passed  - each view a little different than just seconds before. we never did get a totally clear shot but it's still pretty surreal to find yourself overlooking a volcano. it would've been nice to take the hike around the side of the crater - perhaps another time.

we hurried back a bit, eager to get to our next destination. we didn't see our driver at first so figured we'd give him a few minutes as we idly milled around the gift shop. deciding against any of their overpriced wares, we quickly made our way back outside. getting antsy now we searched the parking lot, wandered in and out of the cafe and even tried asking other drivers if they'd seen him (of course we had forgotten his name). we spent an anxious 20 minutes wondering what had happened to him before he approached us, somewhat sheepishly. i suspect he'd been having a little siesta in the cab. i tried to temper my annoyance when asking him what had happened but even so he seemed to feel bad so i backed off.

lovely patterns on this specimen

our next stop was the la paz waterfall gardens, a park and nature reserve that's quite secluded. the waterfalls were un-spectacular but the wildlife was wonderful. as we first entered, just a few feet away a coati was up on a feeding station having a snack, unfazed by our picture-clicking. i spent far too long admiring (and snapping pictures of) the butterflies in the butterfly house. fyi, if you want to test out the shutter speed on a camera, getting shots of butterflies isn't a bad way to do it. eventually my mother

such personality

prodded me to move along, but she didn't have much more luck with the bird house. all sorts of gorgeous birds! bright blues and emerald greens. making hilarious noises, too, i might add. i possibly spent even longer here, enjoying these beautiful creatures. and endlessly taking their pictures. we tried to move a little more swiftly through the other areas, though we did take some time to admire the brightly colored poison frogs and the nearly invisible tree frogs, as well as the elusive hummingbirds (my camera even passed that test, i'm happy to report). oh yes, and some waterfalls. ho hum. call me a killjoy but, apart from the biggies (victoria, niagara), i just don't get that jazzed about water falling down. still, we dutifully wound around the trail and ended up (where else) at a gift shop where a shuttle awaited us to return to the entrance.

from there it was back to the hotel, where we picked up our things and headed out. not finding any restaurants nearby (plenty of heladerias though) we opted to head toward the hotel where our bus would arrive. we made it there quickly and found the chicken joint our hotelier had suggested. inside it looked an awful lot like a chili's but, having few options, we went with it. good thing we did too - because it was some of the juiciest, most flavorful rotisserie chicken either of us had ever had. we savored it as best we could, nervous as we were about getting out to the bus stop. we needn't have worried because the shuttle bus was an expected 15 minutes late. still, we were glad to be in the right place and on the bus. we were in a large van with two other couples - both of whom seemed to talk endlessly. i wasn't interested in chit chatting or even eavesdropping, and their chatting made my reading nearly impossible. it was a rather annoying three hour ride, i'll admit. the scenery was pleasant enough - rolling green hills and coffee plantations. it was nearly dark when we finally reached la fortuna. our hotel (naturally) was the last stop, as it was a bit off the main road - over a very bumpy road we would later become well-acquainted with.

our hotel, villas eco arenal, seemed lovely but lacked a full-service restaurant. so after stretching our legs it was back into a cab and on our way into town. we walked around a bit before settling on what seemed to be a typical soda, the traditional simplistic cafe. we had the usual gallo pinto (rice and beans), some shredded pork and fanta, our vacation beverage of choice. the place seemed to be frequented by locals and we were happy with our meals.

orchids abound.. plus a little bug hanging on

the next morning we awoke early so i decided to take a leisurely stroll around the grounds. our hotel may have been a little farther removed from the town, but that afforded much more space which i think was well worth it. each room was in its own little cabin, and beyond them was a stream flanked by soaring palm trees and a little garden area that verged more on jungle territory.

purple plantains?

everything back there seemed to be tropical fuschia and bright green - even the plantains. i took my time trying to explore every plant from every angle in the low morning light. i even broke out the macro lens to try to capture the incredible flora and dewdrops. i must have been gone at least an hour and eventually my mom came to encourage me to head toward breakfast. it was delicious - perfectly fluffy scrambled eggs (accompanied by hot sauce) along with sausages, cheese and fresh fruit and juices. all this surrounded by chirping birds and tropical trees. a not altogether unpleasant way to start the day.

colorful companion

our first stop was to arenal hanging bridges, which we were both looking forward to. as we approached the start of the hike we had a lovely view of the active volcano, albeit from afar. it's hard to get too close to; even the river water nearby is more than 100 degrees. the major eruption in 1968 literally knocked out three towns, which is why the remaining one on the other side was renamed la fortuna. at any rate, our view of the volcano was made even more spectacular with this patient macaw preening himself and posing for the many cameras. i suppose the place must feed him periodically but he wasn't positioned there for our benefit, either. just a few minutes later i went back and he was gone. luckily we'd seen him in time to snap a few pictures of the beautiful bird.

our subsequent hike was perhaps not quite as stunning, but lots of fun. the majority of the hike was along trails on the edge of the rainforest on these not-so-great waffle-looking stones. the views were lovely though.

over and out

i guess i thought there would be more color but everything was just so green. incredible variety of plants, but all in one basic hue. at times it was even too dark to get decent pictures of plant details because the vegetation was so dense. the walk was punctuated, of course, by the hanging bridges. pretty amazing to walk so high above the rainforest floor, on just a suspended piece of metal. i had thought it might be nerve-wracking but i actually felt very secure, even looking down. what i worried about most was dropping my lens cap down all those hundreds of feet.

