After a long 12 hour day of traveling, I finally arrived into the San Jose airport. The building itself was very clean, and while on a smaller scale, it reminded me of the new sections in the Sea-Tac airport, and it surprised me a little with how modern it appeared to be. After a quick trip through customs, I made my way out to the foyer where I …

I received my wake up call in time to be out in the lobby waiting for my pick up at 6:30 AM. The rafting company shuttle bus came very promptly, and I was introduced to one of the guides as I boarded with my luggage and settled in for the hour and a half drive out to the first stop for breakfast. Along the way, we were given instructions for …

In the morning, I awoke to the sounds of birds telling me it was time to wake up. I found that in the middle of the night I must have become cold, because I had the sheet and blanket piled on top of me and tucked in around my sides. That was a surprise, as I did not anticipate feeling cold at all the entire time I visited. I rose quickly to go …

I woke up early to the sound of the Caribbean morning. I headed off to the lobby to meet up with my driver and traveling companion for the rest of the trip. But I stopped in my tracks as I spotted a bright red lizard crawling around on the outside porch. I attempted to take a picture before continuing to the walkway where I met Marco. He looked …

This morning we woke to a crisp mountain morning, and yes, still cooler weather than I had expected. We went to dining room for a delicious breakfast with fresh fruits, eggs, gallo pinto, and coffee. After the feast, we headed to where the horses were tied to go on a brief ride to a nearby waterfall. We rode on trails through the forests, admiring …

I was having a great night sleep, well deserved rest from some long days of travel, when at around 4 in the morning I began to hear horrendous screeching and howling outside. At first I ignored it, assuming it was in my dream, or in my imagination. After the sounds began to increase in volume and frequency -- and I became more conscious -- I …

This morning we woke early to visit the Manuel Antonio Park as soon as it opened, in order to try and beat some of the crowds and hopefully see more creatures waking up and starting their day. After walking to the entrance and purchasing our tickets, we began to stroll along the sand trails, looking into the vegetation to try and see any moving …

This morning, Marco and I woke up early to go visit the Cloudforest Reserve. We arrived a little bit early, but made sure we had time for a stop for our café con leche in town. We patiently waited in the chilly morning air waiting for the park to officially open. When we were permitted to enter, we began to walk along the very wide trails, …

This morning we got into the van (which by this point was becoming like my second home) and continued on our way (after coffee, again of course) to drive down the mountains to Lake Arenal. At the shores of the Lake, we met up with the boat driver, Markes Anchia, who took me on a boat tour of the Lake. He shared with me some of the fascinating …