Arenal Volcano - Hannah

This week we were able to visit Arenal, the most famous volcano in Costa Rica. Unfortunately there was a lot of clouds and rain, so we rarely got a good view of the volcano. Still, though, it was an impressive sight. It was different from our visit to Poas Volcano--Poas had steam and we were able to get a better view of the crater, but Arenal was a perfect, cone-shaped volcano that you see and think, "Now that's a volcano!"

A rare moment when the tip of the volcano came out from behind the clouds

This picture shows a prettier view, though the top was covered in clouds.
But it kind of looks like it's exploding. Notice the bare side of the volcano
where there is old lava flow, versus the greener side on the previous picture.

We arrived in the city of La Fortuna, near the volcano, on Thursday evening. After some dinner, we spent some time shopping. We really haven't spent much time doing that, and the kids (and okay, me too), wanted to buy some souvenirs.

The kids all had some money, but the trick was helping them see what was a good value and what was junk. They wanted a lot, but we have limited suitcase space for our return trip and we wanted them to use their money wisely. We decided to window shop that evening, and make mental note of what we really wanted. Then the next morning we went back to buy what we really wanted. And even after sleeping on it, Jonah decided he really wanted this $7 turtle--because everyone should have one of these.

After our morning shopping, the rain started to let up, so we went to our first stop, La Fortuna Waterfall. It required a steep climb down a set of stairs to get there, and an even steeper set up, in my opinion. But it was worth it.

After a frigid swim at the base of the waterfall--during which it started raining again--and the hike back up, we went to my favorite spot on the trip--the hot springs. There are a lot of hot springs around Arenal, where the water has been heated from the nearby volcanic activity. Most of the hot springs are at pricey spas and resorts. We opted for the free one, just downstream from a resort, almost underneath the road, and with only a slight sulfur smell. 

The whole river felt like a hot tub, and it was awesome. I could have stayed longer, but the kids were actually getting bored. We met and chatted with some nice people as well, a couple of guys from Prince Edward Island, and a Jehovah's witness family from Indiana. We tend to find that there are a lot more English speakers in the touristy areas than at home in Puriscal, and I've really learned to appreciate English-language conversations.

Under the road, the kids also tried some "watersliding."

The view downstream

And finally, this morning we decided to spend our last time in Arenal at a swimming hole that our friends at the hot springs told us about--also free :). It had a rope swing so Michael and the big kids had fun swinging out over the water and jumping in.

We also had fun trying to catch fish. We found that we could get a bunch of them swarming around by feeding them cheesy Ritz crackers. There was much cheering when we finally caught one using our bait and some clothes as a net--he was a little guy about three inches long, but he got away before we could take his picture. 

It was a fun trip, and I sure do love exploring with this family of mine.