Two weekends ago my class went to Arenal Volcano. We stayed in a beautiful hotel with natural hot springs and the view from our rooms was gorgeous. We had a tour of the surrounding area with Jorge, a famous volcanologist who knows more than anybody about Arenal. On one of our tours we stopped by a neighborhood where the main street had been ruined by the earthquake. We hiked a lot this weekend and were able to see some great scenery as we walked through the forest.
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| Working to fix earthquake damage |
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| Road affected by earthquake |
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| Lake near Arenal |
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| Arenal Volcano |
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| Hotel Room #105 |
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| View from hotel room |
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| Garden in shower at hotel |
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| Hotel hot springs |
On our trip we also stopped at a conservation reserve called Danaus (Monarch). We had a tour which was a lot like the conservation and biodiversity tour we had at Tirimbina the week before. After lunch I was able to participate in a presentation/dance given by a local tribe, the Maleku. I learned a short dance, some short phrases, and I was given a Maleku name: Corahutu, which means "the most beautiful flower."I also dressed up in their traditional clothing. After the presentation was over, the rest of the group joined us. It was really fun.
The final activity of the weekend was going to a waterfall (catarata) in La Fortuna. We had to walk down a lot of steep stairs to get there, but it was worth it. The waterfall was beautiful. We got to swim there and climb some rocks too. The water was pretty cold and very powerful so we couldn't get too close to the waterfall. We stayed for about 2 hours but we all wanted to stay forever.
You look like a native Tican in your dance costume! Your view out of your hotel room looking at the volcano seems awesome. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWow, Meghan, what experiences and travels you are having--a volcano, earthquake, waterfall, rain forest,... and tribal dress, dance, and even a name! Thanks for taking the time to write and share photos! :-) Julie
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