A Break From Unpacking!!

Last weekend we took a break from moving and unpacking and made a quick trip to Denver - Rayna was playing volleyball so we stopped in at her competition and watched her play.  She did a great job and it's such fun to watch her play!!

Then it was off to Jessi's house for the afternoon and evening - Jessi and I even had a chance to go for coffee but weren't thrilled when we found out our coffee place was closed that afternoon.  We settled for Starbucks - not my favorite but it worked!!

We had a fun evening with the kids and Monday morning they were dressed in green for Dr. Seuss week!!

 And Gwyn was all smiles for Papa - I love these 2 pictures of the two of them!!

After Jessi headed to work, Glenn and I headed over to Jaime's - Glenn and Brad went to look at a boat and Jaime and I did a little shopping together and then headed for coffee - this time the coffee place was open!!

By early afternoon we were back home and unpacking! 

Good- Bye To Costa Rica

All good things come to an end..................we had hoped to get a glimpse of the volcano before we took off but no such luck - it was still raining!!

The only wildlife we saw was on our way out on that bumpy road  -  it was a coati -and he seemed pretty tame and wanted to crawl in the car!!  We had really wanted to see a monkey while here in Costa Rica but the closest thing to it was hearing 2 of them fighting in the jungle one morning!

We took a different route for part of the way back and realized that the tree branches they used for fence posts were turning into trees!  And also made for quite a windbreak!!

How cool is that to hide your fences with trees!!

We stopped in San Jose to eat at a cute place and yes, there was sunshine!!!

We had a great flight back to Dallas, made it through customs just fine and were just a little late getting into Denver.  However, the luggage carrier deal was broke and we waited almost 45 minutes to get our luggage - so a late night getting home or should I say early morning!!

But it felt good to get back home, knowing we could move into our new house!!

Here's my standard souvenirs - bookmarks and a Christmas ornament!!

What a fun trip with Cindy and Rene' - who knows where our next adventure will be!!!!

Eco Thermales Hot Springs

We were excited to get up on Friday morning hoping the rain had subsided, but no such luck - it was still coming down................this vacation was just going to be the wettest one we have ever taken!

After a great breakfast, we headed back to the zip lining place to get a couple of t-shirts and another package of the chocolate covered pineapple since we had already consumed an entire bag!!  We drove up by the Butterfly Conservatory in hopes of doing the tour but unfortunately the majority of the tour was outside and it was still raining - so we had an early lunch and headed into La Fortuna to the hot springs!

There are a lot of beautiful hot springs around the area because of the volcano - we chose Eco Thermales since it was highly rated and it didn't disappoint!!

 Between the steam and the rain, the pictures didn't turn out great!!

 They had a bar close by and their banana/strawberry smoothie was outstanding!!  It sure tasted good soaking in that warm water!

 We started in the coolest pool and moved our way up to the warmer pools - it felt heavenly!!

 The top pool was the hottest and we didn't stay there long!!  All in all a wonderful afternoon soaking in those springs!

 That evening we headed to a nearby restaurant called "Rancho Margot" which is a self-sustaining ranch and farm for dinner.  The food was just OK but the place was beautiful and we even got to hear some great music!

 We should have discovered this place earlier as they give tours during the day to show their ranching operation which is all powered by solar with gardens and orchards to produce the food they serve - maybe next time!!

And then it was back home to pack up for our journey home the next day!

Adventures In The Rain

You guessed it - we woke up to rain again....................it was cool and dreary out but our reservations had already been made for the day so we put on our smiley faces and just went with it!!

Glenn was not up to going with us that day - his stomach was acting up so he decided to spend the day at the house - Cindy, Rene' and I headed out for our suspension bridges/sky tram/zip-lining day!!  And promised to come back and pick up Glenn when we were done so we could all eat lunch together!

The adventure place was only about 4 miles from our place - there were people there despite the rain and we couldn't believe the amount of people that came unprepared - didn't even bring rain coats - so they went into the gift store and bought ponchos!!

There was a huge butterfly/moth (we couldn't decide for sure which one it was!!) on the building and it never moved while we were there!!

 Our guide was great and we did a 2 1/2 hour hike through the rain forest and going over about 8 different suspension bridges!!  The guide would stop and show us all kinds of plants and trees and it was very informative!!  We really enjoyed walking over the suspension bridges!!

 Now mind you it is raining during this entire hike!!  The rain was dripping off my raincoat onto my pants and we were all soaked by the time the day was over!!  Under my raincoat I was pretty dry as my raincoat is a good one but Cindy's didn't hold up and she was soaked to the skin!!

Again, a beautiful waterfall to take pictures by!!

 This one we had to climb over rocks to get pictures but it was worth it!!

 This particular tree which of course I have already forgotten the name of, had spiny thorns growing up its' side!

