mvt0309
Mike Van Treese Joined: August 4th 2008
Logged in: November 20th 2008
Logged in: November 20th 2008
“To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.” - Bill Bryson
Travel Blog Posts
Costa Rica001
After a relaxing few days (except for the surfing, of course), it was time to head back to San Jose for one last night out with the group before we all part ways. We ate at a wonderful Thai restaurant that had wonderful infused teas. To eat I had curry in a hallowed-out pineapple, and it was very good! As we walked back to the hotel that last night, I took time to soak in the Costa Rican lifestyle. The Costa Ricans have a saying they are proud of: "Pura Vida." This translates to "Pure Life," the idea that life is yours to enjoy. It's a kind of "Don't Worry, Be Happy" sort of lifestyle where even when life hands you lemons, you make lemonade. You hear this phrase from everyone, not just tourist guides or ... read more
Costa Rica036
Today started with a van ride to Extremo Canopy Tour. Finally, after several days of clouds and rain, the sky was a beautiful blue, and the sun was shining brightly. It was a welcome sight. The Extremo canopy tour was amazing, with several ziplines stretching between mountains. What an amazing experience to be flying through the air attached to a small wire hundreds of feet above the ground. There was also a tarzan swing that was absolutely crazy! You'll see videos of both. After the zip line, we headed to the actual nature preserve, where our guide was able to spot tons of wildlife, and tell us lots of information about the cloud forest (a cloud forest is basically a rain forest at the top of mountains.) At one point, we were walking, and I looked ... read more
Costa Rica032
After an exciting time in Monteverde, it was time to head to the Pacific coast for a few days. This was our longest travel day. The drive was beautiful, driving back down the mountains, and then driving along the coast. This is the Costa Rica that most people think of: crystal-clear blue water, brown sand, and tropical heat. We stayed in Quepos, a port city that was a little rough around the edges. Once I spent a few days there wandering the streets, I found it a little charming in all of its grunge. From there it's a short bus ride to Manuel Antonio, a beach town that's filled with charming restaurants and shops, and a gorgeous view of the beach and ocean. The second day we were there, we spent the entire day laying on ... read more
Costa Rica103
Today was the day we did our 7-hour trek from La Fortuna to Santa Elena and the Monteverde Cloud Forest. We started early in the morning by taking a van to Lake Arenal, Costa Rica's only lake at the base of the volcano. From there we boarded a bot that took us across the huge lake. From there we mounted up on horses for a 4-hour trek on horseback. the horseback ride was fun, but very painful after 4 hours. The last hour seemed to hurt my butt after every single bounce. Even worse, my horse liked to randomly start galloping, which was even more painful. Halfway through the journey, we stopped and had more fresh pineapple. I'm totally in love with the fruit here, I can't get enough! After the horse ride, we still had ... read more
Costa Rica108
I am now in La Fortuna, a small town that reminds me of a smaller Gatlinburg, with lots of shops and hotels and restaraunts. The attraction here is the Arenal Volcano, a still-active volcano. We took a hike though the forest with a guide to see it. I couldn't believe it, but as we were watching the volcano, an explosion of fire came out of the rim! It looked like fireworks, and the lava running down was bright red. Our guide said that one in every three-million people who come to visit the volcano get to see an actual explosion. After that, we went to a natural hot springs, where the water is heated by the volcano. There were over 30 pools, each with a sign stating the temperature. There was on pool that was 113 ... read more
Costa Rica136
I made it here in San Jose a few hours ago. What a culture shock! I feel REALLY out of place walking down the street, and buying things, etc. In fact, this keyboard is in "Spanish Mode," so it took me a while to find the right buttons for apostrophes and stuff. It was a mad house as I left the airport, with all these taxi drivers trying to get me to go with them. It was scary at first, but I found the right taxi, and I was off to San Jose. The great thing about Costa Rica is that the people are very patient and understanding, as they obviously know that my Spanish is very bad. I now know how non-English speakers feel when they come to visit. I first meet the peole on ... read more
cr-home1
Well, I'm just about packed now, and I'm ready to get up bright and early tomorrow morning to head to Tampa International Airport, then it's off to Miami, and then finally San Jose, Costa Rica. The past few days have been spent busily running around getting everything packed, as well as getting all the necessary preparations done. Today I had to go to the local FedEx Kinkos. I don't have a printer, so I needed to print out all the travel documents. Unfortunately, it's 80 cents a page to print, and I printed out my 20-page travel insurance policy... grr... Needless to say, I got everything done for about 30 bucks. You know, with that kind of money, I could have bought a printer myself! So then it was on to making sure everything fit in ... read more
So welcome to my new travel journal. I am traveling through Costa Rica from August 6th - August 14th, visiting San José, Arenal Volcano, Monteverde Cloud Forest, Quepos, and Manuel Antonio National Park. I'll try to update the journal as I travel, but I make no promises! Here's a copy of the planned itinerary given to me from the adventure travel company I'm traveling with, GAP Adventures: Day 1 Arrive San José Arrive in San Jose at any time. There are no planned activities so check into our hotel and enjoy the city. Located in the central highlands, San José enjoys a moderate climate. The heat and humidity of the coast and lowland areas may affect you, with a general sense of lethargy and/or loss of appetite. This is no cause for alarm, it is simply ... read more
