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MayDay was a relatively low key transition day. We were met at Monteverde and driven a couple hours through mountainous backroads to the edge of Costa Rica’s largest lake, Lake Arenal, where we were met by a boat.
The captain, who reminded me of my nephew Jordan must have picked up our vibe because indtead of taking us to meet our driver on the other shore, he first took us to an abandoned hundred and fifty year old cemetery that is in the process of being submerged in the lake. Then he drove the boat iinto series of thickly matted weeds lining part of the shore and we saw birds with astonishingly yellow underwings and looong toes that can walk on lily pads and caimans of differing ages and size.
We then docked and were driven to the Arenal Manoa hotel where every room had a glass wall looking out onto the currently quiet) volcano. We spent a good part of the afternoon in the resort’s pools.
This morning we took a taxi through back roads to Arenal Moountain National Park and hiked for about three and a half hours. It is much more hot here and seemingly
humid (albeit the rainforest humnidity was about 1000%!).
Soon into our walk we were thrilled to see our first anteater, having a snack on long skinny plants that remind me of bamboo. We watched it for a while until it got huffy about us watching it eat and headed off in the undergrowth. A couple hours later in a little used part of the park we found an impressive bivouac of army ants.
I then wagered a meal at Zak's that no one could find a snake or wild cat on the hike. Soon thereafter Will found a small brown what was likely a viper at the base of the tree with the greatest trunk circumference I have ever seen. We decided it was the rare Zak's Viper...
We also did a detour and climbed up to where we were on a series of black igneous rocks left by one of the volcano’s eruptions.
Tomorrow is another transition day as we are met at the resort and driven too our digs on the northern Costa Rican Pacific Coast for a few days of indolent relaxation before we head back home next Tuesday.
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Deborah
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Future careers
If the civil service and nursing things don't pan out, would you please go into the trip planning business?!? Will and Marika look pretty comfortable at the swim up bar ... what's in those drinks? xoxox