 Looking down into the jungle from these bridges were amazing views!!  Despite the rain, we loved the hike!!

 We had a quick break before we were strapped into our zip lining belts and then rode the sky tram up to the top - a great ride but it was raining so hard I didn't take any pictures!!

And then it was time to zip line - we all did a test one first on a short line!!  I have zip lined twice before but for Cindy and Rene' it was their first time!!

 Cindy and I thoroughly enjoyed it - Rene' not so much.................The first zip line was the longest and the rain was coming down hard so it felt like ice pellets hitting your face as you were going so fast!!  It was actually even hard to look around because of the pelting rain!!

 But we did all 8 stations and if we thought we were wet before, we were kidding ourselves!!!  We were so cold and wet that we didn't even buy our souvenirs at the gift shop - we decided to come back the next day since it was so close!!

We headed home for a quick change and then  picked up Glenn for lunch - we headed to a little place we had seen the day before - unfortunately you sit outside under a canopy as was the case for most places but the food was so good we didn't even mind being a little cold!!  We ordered "tico bowls" and they were amazing!!

Beans, rice, tomatoes, avocados, pico de gallo, and pulled pork in a bowl, served with the best tasting tortilla chips I've ever tasted!!!  Put that with the pineapple smoothie and we were set!!!!

Everything was so wet and damp inside the house that we turned on the gas stove burners to heat up the place and to take the humidity out of the air - it felt so good to be warm and dry that evening as we relaxed!!

Fishin' In The Rain

Guess what we woke up to on Tuesday - that's right, continuous rain..................in fact it was blowing sideways so bad that it was leaking in the living room windows and under the door!!  The maids had to deliver us new towels and take the sopping wet ones away!!

Tuesday was supposed to be our suspension bridge/sky tram/zip-lining day but it was raining so hard that we called and cancelled our reservation.  We had a leisurely day of reading and relaxing - took a trip to La Fortuna to fill the car up with gas and had a great lunch.  That evening it was raining so hard that we decided to just eat at Howler's again - more yummy french fries and hamburgers with homemade buns!!

Guess what we woke up to on Wednesday - of course, continuous rain...................the guys decided to go ahead and go fishing in the rain as they had a guide hired so they headed out early!  Cindy and I lounged around and then hurriedly dressed as it actually STOPPED raining for about an hour and a half!!

Now mind you, I only brought 1 pair of pants and 1 long sleeved shirt but because it was chilly out, ended up wearing them for 4 days straight.................so much for packing the shorts and tank tops!!  Note to self:  ALWAYS prepare for rain and colder weather!!!!

Since the guys had taken the rental car, Cindy and I decided to take advantage of the "no rain" and went for a long walk!  As I mentioned before, the driveway was something else - if you think our driveway in Colorado is steep, you should have seen this one!!

This picture was taken the day we arrived - notice there WAS sun the day we pulled in! Taken from our house at the top!

 And this picture was taken after our walk as we headed back up the driveway - there are 2 more tight curves!

 Luckily the clouds parted enough that we could see the volcano and get a picture - my only picture!!

 After our walk we went up to the yoga deck to sit for a few minutes - our plan was to drink coffee on this deck every morning and look out at the lake and the volcano!  Never happened!!  We only lasted a few minutes as the rain started coming down sideways!!

 The flowers were gorgeous at our place!

 The plant life in Costa Rica is amazing!  And even though everything looked pretty in the rain, I still would have taken sunshine any day!!

 The guys enjoyed fishing and caught quite a few - nothing big - but they had fun and that's what counts!  Howlers said they would cook our fish up for us that night!

 Glenn filleting the fish out for the chef!

 And a picture of us before we headed up to enjoy the fish, french fries and coleslaw - it was all excellent!!

The Day Has FINALLY Arrived!!

I have to interrupt the trip blogging to just let you know WE HAVE OFFICIALLY MOVED!!!  We spent our first night in the house on Wed. and boy did that seem strange to look out the window in the morning and see a different view!!

We arrived home from Costa Rica late Saturday night and by noon on Sunday I was moving boxes from the storage room!!  I didn't really pack at all - just filled boxes and put them in the car - drove up and put the stuff away and then back down for another load.  I can't tell you how many loads I've made but it's a WHOLE lot!!

Tuesday I had 2 friends help me pack up the kitchen and get it set up which was wonderful!!  Joleen arrived from Kansas that evening and helped me all day Wed. and part of Thursday so we pretty much have most of the stuff out of the house!!

Glenn and Roy moved the large things on Wednesday - the weather was perfect for moving!!

So along with the move, we also have more exciting news - MONDAY NIGHT WE RECEIVED A CONTRACT ON THE HOUSE!!!  We are super excited and really feel this one is the "right" one!!  The buyers are selling their house in Dallas so we're praying that goes well as our closing is set for the end of April!!

I don't think I've wiped the smile off my face all week!!

