Follow the Lava Rock Road....

Hello friends and family! I just got back yesterday from our trip to La Fortuna and the Arenal Volcano and I am SUPER excited to share my pictures and stories with you :)

We got into La Fortuna at about 8:30 or 9pm on Friday night (we left Santa Anna at 2:30pm - gotta love public buses!) The hotel we wanted to stay at was full so we ended up going across the street to Pura Vida Hotel...we were a little skeptical at first given the fact that it's above a Chinese restaurant at all...and the owners obviously can't pick a language identity between Spanish, Chinese and English as the sign would suggest haha. BUT, it ended up being the best hotel we've stayed in throughout all of our travels so far! The shower was seriously the best shower I've had in a year, the water pressure was awesome and the hot water didn't run out! :)



The only bad thing about the hotel was that our windows faced the east...there was no sleeping in. We got up bright and early Saturday morning so that we could plan out the day. We found a company to book our Zip Lining adventure with, grabbed some breakfast, and then headed to the waterfall! It was absolutely gorgeous - and a decent hike haha :)















































After our waterfall swimming we headed back to La Fortuna to grab some lunch before our zip lining adventure! The road there offered some gorgeous views of the volcano.


































I was definitely a little nervous about what I was about to do once I started reading this sign... I was about to be flying 656 ft in the air attached to nothing but a cable at 50 mph for distances of up to 2,440 ft across the jungle! Now, all of you who know me know that I'm not exactly the most adventurous person in the world...but Costa Rica has brought out a little bit of a new Kelsey and I didn't back out :) After the first one I wasn't nervous at all anymore. It was so much fun, and beautiful!



After zip lining we grabbed a quick dinner and then headed to the hot springs! It was absolutely gorgeous! And the higher up you went, the hotter they got! Unfortunately I don't have any pictures for you of the hot springs...it's kind of a "romantic" get away place...and I'm pretty sure they would have frowned on me ruining the mood with my flash haha.

By the time we got back to the room at about 10:30 we were totally wiped out. I took another one of those AHmazing showers, and konked out pretty quick!

...Only to be woken up bright and early by the sun again. We didn't have time for much on Sunday other than to get breakfast, do a little bit of souvenir shopping, and basically just hang out and explore the town a little bit before we headed to the bus stop. We took the 2:45 bus back to San Jose; I got home right around 7 or 7:30 I think.

Even though we really only had one day for activities in La Fortuna, it was a GREAT trip. It was absolutely gorgeous, just as girls, and a lot of fun and relaxation :) This week is Beth and Myla's last week here! So I might have some pictures to put up of our nights out this week...other than that we're taking it easy. Next weekend is my last trip in Costa Rica - to Tortuguero! It's where I've wanted to go since the beginning - the most biodiverse national park in the country! I hope I'll get to see the elusive toucan :-D

P.S. Blogger is being really difficult about pictures. I have a lot on facebook already, and I will slowly but surely continue to add some here as it lets me.

More Pictures from Semana Santa

bruised, bitten, and a little burnt - but totally worth it!

Semana Santa started off with getting on the bus to Puntarenas in San Jose on Tuesday afternoon. We stayed in Puntarenas Tuesday night so that we could get to Malpais and the beach earlier on Wednesday, and to help break up the trip. There's not much to say about that first night, other than the fact that we ate some pretty damn good Chinese (I don't know why, but there were a TON of Chinese restaurants there) for dinner and there was a boat on fire in the harbor when we got into town. Puntarenas was kind of dirty...definitely just a pit stop kind of place...but the hotel we stayed in was very nice and clean, and we even had tvs in our rooms!

Wednesday we took the ferry across the gulf to the Nicoya peninsula and then a bus to Malpais. Malpais is a very small town...not a lot to do...except go to the beach and surf, so that's exactly what we did! We stayed at really awesome Surf Camp and Resort - with a pool and everything :) It was a little strange though to stay in an open air room






Unfortunately our surfing pictures are on Myla's camera, so I don't have any to show you right now. There were lots of monkeys and iguanas hanging around too. The beach was a short walk from our hotel, and we definitely took advantage!





















After we spent Wednesday and Thursday in Malpais we headed to Montezuma on Friday morning. Montezuma was a LOT of fun, there was a lot more to do and a lot of ticos on vacation too :) We hiked to a huge waterfall on Thursday and on Friday we went horseback riding to a different waterfall. Sean and Caitlin were the crazy ones who actually did some cliff diving (the whole time I kept thinking about how much I wished Adam was there because I know he would've loved it...and he probably would have been one of the crazy cliff jumpers too). I stuck to the small stuff, rope swings and jumping off boulders :)

Pedicures, Cockroaches, and a Boy in Striped Pyjamas

I have a lot of extra time on Thursdays, so I figured I would update - I'm sure the title intrigued you :)

All of us girls got pedicures on Tuesday before going out to Myla's birthday dinner at a Caribbean restaurant in Santa Anna (soooo delicious!). This little Nicaraguan woman went to work! It was by far the most thorough pedi I've ever had - and for only $12 including tip! :)

I HATE cockroaches. Uggh...it gets worse and worse. And I swear they flock to me because they know I hate them so much. In the beginning I had deluded myself into believing that I just had to make sure I kept everything off the floor...Well, then I come home the other night and there's one on the wall above my bed. So now I know they can climb walls. When I told Floria about this she laughed at me and said "didn't you know that they can fly?" UGGH! They've gone from bad, to worse, to absolutely terrifying. They are so disgusting...and I keep seeing more and more of them; I don't know if it's the weather or what.

Yesterday, Myla's real birthday, all of us girls went to the Multiplaza to go to the movies and get some ice cream :) We saw the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas - extremely sad, but very good.

I've been reading the Twilight series; something I never thought I would do because I thought the plot sounded completely stupid - but I am ADDICTED. I read the first, 500 page, book of the series all on Monday. I read the second, almost 600 page, book on Tuesday and Wednesday. I checked out the third in the series this morning and I'm trying to keep myself from reading it because I know I will continue to read too fast (and Myla still has the fourth and final book checked out so I need to make the third last!) Besides, I'm hoping to take it with me on Semana Santa for some good bus ride reading. Self restraint is difficult for me when it comes to reading, and I haven't experienced a book that I could get lost in like this in so long - since the Harry Potters really. It reminds me of how much I used to love reading in High School, definitely a past-time that I have missed a lot in college - the only reading I had time to do then was textbooks :-/

Anyway, I highly recommend the series to any young adult females out there who are looking for an addicting read!

I don't have a lot to talk about really, since it's only been week days that I'm updating on. We don't have any big plans for this weekend other than watching March Madness games at Amigos. Our Semana Santa trip to Malpais and Montezuma begins early Wednesday morning - who has two thumbs and is super excited? THIS GIRL! :) Horseback riding to waterfalls, surfind, hammocks, and sun soaking here I come!