Weekend of Pure Fun pt 1

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Wow I never knew how much fun I could have! This trip was absolutely amazing and the only thing I'm sorry for was not getting enough pictures of wildlife. 😞 I saw pelicans, boa constrictors, freshwater crabs, ospreys, parrots, toucans, howler monkeys, spider monkeys, and more! So we arrived by boat to Tortuguero and apparently it's the only way to access this town. The boat ride was about 40 minutes as we cruised by different parts of the jungle. Right before we turned to head up a different tributary/ canal of the river we got to see the estuary where the river met the ocean. I cant describe how awesome that looked, to see waves coming upstream of the river and creating the mix of water was amazing!

When we got to the resort, yes it was an actual resort! The first thing they did was distribute these great fruit smoothies that were really tasty. Every room was for two people and each person got a full queen sized bed. I never felt so spoiled! The resort had a bar, restaurant, a spa, and two large pools shaped like turtles. We quickly put our stuff in our rooms and had a little time to relax and explore (I ended up testing out the waters of the pool). Then we went into the town where we got shown where turtles would come onto the beach and lay there eggs, and I saw a lot of remnants of the turtles (other people went the next morning on a tour that allowed them to see turtles hatching at sunrise but I didnt do that cause of the cost and it was not guaranteed). The town itself was kind of a let-down. It was very touristy and there were not a lot of things to see except cliche souvenir shops.

That night we celebrated Gerardo's birthday at dinner and it was kind of interesting because what started off as a birthday celebration quickly turned into a cake fight! I didnt get any pictures of that because I didnt have my camera but it was a huge fiasco. Let me tell you I was completely mortified! While this was happening (for like 30 min or more) I was on the other side of the restaurant with a few other people from our group (Oh I forgot to mention San Ramon and Puntarenas both went together) just watching as this scene captivated the rest of the guests and wait-staff in the restaurant.

That night all of the Puntarenas group got drunk and it was interesting. That group really likes to party and drink a lot (I'm so glad I'm with the San Ramon group because after talking with a few people, they said the only way to socialize is to go out and drink w/ people in that group). A lot of the San Ramon people and me went to go listen to music at the bar and I ended up swimming a bit more that night (the water was so warm in the pool).

Come morning (albiet early morning), I boarded a boat to go see a bunch of wildlife before breakfast. During the 1.5 hour cruise we saw ospreys, 2 different monkeys, toucans, and so many other birds. It was a lot of fun and the perfect way to start the morning. Also I got to see a lot of what I had learned in my Tropical Ecology Class! I cant describe how amazing it was to see all the wildlife, and it was very interesting because the number of boats in certain areas was limited (we had to change where we were going because the quota was already reached).

After breakfast and the tour, I went swimming and really relaxed for the rest of the day. I sunbathed a lot of the afternoon and swam in the two different pools as well. That sun was nice and I got a great tan! What was so unique about these pools was that wildlife would come up to the edges of the pool. While swimming I saw a boa (a small one), monkeys in the edge of the forest by the pool, toucans in the trees eating, and a sloth! This was while I was blissfully dozing! That night the bar played a lot of latino music and the different groups all danced the dances we had been taught and it was so much fun. Also a few people had a sing along to classic tunes after the dancing was done.

After traveling Mon and staying there Mon afternoon and Tues, we packed up and continued on Wed morn.

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Photos

finally off the buss
getting ready for the boat ride

the start of the boat ride
was 1.5 hours

inside of the boat
we took 2 boats and another for luggage

part of the lodge
near the docks

what a beach
too bad it was a turtle refuge and we couldnt swim

town statues
giant toucan and parrot

next morning wildlife
boat tour in the morning

giant flower
bats pollinate it at night

part of the scenery from the boat
what a view :)