After an early morning hike in Manuel Antonio National Park which included sightings of monkeys, spiders and rare birds, we boarded the bus for the return trip to San Jose. We stopped for lunch in the beach town of Jaco and enjoyed our last time near the ocean. The evening brought our farewell diner. We were treated to entertainment by members of the group. Marie shared an original number, "The 8 Days of Costa Rica". Kate played David Letterman with the top 10 reasons Cobbers have more fun in Costa Rica and the top 10 Ronaldisms. Don and Bill provided a [View Full Entry]

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Buenos Dias everyone! So after a week of intensive studying in Heredia it was about time I went to see other parts of the country, and what could be better than a weekend by the beach?!!! So after our exam testing our Spanish level, 6 of us and "tour guide" Gerry (a Costa Rican, aka "Tico") set off for Manuel Antonio, a beach resort/national park on the Pacific Coast. We stopped off at a bridge on the way where we saw about 20 crocodiles just lazing on their little island under the bridge!! (See the pictures.)We arrived at our sweet little [View Full Entry]

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After many days of scheduled activities, today was free to spend as we wished. Many decided to explore the nearby town of Quepos for some shopping followed by an afternoon at the beach. The beach was lovely - hot sand and lots of sun with Manuel Antonio National Park next door. The tide was coming in, so we enjoyed watching the surfers ride the waves. Later this evening, there was a synchronized swimming show at our resort pool. Special thanks to the lighting technicians:) and resort staff for providing background music. The audience was also very gracious. Dinner included a special [View Full Entry]

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Just an update to let everyone know what we have been up to...and the answer is alot of nothing. Actually, alot has happened. We spent 3 nights in the Boca islands on the carribean side of Panama, and Dejan, you were right, these were the best beaches we have seen. On the 3rd day, after I went for a long walk in the heat of the day, i came back quite tired and thirsty. Thinking that this combination wasn't too deadly, I ran uptown to get some water, and low and behold I tripped on the 3 little stairs leading into [View Full Entry]

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“You want?” The clerk held up plastic. It was a bag, like any other, commonly seen blowing down a street or swept to the side, submerged in the gutters. “No thanks. I have my own here. Reusable.” I lifted the backpack to the checkout counter. “¡Pura Vida!” he said. ¡Pura Vida! Costa Rica’s signature of an eco-friendly consciousness. Heard everywhere, ¡Pura Vida! expresses the pure life, a worry-free contentment, a cure within society. Within the two mountainous settlements of Santa Elena and Monteverde, ¡Pur [View Full Entry]

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Buenos Dias everyone!! My first email from Heredia in Costa Rica.......I arrived on Sunday after a long, long journey with a 5 hour stop in Atlanta. My Tico dad and brother Erick picked me up from the airport. I really got thrown in the deep end, no speaking English, just Spanish. I mostly just said "uh Si Si, hmmm un poco....". As it was quite late and I had to be at school at 7.30 the next morning I went straight to my room. My room is an outhouse in the garden which is filled with beautiful colorful flowers and plants. [View Full Entry]

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From one volcanic situation to another. We started our day on the slopes of an active volcano we had no idea what was in store for us that day. Just outside of La Fortuna, on the slopes of Volcán Arenal we awoke in hopes of seeing the lava on the side of the volcano, as luck would have it however the top was encased in clouds and we were able to see nothing. We had quite the drive to make that day, our destination was the high cloud forests of Monteverde. Boarding our little tour bus our group of 22 made [View Full Entry]

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Buying last minute things, trying to figure out exactly how HAWT its going to be in COSTA RICA! Made sure I had all my shots and vaccinations etc.. Got my HEP A shot today!! exciting eh? Also, got a prescription just in case I get some diarhea trouble!! I'm crossing my fingers that I don;t!! EEK! anyways.. going shopping at MEC this weekend, hopefully, I'll find some bargains. Partaying up at the Pit, if I can switch my work shifts!! Thats all for now! [View Full Entry]

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Some of you have likely heard about the tragedy that has occured here in Monteverde. Shortly after our arrival yesterday, we learned that there had been a bank robbery in the town of Santa Elena, just a 15 minute walk from our resort. The word was that there were hostages in the bank. As the evening unfolded, helicopters began arriving from San Jose and the story was being covered on the national news. Hostages began being released last night, but as the situation has unfolded, the news has not been good. At least nine people have been killed. It is a [View Full Entry]

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Today we visited the cloud forest from above...what an experience. You can see the group here, all smiles following their adventure zipping by cable through the cloud forest. Another traveler will share more thoughts about this experience in a later posting. A part of the group also toured the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve and were lucky to see white faced monkeys swinging from the trees. It was an active day and all of us will certainly have many stories to share when we return. See the gallery for more pictures! [View Full Entry]

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