Horseback Riding In The Jungle

Monday morning Glenn cooked us an awesome breakfast and then the 4 of us and our neighbors in the little cabana headed to meet our guide to go horseback riding!  It was very cloudy out and a little cool so we all put on our long sleeved shirts and took our rain coats!

I requested an extremely gentle horse - I haven't ridden in years so Eslander our guide gave me a nice horse named Haiti!

 We headed up into the jungle through some pretty deep mud at times!  The horses did well although they sometimes sunk up to their knees!

 The terrain was gorgeous - all kinds of hanging vines and beautiful plants!  Seeing the jungle from horseback was a real treat!

 When we got to the top of the jungle, we tied the horses up and then hiked down, down, down!!  The going was tough with some large steps cut out that were almost too tall for my short legs!  But the waterfall at the bottom was well worth the hike - it was gorgeous!!  And to think our guide actually owned the property it was on!!

 We climbed over the rocks to take some pictures and stood in awe as we looked at it!

 But what goes down, must come back up!!  The hike back up was a little brutal - it didn't bother me too much but was kind of tough on Cindy and Rene' who had come from sea level!!

 Our guide and Rene'.

 It started to mist as we climbed back on the horses and took in the view one more time..................

 By the time we got the horses back to the stables, it was raining and little did we know at that time, but it would NOT stop raining (except for 1 1/2 hours the next day) for the next 4 1/2 days!!!

We stopped and had lunch at the little restaurant by the school and had another "typical" meal - it was great!!!

And then it was back to the house for the remainder of the rainy day - total relaxation which was what we all needed!!

Super Bowl/Go Broncos!!!!!

Glenn was pretty worried about getting to watch the Super Bowl in Costa Rica!  We had no idea if we could find a place to watch it or not!  But we did know that Howlers was about 1/2 mile from our rental and we were hoping they would have a TV that would show it!

Howlers didn't disappoint!! It's a 2nd story open air bar/restaurant and they had a TV and were more than willing to turn to the Super Bowl!!

 Of course the Super Bowl was in Spanish - that made it quite interesting to watch!!  We didn't get to see the American commercials but at least we got to watch the game and that's what counted!!

A few other Americans showed up too so we had a fun time cheering on the Broncos to a win!!  Howlers makes the BEST french fries we've ever eaten - I can't remember the name of them right now but they are soaked in a vinegar solution over a 3 day period and they were awesome!

Besides the fantastic french fries, they make a mean hot dog too - mainly because the bread around it is homemade!!  Because the place was so close, we ate there a few times and got to be friends with the owner and bartender - it's always fun to meet new people!!

"Pie In The Sky" - El Castillo

After our coffee tour we headed north to the Arenal Volcano area - we were sure glad Rene' had downloaded the Costa Rica map on his phone to give us directions.  A lot of the streets in San Jose aren't even marked but once we got on the main road, it was much easier!

The 2 lane highway took us through some beautiful scenery - lots of vegetation, mountains and cute little villages!  One thing that really took us by surprise was not seeing any trash!  Usually along the highway you always see trash and Costa Rica was the exemption - it's not only a beautiful country but very well taken care of!

We stopped at a restaurant along the highway and had our first "real" Costa Rican meal - the owner of the restaurant had a huge orchard behind the restaurant and took us on a tour of it - he had every kind of fruit tree you can imagine and we had our first taste of a water apple - the outside looked similar to an apple but the inside had the consistency of a pear!

This papaya tree was loaded with fruit!

 After seeing the pineapple growing, I was sure ready to eat some!

 The Costa Ricans eat beans and rice for every meal -if you're looking for an authentic meal, you order the "typical" which is always rice and beans, a salad of some sort and either chicken, fish or pork.  This meal had an extra serving which was a vegetable based dish.  It was all very good!

 The distance between San Jose and the larger town that we were headed (La Fortuna) was only a distance of 112 km - yet it took us 3 hours to drive it!  The road was twisty with a lot of switchbacks and many times we were only driving 30 to 40 mph.  Once we reached La Fortuna, we had a little bit of pavement and then it was onto the worst road I have ever been on - almost solid potholes!!  Even though it was only 5 miles or so to the village of El Castillo, it took us over 20 minutes! 

But we finally reached the tiny village, got the keys to our 2 bedroom, 2 bath house we had rented and took our 4WD vehicle up this winding  extremely steep driveway to our "pie in the sky" as it's called online!

The house and surrounding area was absolutely stunning!! 

 The deck off the pool was beautiful!

 Our house overlooked Lake Arenal and to the right of the picture is the volcano.

 The swimming pool was beautiful - too bad we didn't get to use it!!  (more on that later)

 The inside of the home was beautiful - a gourmet kitchen where we did cook breakfast most days!

We quickly unpacked and made ourselves at home - but not for long because the Super Bowl was calling us!!