Hola!
I don`t remember the last time I updated, so I`ll just recap this past weekend.
On Thursday, Sarah and I left for Playa Tamarindo, a surf town on the northern pacific coast. The bus ride was about 5 hours, and after getting lost a little bit when we got off the bus in Tamarindo, we finally found the hostel. We stayed at Tamarindo Backpackers. It was a cute place, but there was barely anyone staying there. We went out in search of food and wound up at a little fast food joint. After a long day of working in the hospital and traveling, we hit the sack.
On Friday, we slept in a bit and then went to the beach. The beach was beautiful! Supposedly, it is famous for its waves, but the waves were just mediocre. That was fine by me, though, because it meant I could swim without getting crushed in the surf! We saw a man and his dog surfing together! This dog can surf better than I can!After a long, relaxing day on the beach, we walked around town, grabbed some dinner, and went to a couple bars where we met a big group of Americans studying abroad in San Jose.
Saturday was another day of relaxing on the beach :) In the afternoon, we went ziplining! It was sooo much fun! We saw a bunch of wildlife, including a family of holwer monkeys! And I took plenty of pictures :) After, we went back to the beach to catch the sunset! It was beautiful! Suddenly, a huge storm rolled in so we had to leave the beach. We walked back into town to get dinner, but ALL of the power was out! It was dark, rainy, and extremely muddy, and all we wanted was dinner! We finally found a grocery store that was open, but we had to search for food in the dark! We decided on mac n cheese. That ended up being a really dumb decision, since we had no way to cook it back at the hostel, because the power was out!
After we were finally able to eat dinner, we got cleaned up and headed out to a club. On our way there, we had to slosh through roads of wet clay and mud. By the time we got there, we were covered in mosquito bites and mud. But, it ended up being a fun night anyway.
Sunday was out last day in Tamarindo. We woke up early and went for a walk on the beach. It was low tide, so we were able to collect lots of pretty shells :) Then, we checked out of the hostel at 10:30am to catch the bus, which didn´t come until 11:30am. The bus we took took us about 75km to Liberia, where we would connect to another bus. It should have been a short ride, but the bus stopped in every single town along that 75km stretch, so it took about 3 hours. Once wew got to Liberia, we had to wait about 2 more hours to catch the bus to San Jose. Then, we had to ride that bus for 4 more hours! When we got to San Jose, we took a cab (that cheated us) to the house, and FINALLY got home around 8:30pm. Needless to say, it was a long, annoying day.
Then, we started another week (my last week) in the hospital.
Of course, now that I´m almost leaving, I´m starting to feel at home in San Jose. We´ve been able to go out more- we´ve seen a few movies, and last night we went to a bar downtown. I´m not afraid to walk through the town alone, catch a cab or bus, or speak to Ticos anymore! I´ve been getting more comfortable with my host family, so it´s sad that I´ll be leaving in just a few days. This time has gone by so fast, and I´ve considered extending my program, but I don´t think I have the money!
Today was my last day in the hospital, and it was a good last day. We played with a bunch of little girls, and they were so sweet! Afterwards, we went downtown to an artisans market to do a little shopping. I got a Costa Rica hammock that I´ve been wanting the whole time I´ve been here :)
As for now, I´m planning my trip for this weekend... to Panama!
Hasta luego!!
Comments: (1)
Buenos!
I´ve been in Costa Rica now for 3 weeks. I have 2 weeks left until I´m home…
Last Friday, we went white water rafting in the Pacuare River- it was AMAZING! If you ever go to CR, you have to go there! The rapids were awesome, but the scenery was just unreal! I took my waterproof camera, so I´ll be able to post pics once I get it developed.
After that, we took a long ride to La Fortuna, the town surrounding the Arenal Volcano. When you think about a typical volcano, you probably think of something similar to Arenal. We tried to get a room at the hostel, but it was full. Instead we got to stay at a nice, cheap hotel with an amazing view of the volcano. Apparently, it erupted a little bit on Friday night but we were all sleeping. On Saturday, we walked around the city in 107 degree weather, and then went on a tour in the rainforest surrounding the volcano. After that, we went to the Baldi Hot Springs. The hot springs were really neat. It was a huge complex, with a ton of different pools to go in. However, I think there would be some serious problems with this park if it were in the US. First, I saw only about 3 lifeguards. Second, there were tons of creepy paths that were too dark to walk down. Third, there were very few lights in the pools, and fourth, the waterslides were very painful. Also, we made the mistake of not wearing shoes while walking around- the ground was not meant for bare feet! But other than that, it was a lot of fun, and very relaxing!
The next day we visited Catarata La Fortuna, the waterfall by the volcano. It was so beautiful and pristine. We swam in the water surrounding it, and it was so refreshing after climbing down about 1000 steps to get there. Pics will be up eventually...
