Sugar cane fields line the Pan American Highway. The road is smooth and long, and when Olivier our guide stopped talking I shut my eyes.
98.5% of the population here are connected to electricity; a further 1% get their energy from solar panels. It’s a peaceful country because they abolished their army in 1949. A brave move, given that the world had just seen the Second World War.
First stop was a town called Sarchi for a look round a huge souvenir shop (my kinda place!) and a look at a church and the biggest Oxcart in Costa Rica. Obviously I bought a sloth magnet.
Then we drove on to Arenal and had lunch - vegetarian dishes are basically the same as meat dishes without the meat and maybe some extra veg. Not complaining though!
We walked around the restaurant and saw a crocodile. Then we drove to a viewing point for Volcan Arenal. I missed the walking sticks you could pick up and just traipsed up the hill alone.
Finally we arrived at Baldi Hot Springs resort. We got a wristband allowing us in, and our guide showed us where to pick up a towel and a locker. And then he left us to our own devices.
I tried to the giant jacuzzi first, and then one of the hot pools. I opened a tab at the bar and found a pool bar in warm water. I sat on the WiFi drinking and just enjoying life.
Dinner was a buffet and I ate too much, trying to sober up. Then we waited for our bus back and I got home about 9.30. Such a long day!
This morning was an even earlier start - 7.10am pick up. Just me and two Mexicans being driven to the resort of Land in Love.
Straight away, I was taken by Joel, aka “Cookie”, to the equipment shed and I went to do my first activity - the Superman. A zip line where you fly on your front. It was fun, I hadn’t done anything like that before.
I arrived at the end greeted by a huge group of Costa Ricans. and I joined them to do the twin cables. That was okay.
Back at the equipment shed, I got unhooked and into the van only to be called out again to do the Canopy tour. I joined a different group of Costa Ricans - this time a couple and 4 very excitable teenagers. For some it was their first time zip lining - you could tell from their screams. Generally it was fun but a bit boring - until I did the Tarzan Swing where I just launched off a platform and swung out into the rainforest. I was the only one who did it. After that, a few more zip lines and I was sent back alone to reception to go on a hike.
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| sexy Superman outfit |
Reunited with Cookie and the two Mexicans from my drive from San Jose, we walked through the forest with information about the trees and plants. Everything Cookie said to taste was horrible. A toxic plant when cut open smelt like dog crap. We saw a coati and her babies, and a chameleon.
Back in the reception I had lunch - lots of rice, beans and vegetables. I was told I had 30 minutes to relax before my last two activities: Canyoning and horse riding. This 30 minutes turned into 70 and we finally went canyoning. At the beginning it was slow going getting people roped up and sent down but there were plenty of guides which meant we could pick up the pace. The water wasn’t too cold and we only got wet up to our stomachs.
I was asked at the end if I wanted to do the Tarzan swing with everyone else but I said no - I wanted to get to the horse riding, and I’d already done it in the morning.
So I jumped into a car and was taken to the stable. I was introduced to the horses and chose Star, because she looked smaller. If she was smaller, she sure doesn’t eat like she is. She eats like, well, like a horse. At one point she got a leaf stuck in her teeth and I managed to stop her and pull it out for her. She’d been trying to shake it out for 5 or 10 minutes.
Doing horse riding straight after canyoning meant I solidified the bruising on my thighs from the harnesses, and added bruises to my bum. How does anyone cope with a horse galloping without getting a massive headache and a bruise on their coccyx?
We trotted up to the top of the hills as the sunset and it was beautiful - mist and lights twinkling through it in the distance. We trotted back down and underneath the canopy the air was slightly warmer. It got dark very fast. I was dropped off at Reception, my final activity of the day finished.
I changed into my dry clothes and immediately got in a van for the long journey back. Sunday night traffic, I watched a poodle enjoy the wind in its hair out of a car window. Another long day.
24th & 25th Febrero - Arenal Hot Springs and Land in Love
Watched: The Fall, of course. I finished it.
Ate: vegetables, rice and beans
Drank: juice, water and Caipirinhas!
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