I woke up yesterday with a cup of coffee out on our balcony, sitting in the shadows of an active volcano. The howler monkeys get up early here and on this morning they were wailing away, really earning their name and signaling the start of a new day. Needless to day, visitng Arenal is a unique expericence.
We´ve seen the volcanoe in Hawaii, but this was totally different. It`s not Pompeii, run-for-your-life active, but you can hear it rumble and see it steaming from everywhere. It looms over the whole area and our room was just a couple hundred yards away!
Most of the time, Arenal just sounds like distant fireworks and on occasion you get a champagne cork pop. When we first arrived after a long day of driving, we were a little road weary and desparate for a meal. Unfortunately, the restaurant didn´t open for two more hours. What better way to kill some time than to sit and watch the show? Just when our time was up and we were ready to go, the second we turned our backs, there was a bone rattling blast that sounded like we were in the center of a thunder storm!
After dinner, the real show started. You need the dark to really show off the volcano´s colors. At night you can see the orange glow that we all associate with a volcano. There was a little bit of slow moving lava up at the top, but the best part of the show comes from the blazing hot rocks cascading down the side of the cone. The best thing I can compare it to is when the driver in front of you throws a cigarette out the window and the ash explodes everywhere. But this is a million times cooler becuase instead of burning tobacco, this is brand new rock bursting to the surface and giving us a natural 4th of July show in the process!
The rest of the area had a lot to offer as well. We took a few short hikes and saw some waterfalls, and of course got an up close look at our friends, the howlers. We also spent some time at the Tabacon Hot Springs.
One of the side benefits of all this volcanic activity is the naturally heated water. We spent the day relaxing and jumping between 5 or 6 pools heated to different temperatures. The was even a cool pool that we needed after spening a little too much time in the hot ones. It was a great way to spend out last day in Costa Rica.
We arrived safely today in Buenops Aires. I´ll have more soon on my driving adventures in Costa Rica!
We´ve seen the volcanoe in Hawaii, but this was totally different. It`s not Pompeii, run-for-your-life active, but you can hear it rumble and see it steaming from everywhere. It looms over the whole area and our room was just a couple hundred yards away!Most of the time, Arenal just sounds like distant fireworks and on occasion you get a champagne cork pop. When we first arrived after a long day of driving, we were a little road weary and desparate for a meal. Unfortunately, the restaurant didn´t open for two more hours. What better way to kill some time than to sit and watch the show? Just when our time was up and we were ready to go, the second we turned our backs, there was a bone rattling blast that sounded like we were in the center of a thunder storm!
After dinner, the real show started. You need the dark to really show off the volcano´s colors. At night you can see the orange glow that we all associate with a volcano. There was a little bit of slow moving lava up at the top, but the best part of the show comes from the blazing hot rocks cascading down the side of the cone. The best thing I can compare it to is when the driver in front of you throws a cigarette out the window and the ash explodes everywhere. But this is a million times cooler becuase instead of burning tobacco, this is brand new rock bursting to the surface and giving us a natural 4th of July show in the process!
The rest of the area had a lot to offer as well. We took a few short hikes and saw some waterfalls, and of course got an up close look at our friends, the howlers. We also spent some time at the Tabacon Hot Springs.One of the side benefits of all this volcanic activity is the naturally heated water. We spent the day relaxing and jumping between 5 or 6 pools heated to different temperatures. The was even a cool pool that we needed after spening a little too much time in the hot ones. It was a great way to spend out last day in Costa Rica.
We arrived safely today in Buenops Aires. I´ll have more soon on my driving adventures in Costa Rica!
1 comment:
are you making a playboy calendar?
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