We were tired, but we were also really excited! We got a little sleep on the plane and arrived in San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, around 1:00 in the afternoon. Once we were dropped off at our hotel, we got really vague directions to some tourist destinations, and we got lost in San Jose...which is not a very pretty city to get lost in!
We stuck by the busy areas and shopping centers, we wandered into a beautiful Catholic Church and then we finally found the Teatro Nacional that we were looking for!
We found our way back to our hotel and since it was getting dark, and we were told to stay in after dark, we just ate at the hotel restaurant. It was not cheap, but it was DELICIOUS! Ryan's meal, pictured below is a traditional Costa Rican dish consisting of rice, beans, plantains, chicken, pico de gallo, apple/potato sauce, lettuce with guacamole, and a friend egg...it was awesome! I got the traditional chicken and rice, which wasn't as exciting, but tasted great.
We bought some cans of beer and Cuba Libre (Rum & Cola) and hung out in the hotel, hitting the hay kinda early because we were so tired and had a day of traveling ahead of us.
We woke up Wednesday and were picked up to travel to Arenal. The road trip was fascinating because once we got out of San Jose (scary car ride!), we had beautiful scenery the whole way. We drove through mountains, and spotted volcanoes in the distance. The roads are narrow and curvy, but I decided to not freak out like I probably normally would and just enjoy the ride. Thanks to my Dramamine, I didn't even get car sick.
We stopped to use the restrooms at a cute little gift shop along the way. I bought some hand-carved wooden earrings for my sister and my mom and I used the FREE bathrooms. This is important, as I learned later, because most public restrooms charge you 500 colones (nearly a dollar) to use, and sometimes extra to get toilet paper.
When we arrived at our hotel in Arenal, we took a nature hike behind the resort. The hotel and surrounding gardens were absolutely beautiful...we already know we'd love to stay there again when we go back. And yes, we are SO going back to Costa Rica.
The hotel room had a patio off the back and we had a view directly to the volcano. It was absolutely stunning and I could have just sat on the patio all day looking at the volcano. It is so awe-inspiring to see something like a volcano so close, it was just beautiful.
We went on a Volcano Hike the next morning and it was quite a workout, but so worth it. We learned a lot about the area and the animals and our guide was really great. We had an excellent view of the Arenal Lake as well.
Unfortunately, Ryan was not feeling so great the rest of the day, so we skipped our afternoon horseback ride to the waterfall...that's on our agenda for the next trip ;) So I sat on the balcony taking in the view of the volcano while reading my book. I also went swimming by myself, which ended up being great because it was so relaxing.
The following morning, we left for the Monteverde Cloud Forest. Our trip was long, but it wasn't too bad because the first 45 minutes of the trip was by boat across the Arenal Lake. It was very refreshing to be outside and take in the gorgeous views of the volcano and surrounding areas.
We arrived at our hotel in the cloud forest in the early afternoon. While Ryan was recouping, we just decided to take it easy that day since we had more hiking to the next day. The view from our room was great and we enjoyed watching a storm roll in.
The next morning, we went hiking in the rain forest and had another great guide. It was definitely more of a bird watching/calling hike, but I feel like it was very informative and the rain forest is unlike any other hike I've ever taken.
Back at the hotel, they had a happy hour special, so I enjoyed some margaritas, which taste quite different in Costa Rica, but they were delicious.
That night, we went on the Santa Marias night hike, which is one of my favorite memories from the whole trip. You start at dusk, with flashlights and go hiking through the cloud forest while it's pitch black. It's a totally different world at night! We saw several sloths, weird bugs, tree cats (not sure of the name), and tarantulas!
The next morning, we left for the beach!! This trip was the windiest, steepest, scariest ride of all, but we were finally with other people, so I couldn't panic too much.
We made one stop on the way to trade vans and I finally got to see some monkeys! The pictures didn't turn out to great though, but they were so cute. There were a lot of parrots there too, so I'm glad we made that stop.
The resort on the beach, Barcelo Playa Langosta, was GORGEOUS! It was also over 100 degrees the whole time, so we had to adjust a little. Luckily, we were right on the ocean and there was huge pool, and most importantly, there was unlimited drinks! =)
Our final day in Costa Rica, we opted to take a catamaran out to sea which included unlimited food and drinks as well as a one hour stop to snorkel. It was quite the party boat, but unfortunately, I began to feel a little sea sick...I forgot to take a Dramamine before we headed out that morning.
The snorkeling was the absolute best hour of the entire trip! I felt so much better once I got in the water, and though I had gone snorkeling before, this was the best experience I had ever had. We got to hold a starfish, pet an puffer fish, see several eels and cool fish, but best of all, we ended up swimming in the middle of a HUGE school of fish for about 5 minutes. I wish I had an underwater camera to capture that moment...but I'll never forget it.
We sailed back at sunset and went back to the hotel to enjoy our last night of our honeymoon. Saying goodbye to Costa Rica the next day was so hard. Usually, when I go on vacations, I'm ready to go home...but not this time, I wanted to stay longer!
Costa Rica was so amazing, I recommend that everyone go at least once. And in our case, we look forward to going back!
I almost forgot to mention the meaning behind my blog title, "Pura Vida." It literally means, "the pure life," and in Costa Rica, they use it to say good bye, hello, thank you, etc. To them, it simply means, enjoy life and live well...and I think that's a pretty good motto to live by! =)
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