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Today was amazing! It's funny how a 7am wake-up call is no problem if there's amazing adventures on the horizon & palm trees out the window! 😊
I ordered breakfast (eggs, toast & gorgeous fruit platter) and ate while playing on the computer. We met two awesome girls named Kylie & Kristie Chupp from Montana. They're totally fun and we went white water rafting together. None of them had breakfast before we we went and then it was raining so we didn't stop until after the trip, so I felt very superior. 😉 I also drank like a liter of water and felt very healthy. Can still get "coca-cola" (yummy bit of home) but am drinking less of it and eating super fresh...vacations make me so healthy!
It took us an hour to get to the put-in place on the Rio Pacuare. We took a van and it was Rachel, me, Kristie, Kylie and three girls from Europe (Sweden and Norway). One girl, Agnes, had hurt her big toe in Nepal, not gotten it treated, had a kid drop a chair on it in Africa and finally gotten medical treatment for it in Costa Rica (where they removed the
Pops in Torriealba
Well earned ice cream treats!nail) so she couldn't go rafting. She was our unofficial photographer.
Rafting was amazing. It was raining the whole time but not cold. The mist on the hills and the gorgeous green growth was awesome. Our river guide, Chalu, was super great, if a little annoyed by the inexperience of the Europeans. He taught us all how to work together and survive the rapids. I think the funnest part was "Get down" when the rapids were crazy & we all got in the raft.
The other best part was when I "rode the bull." Basically, everyone else got to the back of the boat & I straddled the front of the boat as we went through a rapids backwards. Straddling the raft, while holding onto the rope and bouncing like bull riding. OMG. It was so crazy awesome. I was the only one brave (or stupid?) enough to do it...finally, one of the Swedes tried it...but I did waaaaay better...one handed stunts and such. 😉
We went 18 miles in around 3 hours and it was all good times. Had lunch afterwards, great spread created by the guys for the girls. Freshly made guacamole, tortillas, veggies, meats,
Torriealba, Costa Rica
Our lodging: the Hotel Interamericanos. salsa, etc. Bussed back while singing along to the satellite radio at the top of our lungs.
We got back to Torrialba and decided to wander around. We all four went to get ice cream, and that was awesome. I got a banana split and it was so good! After that Rachel went off on her own and K & K & I wandered around. They needed to buy some stuff and I wanted to get my hair cut. I know, ok?, I just wanted it…the heat and humidity and action-packed schedule meant I had a sticky never dry clumpy ponytail. Just wanted it chopped off, so we started looking. Found two barber shops full of old men who welcomed us in, but I wasn’t sure. Finally found a salon & they were closing up for the day. Kylie said that she’d cut my hair if I didn’t mind b/c she did it for friends all the time. It’ll always grow out, so why not? We found scissors for ₡7150 colones ($14) and ₡2495 ($5) at the farmacia where we bought bug spray. Decided not to buy because it just didn't seem worth it. Then we wandered into a
small mercado & found the same scissors for ₡135 ($0.25). Say what? It always pays to bargain shop! And find the shops the locals use, rather than the ones for the touristas. 😊
Anywho, that's what we did. Went back to the Hotel Interamericanos, dragged a chair out onto the porch & she cut my hair. I feel like a billion times better. It looks good (super short again, but that's always where I was headed, yes?) and it was free! Well, I treated Kylie to dinner. 😊
After dinner, Rachel and I had a strategy meeting. Canyoning in the morning and then we thought about heading across the border to Panama. We both tend to bite off more than we can chew with traveling, so we talked to the girls (who had just come back from there) and they thought it was not something we could do (and have fun!) in five days. We've opted instead to take the bus to Paraiso and then to Orosi to visit the "natural" (and apparently tiny) hot springs there. Planning to stay in a hostel (eek!) so we'll see how that goes. The upside is that K&K are going there,
Rachael & Rachel
Views in the VAN. :) too, so we'll travel together a bit longer.
Peace & Love,
Rae
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Heather
non-member comment
I really enjoyed your Torriealba post! Reminded me of my own time there, and how amazing it was! My blog is looking for travel photos, reviews, etc, to share (like maybe of a good river rafting guide!). If you have the time, check it out dirty-hippies.blogspot.com, or email me at dirtyhippiesblog@gmail.com. We're also giving away a free night in Peru or Bolivia, if you're headed down that way, or know anyone who is. Continued fun on your travels! Heather :)