Hotel Coco Beach Manuel Antonio National Park

... but it is contaminated with feces). We got to the guard house where they checked our tickets and we went into the park. We had just barely gotten into the park when I saw a snake on the trail. A few steps more and Necia would have stepped on it. I yelled at Necia to stop, but I didn’t yell snake. When she finally saw the snake she was very frightened . She told me that in the future when I see a snake she is about to step on, I should ...

... cameras to take pictures through it as well.

There was also some pretty interesting foliage in the park. There was a needle palm which has this fruit that has to ferment in order for its seeds to reproduce. The fermented fruit then drops to the ground and when the monkeys eat it they become really drunk. In fact Juan said that if humans eat it they become drunk for a week and that the ...

... to the drop-off point, leaving our guides and fellow kayakers (a pair of sullen Canadian twitchers) in our wake. We had lunch in the Lava Lounge (closest to lava we got...) and stayed for a while as it absolutely poured with rain. Some catching up on the web in the damp afternoon and then back to Don Rufino's for dinner where we had bocas (literally Spanish for mouth) - bar snacks which were not only very tasty, they were very cheap too! Winner. We were supposed to ...

... and headed off to find food, since I was about to starve because I hadn't eaten all day. I went down to the Manuel Antonio beach area and decided to have lunch at this little resturant called Marlins that was across from the beach and the vendors. Since I had arrived in the middle of the day I hadnt had a chance to meet anyone to hang out with, so it was kind of akward setting by myself. Anyways, the lunch was really good but way overpriced. It cost ...

... and I love rain. I make sure that I pack an umbrella this time. Too bad I forget some waterproof boots for all the sloshing around in mud that will be on the agenda. Our first snafu upon arriving at LA International Airport is to discover that our first leg of the trip flight to Houston Texas has been delayed by several hours. As we entered the Continental Airlines terminal we were faced with a throng of travelers in lines going every which way ...

... which I had at school) I just couldn't lie anymore -- in Spanish or in English -- as I was talking to a recently arrived student. I was saying I was envious of her marital situation in that both she and her husband do a lot of international work and enjoy being in some foreign country or another for months at a time. Looking around the room to see who was sitting where, I ...

... and I talk about anything and everything, and in between do assignments to help improve my grammar using a big packet that looks like a college course reader made at the school. Yesterday we took a walk to the church in town as part of our lesson. We get a 15 minute break every day to get some coffee or whatever in the middle. Then I can do whatever I want. I eat lunch on my own, and I've eaten at a different restaurant every day. In all honesty, I haven't ...

Back in San Jose- took a long bus ride loaded with plenty of crazy stories and another adventerous and perplexign boarder crossing. I am starting to get the hang. The boarder guards didnt quite know what to make of my India Lonely Planet and looked at me very strangely. Stayed at a hostel last night which I wouldnt recommend, but more on that later. Just glad to have a good night sleep, arrive safely and almost ready to ...

... and complained that it wasn't fair that she had to wait in such a long line to see La Negrita after coming all this way. But I only had time to nod in sympathy before I was told, "Hale" by Allan, one of my students. It was time to make the offering. I watched as Allan and Hannia dropped their little charms, prayers for their grandmother's bad knees, into the offering box and then admired the walls lined by little hearts, eyes, arms, and legs ...