Volcan Arenal
Arenal is an active volcanoe that erupts nightly on the SW side. We fitfully awoke at 4am and saw a small stream of glowing lava pouring down the side, but were too out of it to get up and take pics.
Ginger!
Pre-zip line, lake Arenal in the background. Robin's t-shirt was a hit with Tico's during our whole trip!
La Fortuna Falls
La Fortuna Falls from a distance- it was quite a hike, but well worth it.
Baldi Hot Springs, coppin' a feel...
This is the pool we use for cooking humans... Seriously- in the US, I'm pretty sure there would be some safety coalition to regulate this sort of thing.
Swim up bars are fab!
View from the south of Jaco
Robin & his 3rd World board on the beach in Estrellita Oeste
View from the jungle in Manuel Antonio
Pristine beach in Manuel Antonio
We saw three kinds of monkeys. The Howlers were too high for good pics, and these little squirrel monkeys were super fast, but you can get an idea. Their little family group included several moms carrying baby monkeys.
Forest crabs
The only Cayman (essentially a small alligator) we saw was dead. We were snorkling and got closer than I would've liked to this monster. An older Tico gent used a branch to pull it to shore and set it up so everyone could get a close view. It smelled as bad as it looks...
An up close shot of a white-face monkey. These little guys love things that are shiny and steal from unsuspecting tourists who leave their belongings on the beach.
My favorite thing of the whole trip- Mr. Sloth! We were really this close to him- I had to restrain myself from trying to give him a hug.
Apparently, the only time sloths come down from the trees is to use the bathroom. Similar to cats, they use their little tails to bury their business, hiding the scent from predators. He didn't seem bothered by our presence and we got to watch his slow ascent, back into the tree.
San Clemente Taco Bar, Dominical A surf board graveyard!
Playa Dominical
Surf lesson at Playa Hermosa Safety first
ATV touring
Ryan, Matthew, and Robin
Robin and Mitch, looking happy on an ATV break
Jungle view
The boys, pre-wedding partying
Walking to the aisle. As it's the rainy season, the mom-of-the-bride brought everyone white umbrellas.
Waiting for the bride in a light sprinkle
There was a little visitor before the wedding started- someone hypothesized a baby boa
As the wedding progressed, the sprinkle turned into a downpour- the second heaviest rain we had on the whole trip. One of the most beautiful weddings I've ever attended.
Reception at the casa
This was before the power went out... Making drinks by candlelight is actually quite fun!
Starfruit! Carambola to locals...
Nauyaca falls. This was the destination of our horseback ride
Me and Chiripo As soon as we arrived and saw the shape of the caballos, I felt extremely guilty. They were all super skinny and we're pretty sure Robin's horse had diagnosable arthritis...
Sunset at Playa Dominical
A Zia in Costa! The house where J & A were staying is owned by a Santa Fe'an
The beginning of cloud forest, heading back to Alajuela
Robin with the CR National team at the airport. We saw them beat USA while we were in Dominical. They were on our flight to Houston, headed for LA.