Then, it was back to San Jose. There was nothing eventful that happened during the week, besides taking care of crying babies and cute kids. We did go to see the Prince of Persia, though. After volunteering on Thursday, we caught a bus heading to Puerto Viejo. Puerto Viejo is a small beach town on the southern Caribbean coast with a very Jamaican feel.
On Thursday night, we checked into the hostel- Rocking J`s. The hostel was huge! It had a whole floor of just tents. You could sleep in a tent or a hammock for a few bucks a night, but we rented a private room for the 3 of us. There was a bar and a restaurant attached, and the hostel sat right on the beach.
Friday, we rented bikes and rode 7k down to Playa Uva and Playa Manzanillo. They were both beautiful, but we decided to stay at Manzanillo for the day. The water was clear, and there were tons of palm trees and a few fishing boats in the water. There was also very few people there. But, it gave me the worst sealice I have ever gotten in my life :(
After a few hours on the beach, we rode back to the hostel, cleaned up, and explored the town. We went shopping and got dinner. We hung out at the hostel for the rest of the night. There was a live band that played for someone´s birthday party. It was a fun night!
On Saturday, we slept in some and then walked down the road about 10 minutes to another beach. It was also beautiful, but the weather was really overcast, which was disappointing. After a few hours, we headed back to the hostel, where I read and fell asleep in a hammock. Once again, we went out for dinner and then came back to the hostel and hung out with people from all over the world.
Sunday morning we left the hostel and headed back for San Jose.It was sad to get back to the city because I really didn´t want to leave Puerto Viejo. But, this weekend holds a new adventure, probably to Playa Tamarindo on the Pacific coast.
I´ve been in Costa Rica now for 3 weeks. I have 2 weeks left until I´m home…
Last Friday, we went white water rafting in the Pacuare River- it was AMAZING! If you ever go to CR, you have to go there! The rapids were awesome, but the scenery was just unreal! I took my waterproof camera, so I´ll be able to post pics once I get it developed.
After that, we took a long ride to La Fortuna, the town surrounding the Arenal Volcano. When you think about a typical volcano, you probably think of something similar to Arenal. We tried to get a room at the hostel, but it was full. Instead we got to stay at a nice, cheap hotel with an amazing view of the volcano. Apparently, it erupted a little bit on Friday night but we were all sleeping. On Saturday, we walked around the city in 107 degree weather, and then went on a tour in the rainforest surrounding the volcano. After that, we went to the Baldi Hot Springs. The hot springs were really neat. It was a huge complex, with a ton of different pools to go in. However, I think there would be some serious problems with this park if it were in the US. First, I saw only about 3 lifeguards. Second, there were tons of creepy paths that were too dark to walk down. Third, there were very few lights in the pools, and fourth, the waterslides were very painful. Also, we made the mistake of not wearing shoes while walking around- the ground was not meant for bare feet! But other than that, it was a lot of fun, and very relaxing!
The next day we visited Catarata La Fortuna, the waterfall by the volcano. It was so beautiful and pristine. We swam in the water surrounding it, and it was so refreshing after climbing down about 1000 steps to get there. Pics will be up eventually...
Then, it was back to San Jose. There was nothing eventful that happened during the week, besides taking care of crying babies and cute kids. We did go to see the Prince of Persia, though. After volunteering on Thursday, we caught a bus heading to Puerto Viejo. Puerto Viejo is a small beach town on the southern Caribbean coast with a very Jamaican feel.
On Thursday night, we checked into the hostel- Rocking J`s. The hostel was huge! It had a whole floor of just tents. You could sleep in a tent or a hammock for a few bucks a night, but we rented a private room for the 3 of us. There was a bar and a restaurant attached, and the hostel sat right on the beach.
Friday, we rented bikes and rode 7k down to Playa Uva and Playa Manzanillo. They were both beautiful, but we decided to stay at Manzanillo for the day. The water was clear, and there were tons of palm trees and a few fishing boats in the water. There was also very few people there. But, it gave me the worst sealice I have ever gotten in my life :(
After a few hours on the beach, we rode back to the hostel, cleaned up, and explored the town. We went shopping and got dinner. We hung out at the hostel for the rest of the night. There was a live band that played for someone´s birthday party. It was a fun night!
On Saturday, we slept in some and then walked down the road about 10 minutes to another beach. It was also beautiful, but the weather was really overcast, which was disappointing. After a few hours, we headed back to the hostel, where I read and fell asleep in a hammock. Once again, we went out for dinner and then came back to the hostel and hung out with people from all over the world.
Sunday morning we left the hostel and headed back for San Jose.It was sad to get back to the city because I really didn´t want to leave Puerto Viejo. But, this weekend holds a new adventure, probably to Playa Tamarindo on the Pacific coast.
"If Heaven´s not all it´s cracked up to be, send me back to Puerto Viejo!"
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