Rain, Rain and more Rain .... and more rain

Trip Start Dec 03, 2007
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Trip End Mar 29, 2008


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Where I stayed
Orulma
(La Fortuna hotels)

Flag of Costa Rica  ,
Tuesday, January 1, 2008

It was a short trip for us on New Yearīs day - just 4 hours. A shuttle bus on a rough road for 2 hours and then a short boat ride across Lake Arenal. The lake is a 77 square kilometre, man made lake separating the mountain ranges of Guanacaste and Tilaran with a hydroelectric dam at one end of it. Lake Arenal is one of the best windsurfing destinations in the world due to the winds that blow in from the Caribbean. We didnīt see any windsurfers but were happy that we made it across the windy lake as the 125 horsepower motor driving the boat was doing a lot of sputtering and spitting. Once again we boarded a shuttle bus and head off for La Fortuna, a town at the base of the large active Arenal Volcano.

Our hotel, Orulma, was a pleasant, clean one right in the heart of the town with a great view of the volcano. Apparently you can see the lava on a clear night but a ring of clouds near the summit made this impossible for us 2 parrots attacking a banana
2 parrots attacking a banana
 . We all had been looking forward to being in La Fortuna as we had heard about the Baldi Hot Springs, a hotel, resort and spa that had 25 pools with 12 different temperatures from 32 to 67 degrees C. Three waterfalls with thermal water, four pools with cold water, a giant jacuzzi and three wet bars were only a part of this huge 'oasis' at the base of the volcano. We spent a lovely three hours hopping from pool to pool and enjoying the warm waters. As we were in the water we couldnīt take photos of this lovely place but we are sure that there is an internet site for it.

During our visit to Baldi, it started to rain and for the rest of our time in La Fortuna it did not let up. It rained and rained for 2 full days and after our initial view of the volcano, we never saw it again. The rain was unbelieveable.

We had planned on going canyoning or rapelling down a series of waterfalls but when we got to the first waterfall, with all of our gear on and in the rain, the guides thought better of taking us on this trip as the waterfalls were roaring down the mountain. We all got soaken wet and cold and just wanted to go back to the hotel to warm up. So we did. And still it rained.

The next day, we had all planned on going white water rafting but after a night of intense raining, and the start of colds, we made the decision not to go Approaching Volcan Arenal
Approaching Volcan Arenal
 . Many of the others still wanted to go but came back to the hotel after an hour as the river was just too dangerous.

Shortly after the others returned to the hotel, we once again loaded up for our final GAP bus ride to San Jose, Costa Rica.

Compared to the rest of Central America, we would have to say, that you can easily tell that you are in Costa Rica because of .... the lush green of the land, the obvious signs of more money, the good roads in populated areas, the advertisements for tourism, nicely painted buildings, expensive cars, landscaped properties, well dressed people, etc. etc. You see these differences as soon as you cross the border.
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