We were now traveling from San Jose to the area of the Arenal Volcano that erupted suddenly in 1968 after being dormant for hundreds of years. Its last activity was in 2010. On our way we stopped at Sarchi, an artisan shop, where we had a chance to see the art work created and buy some locally made crafts. From there we continued on to Zarceri where we stopped at the San Rafael Church and its Topiary Garden. The church was simple inside and the topiaries were interesting. Around noon we stopped at Cuidad Quesada for lunch at Pizza Hut. After eating we walked into the Cathedral while we were here. Again the church was very simple compared to other cathedrals we have visited. Our final stop was in La Fortuna, a village that was spared ... read more

After breakfast in the Monkey Dining Room, we once again boarded a boat to explore the waterways of the Tortuguero National Park. Because of the diverse wildlife in Costa Rica, that tends to be the primary focus of any excursion. As we made our way along the waterway we watched for birds, monkeys, lizards, iguanas, and other animals that may be within sight. Toucans were high on the list of birds to see and we found three perched in a tree for our viewing. Other birds found on the trip were Tiger Herons, Green Herons, Egrets, Sungrebes and Anhingas. Larger animals included Howler Monkeys, Spider Monkeys and White-faced Monkeys. Iguanas and lizards were also along the river. We returned to the hotel for lunch and found a little White-faced Monkey playing in the tree right outside ... read more

We left this morning from Orange City, Florida to drive to Miami to catch our flight to San Jose, Costa Rica. The drive was uneventful and we arrived in time to pass through security with plenty of time before the first leg of the trip. We had a little over three hour flight to Panama City, Panama where we changed planes for an hour or so flight to San Jose. We were joining a tour with Gate 1 tour company and our ride to the hotel was waiting when we landed at 10 pm. After arriving at the hotel we organized our belongings as we were heading to Tortuguero in the morning and could only take a limited amount of luggage. Then it was off to bed for a little sleep before leaving at 6 am ... read more

Our first stop of the morning was to pick up Hector, our local tour guide for the city of Berne. He was very knowledgeable and had quite a sense of humor. Berne was named when a bear was the first prey found after a hunt in the woods. Thus Hector was ready with the "bear" puns. We stopped at the Rose Garden for a wonderful overlook view of the city of Berne including the first area of houses surrounding the church. In the distance the cathedral of Berne rose above the city. From here we made our way to the old city center. Leaving the bus we walked to the Astronomical Clock which tells not only time, but date, moon phase, calendar, day of the week, among other information. A crowing rooster announces the approaching hour, ... read more

Unfortunately this morning we awoke to rain. Seeing the rain falling, I turned off the alarm and went back to bed. We actually had a morning to sleep in a bit, but our trip to Klein Matterhorn had to be postponed with hopes of doing the trip tomorrow. Instead we had a free day until our dinner with the group. After breakfast we relaxed in our room until the rain slowed down some. We finally ventured out walking back to the train station for Fred to buy a hat and then heading out toward the river. We walked along the river seeing some of the old houses of Zermatt. The road along the river eventually joined the main road to take us back to the hotel. On the way we stopped at the cemetery finding memorials ... read more