After saying goodbye to our host families on Saturday morning, we headed out to one of the five most active volcanos in the world, the Arenal Volcano. What an impressive sight from anywhere in its vicinity, even from our comfortable hotel room porches! We learned from our ecotourism guide that the dark patches we could see down the side of the vocano are actually lava rocks. Que interesante! That night we enjoyed hot water springs, which were pools naturally heated by the volcano. At the springs, we had a good mix of relaxation and excitement. In addition to the dimmly lit hot spring pools, they also had three small water slides and a buffet style dinner for us.
Sunday, we went shopping in downtown La Fortuna which is where our hotel was, then took a bus ride around the Arenal Lake and westward to Flamingo Beach, our home until we return.
Monday, we awoke in our new hotel, the Guanacaste Lodge, where we are staying in little cabanas situated around a beautiful courtyard, complete with a pool and resident parrots. Before class, we ventured out to the gorgeous beach. The students enjoyed throwing the frisbee, swimming in the warm Pacific Ocean, burying each other in the sand and soaking up the rays. We then moved on to a refreshing pool nearby and sipped on delicious fruit smoothies before meeting the new teachers at CPI. After class, we had a wonderful dinner, followed by a group trip to the ice cream shop!
Tuesday morning, we volunteered at a local clinic where we helped paint the outside of the building a light papaya color. After working up an appetite, we had lunch and headed to class.
Everyday, the students understand and speak more Spanish! I enjoy hearing about the one-on-one practice activities they are doing in their classes. I've been impressed at how the students give each other positive support with everything from health issues to photography. They have continued to bond, sharing things about their classes here in Costa Rica as well as about their home towns back in the United States. What a great group of students! It has been valuable for the students to be able to experience various parts of Costa Rica, including the cool mountain community of Monteverde and now the hot beaches of the Guanacaste area. They are getting to see first hand the many little details that make up the culture! Everything from the kind, helping nature of the Costa Rican people to the wide variety of insects here.
Pura vida!
Natalie
PS - More pictures soon to come!
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