Our ascent into the mountains.
Today we ventured into the mountains of Costa Rica to Monteverde. About two thirds of the way there were paved roads, but the last third was nothing but dirt and rocks. After a long, bumpy, twisted ride, we arrived at our hotel. The staff welcomed us with fresh lemonade (which was delicioso) before we each did our own things (most of us walked into the center of the town and poked around in various souvenir shops).
We’re so high we can practically reach out and touch the clouds.
We all went to dinner at the Treehouse Restaurante & Cafe where we enjoyed listening to live music (including “Wonderwall,” “Black Magic Woman,” and “Gravity,” among others). As the name suggests, the restaurant is located in the middle of a tree, so it was pretty cool to say the least. Some of us were having too much fun to leave; others were getting tired after a long day of traveling, so those who were tired (myself included) returned to the hotel while the others stayed to enjoy the music and atmosphere a little longer.
The walk back was short and dry, but as I write this it is pouring out, which is expected since it is their rainy season here in Costa Rica. You learn to always have a rain jacket with you, even if the skies are clear. Upon returning to my room, I was greeted by 3 rather large beetles which frightened me. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it were Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, but they weren’t those kinds of Beatles. Luckily one of the men in our group had walked back with us and was staying in the room next door so he chased them away for me (after he had a photo shoot with them first). Then when I was getting ready for bed I saw a daddy long leg spider crawling across the floor. I still had my sneakers on so I gathered up my courage and killed him (after the third attempt). Needless to say I have the heebie jeebies now, so I zipped up all my bags and I’m probably going to stay up until my roommates get back. Close encounters with bugs you don’t like tend to get the adrenaline going and wake you up.
Tomorrow we are scheduled to tour the rainforest and later a butterfly garden and a reptile and amphibian exhibit. I’m looking forward to these events, and I hope I see some animals up close and personal (no bugs though), and take some awesome pictures.