aptly named, as he was howling

we didn't see much wildlife throughout the hike, besides the hundreds of diligent leafcutter ants dutifully carrying their leaves - amazing to watch. one highlight, though, was the howler monkey we saw up close. he was showing off, howling and screeching atop one of the bridge cables (and of course backing up traffic with eager tourists). we were told later that they're the second loudest mammal in the world, after the blue whale. i'd believe it. we realized then that that was the animal we'd been hearing from our beds in the morning, not dogs. we learned later he was probably a male ousted from the group, now traveling on his own. judging by the sound of it, he didn't seem too happy with the arrangement.

maria and the mountain

we finished our walk and had a nice little lunch in their cafe, complete with a volcano-shaped mound of rice, topped with a tiny shrimp. then it was back to the hotel, where we rested our legs and soaked our feet poolside, as we journal-ed and postcard-ed. then out for our dusky evening hike around 4. we were picked up (as is standard with many such excursions) by the company in a larger shuttle van and carted over to the west side of the arenal volcano - the side whose towns were largely destroyed. we started off fairly close (well relatively speaking) to the volcanoes for some great views. there always seem to be clouds right above so i suppose they're actually smoke plumes pouring out of the volcano. incredible to think it could literally erupt at any moment. i enjoyed the view and also the pretty little plants down below. this pink number, our guide told us, is just called maria. or maybe he just made something up so i'd stop asking. he was very knowledgeable though, and led us through a path in the forest, pointing out all sorts of flora and fauna. there were some courting toucans that were just too far to see, although easy enough to hear. and, as we got deeper into the forest, massive termite homes on the sides of trees, bats flying up in the canopy, and monkey families high up in the foliage. we learned that most of the plant life in the rainforest doesn't touch the ground at all; it's growing on another plant. this explains why we saw bromedliads, like orchids, growing everywhere. i don't always like being led around by a guide but he was very knowledgeable and didn't rush anyone taking photos. so i approve.

after our hike we were dropped off in town to do a little exploring. we made it to a grocery store (plantain chips!) and a bookstore (pens for postcards!) before dinner, which we had at a little place that had been recommended. decent little steaks and delicious fruit shakes. we noticed the owner made a point of shaking everyone's hand before they left; she seemed very genuine. then back to the hotel to fight to stay awake until 10 again. vacations are exhausting!

sleepy sunbathing

the next day i was up early (around 6.. eesh) yet again so i spent it tramping around. it was a little cloudier but i still enjoyed finding spiderwebs and little buds to photograph. then breakfast with rice and beans plus delicious eggs. our bus arrived, this time with everyone on board before us, and then we headed back down the bumpy road. sorry, everyone! should've picked us up first! we had only gone about 40km before we stopped at the restaurante las iguanas. guess what they're famous for. go ahead, guess! as you may have surmised, the tree next to the eponymous cafe was full of iguanas. let me tell you, these guys make wonderful photography subjects because a) they're lazy and b) they enjoy lying in the sun. ah, an animal after my own heart. we were able to get some pretty good views and did even see a few move once in a while.

herons in flight

it was a quick pit stop, then we were back on the bus on our way to the caño negro wildlife refuge. once there, we piled onto a boat and began our river tour. the rio frio (a misnomer; evidently it's not cold at all) was rather brown and unremarkable, ditto the overcast sky. the wildlife made up for the lackluster scenery though.
our guide, again very good, pointed out all sorts of birds, including herons, anhingas and egrets.

curious little monkey

we even got close enough to the riverbanks to spot caimans sitting on the water's edge and bats sleeping on the underside of tree branches. we saw spider monkeys swinging from tree branches (how stereotypical) and even some very timid-looking white-faced monkeys venturing out on branches over the river. we did see one sloth (the holy grail of costa rican wildlife spotting) but, alas, it was up in the top of a tree and probably not coming down anytime soon. sigh. at any rate, once our boat had made it back to land we had a lunch of.. rice and beans, plus some veggies and rice pudding (more rice!). then back on the bus and back towards la fortuna. we had our christmas eve dinner in the fancy restaurant in town (which was mainly possible because we elected to eat at the bar; that place was hoppin'). peppery shrimp and scallop pasta and fancy crab and tilapia risotto. rice three times in one day, whoops.

as close as we could get

we awoke christmas morning, again early, and exchanged our final (and smallest) gifts before breakfast. we had a leisurely morning chasing down red-breasted blackbirds and yellow kiskadees (mostly unsuccessfully) before another delicious breakfast. then a trip to our splurge for the day - tabacón hot springs resort. we skipped the buffet lunch and opted for a day pass to the resort and it was as incredible as expected. it's the only hot springs that don't use any pumps or mechanical devices, just the natural force of gravity and the heat from the magma underneath the volcano.

i approve of this waterfall

we changed our clothes, got our locker and went to scope out a place to claim for our own for a while. the complex is incredible - dozens and dozens of waterfalls and lagoons over smooth rocks. there were lots of small secluded areas so that you could go hours without seeing any of the other hundred-odd people who were surely at this resort. to get to each spot you had to follow a maze of paths and bridges, which made it nearly impossible to know when you've seen the entire place. we got in the first pool near our lounge chairs - heavenly. hovering somewhere in the 90s and it felt like a dream. how surreal to know this water was heated by magma in a volcano and then cascaded down to fill the pool i was sitting in. we alternated between hot and cooler pools, interspersed with leisurely reading and cocktails in canopies under the shadow of the volcano. paradise, in other words. later in the afternoon we tried to see the rest of the grounds, happening upon more unusual plant life as well as an armadillo - who was so intent on eating whatever it was he was eating that we barely even registered. after another dip and another walk it began to get dark and we resigned ourselves to the fact that we'd eventually have to say goodbye to the glorious hot springs and change for dinner. our christmas dinner, buffet though it was, did not disappoint. i only wish i'd had room for more; everything was incredibly flavorful. all in all, a perfect christmas day.