Lava! Lava! Lava!

Buenas tardes!

Tonight I'm at volcano Arenal and enjoying my down time. Last night, I received a new group of all boys (and a few moms/teachers). They range from 6th to 8th grade mostly. Their plane was supposed to land at 7:15 in San Jose but due to problems with hydraulic fluid back in Dallas, the plane didn't land until 11:42. We left the airport at 1:00 a.m. with a 2 1/2 hour drive ahead of us. We arrived at the base of the volcano at 3:34 a.m. Needless to say, the original 8:00 a.m. wake up call was postponed. Gracias a Dios...

Anyway, today, me and the guide Selma were awaken at 5:20 by people talking on cell phones outside of our room. Thankfully we fell back asleep until 8:30. We all had breakfast (beans and rice, naturally) and headed off to Arenal Lake. The lake is beautiful and landlocked. It's used a lot of hydro-electricity...but I saw a Malibu ski boat making a run. It was like coming home. Anyway, after the lake, we headed to Finca Don Juan. It's a farm where they try to show that we can live off of the things we grow naturally on our own. It's a simple 2 acre farm where they grow tons of different fruits, vegetables and sugarcane. It was fun for the kids to try some of the foods and eat the sugarcane before sitting down to an organic lunch. Rice and beans...

From the farm, we headed into the town called La Fortuna. The students were given some time to walk around and Selma and I walked in the park and she pointed out different kinds of plants and landmarks. We finished up in La Fortuna and took a short rest at the hotel before heading to the Baldi Hot Springs. I didn't swim, but the students loved it! Selma, the bus driver and I sat down for a cocktail instead. : ) A Banano Loco is the way to go... After swimming and eating at the hot springs, we headed to the Lava Point to watch Arenal erupt. It was a really clear night and not raining too much. It was beautiful. I don't think I could ever tire watching such a natural beauty. Obviously, it can be very destructive, but against the night sky it really is beautiful.

Tomorrow we are headed back to San Jose and San Joaquin to spend the week. We are taking the students to a Canopy Tour tomorrow. I won't be going on it though...I'm holding out for Monteverde (it's the best in Costa Rica). We then headed to San Jose to the PreColumbian Museum that I visited last year. It's a small but unique museum with a great Aztec Gold display. The day will finish with the kids taking placement tests and acclimating to their homestays.

It's finally time to call it a day. I'm exhausted and sure to sleep well tonight. I hope all is well and that Renegade rocked the tent this weekend. Love you all and miss you!

Abrazos y besitos,
Jessica