Hotel Los Lagos
Arenal
We stayed at Los Lagos Hotel, which is known for their access to the hot springs. They have constructed pools with slides, a swim-up bar, stone paths, all heated by the volcano. Definitely a sight to see!
On this trip was Berto and I and my parents! We laughed a lot and had a great time.
Feeding the ducks some tortillas!
My mom at Los Lagos Hotel.
A view of La Fortuna waterfall from an observatory point. We then walked down 500 stairs to see it and 500 stairs back up to the car.
We all stopped at a coffeehouse in Arenal with comfy couches and chorreadores for real authentic Costa Rican coffee.
Berto and I were able to get student/national discounts whereas internationals get charged more for almost everything. If they can see you are from the US, Canada, or Europe, you will be asked to pay more without you knowing. From what I remember I only paid $2 for the hanging bridges, $5 for the waterfall, and $2.50 for Guayabo National Park.
We though the bridge we were on was high, then we looked up!
Here is the view from one of the bridges.
One of the hanging bridges we went on. My dad unfortunately didn't enjoy the view! He held on tight and looked straight ahead the whole time. What would you do?
A traditional type of coffee maker in Costa Rica, called the chorreador. The coffee grounds are put in the cloth hanging above the cup. Then hot water is slowly poured over the grounds and it leaks through in to the cup. Maybe this is part of the secret of great Costa Rican coffee!
Our hotel also had ant, butterfly and frog farms, crocodiles, and fish ponds. Here's a crocodile!
Meanwhile in Turrialba
My parents rented a private shuttle for us to get safely back to Turrialba. I think if you can afford to spend a little extra, it is definitely worth it. We had plenty of safe, our luggage nearby and safe, air conditioning, freedom to stop whenever we wanted for bathroom, food, or pictures, and it's quicker than a bus. In our case, we were able to take a short cut that buses are not even allowed to travel on! Faster travel when you're short on time= definitely worth it.
Cajeta! Coconut and sugar. This one was bought in a store and so lovely presented in a coconut shell. Don Sergio makes them himself, too and explained the process to me and I imagine it to be like cooking risotto, a long and slow process, constantly stirring and watching over it.
This was taken at the Terramall in Cartago. We took my parents to see the movie Año Nuevo (English with spanish subtitles, because no, my parents do not understand spanish other than queso, baño and hola) at the VIP movie theater lounge.
Berto went to the university in Paraiso which is about an hour away by bus. Here he is holding all of his bus tickets for the past two years.. and this is ONLY two years! He earned his degree in four. Let’s take a look at the stats!
There are two Rawlings factories in the world. One in Japan. The other in Turrialba, Costa Rica.
Rawlings Factory!
I WILL have a tour before I leave Costa Rica. They say its prohibited, but I'm going to find a way.
Until then, I picked up all the red stitches I could find (from the baseballs) that were laying on the ground outside of the factory.
"Future City" a.k.a. the cemetery
Meanwhile in Turrialba
My parents rented a private shuttle for us to get safely back to Turrialba. I think if you can afford to spend a little extra, it is definitely worth it. We had plenty of safe, our luggage nearby and safe, air conditioning, freedom to stop whenever we wanted for bathroom, food, or pictures, and it's quicker than a bus. In our case, we were able to take a short cut that buses are not even allowed to travel on! Faster travel when you're short on time= definitely worth it.
In only two years...
422 bus rides which is the same as 422 hours on a bus or 17.6 days costing approximately 278,520 colones or $557.
That means in four years it totals 844 bus rides which is the same as 844 hours on a bus or 35.2 days costing approximately 557,040 colones or $1,114. Ouch.
However, earning a university education in business administration and english from the most prestigious university in Latin America?...yep you guessed it. Priceless.
This Minnesotan muchacha is jealous that Berto's house grows chocolate trees and other exotic plants, attracts wildlife such as this bird, brings in fresh air and sunlight INSIDE their dining room. Very common in Costa Rica for houses to have at least some part of their home open to the outdoors.
I WILL have a tour before I leave Costa Rica. They say its prohibited, but I'm going to find a way.
Until then, I picked up all the red stitches I could find (from the baseballs) that were laying on the ground outside of the factory.
Love how Beyonce and J.Lo this dress makes my butt look. What I should've really said there <---- was "Look how nice this picture is of my family and Berto and his parents."
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