A Volcano, Howler Monkeys and an Environmental Park

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This morning we had an early start to our day.  Wake up calls at 5:45, followed by room checks at 6:15 am.  Breakfast was at 7 am and consisted of rice and beans with fresh peppers and cilantro, eggs, toast and café (con leche if one chose).  

Everyone was on the bus and ready to go by 8 am.  We were off with our first stop at the INBIO Park.  This is a national conservation teaching park that didn’t’ even exist thirteen years ago! 

We were split into small groups of 17 and tour the park.  We toured different ecosystems found in Costa Rica and learned about the rich biodiversity of the country!  We saw tarantulas, frogs, iguanas, butterflies, sloths and more!  It was a wonderful introduction to the country!

After our tour, we drove through the lush countryside to our lunch destination.  We had a terrific homestyle meal of rice and beans, fried plantains, cassava balls, and our choice of chicken, beef or vegetarian.  We also had a choice of fresh strawberry shakes, soda (including Fanta!), or water for lunch.  What a treat!  The area grows a lot of strawberries, so those in the shakes were fresh and delicious!

Then, off to the Cloud Forest to see the Volcano!  While there was no wait to get tickets or to walk up to see the volcano, there was a lot of rain  (maybe why there wasn’t any line???).  We had a beautiful 2 mile+ hike round trip.  We stopped to pose for pictures at the top.  We were quite soaked from our trip, but had a great time being in the cloud forest and just taking in the beautiful landscape.

Our guides have the best!  All along the way, they have been educating us about Costa Rica.  For instance did you know that Costa Rica is roughly the size of West Virginia and that 35% of it is protected land?

We stopped at a road side shop for snacks for the evening.   A lot of us bought warm sweatshirts and local treats.  One of the specialties was a cup of fresh cut strawberries with a topping choice of chocolate or fresh cream.  

We got on the bus and drove through gorgeous scenery and even saw a waterfall!

After nearly an hour and a half on the road, we stopped for a little leg stretch and refresher at Restaurante Las Iguanas.  Here we walked around, some bought an ice cream cone, and others snapped pictures of the LARGE iguanas in the trees nearby. 

We had one more stop on our way to the hotel….Howler Monkeys!  We pulled the buses over to the side of the road and had an opportunity to get out and see several howler monkeys in the trees above!

We arrived to our hotel and checked in.  We are in cute cabanas tonight and tomorrow night.  After dinner there was free time, which included swimming for some. 

We’re ready for another excellent day of adventure tomorrow!