Not much to report when you spend all your time at a 5 star resort with hot springs.
http://www.tabacon.com/
03 July 2010
02 July 2010
Q:What do a blind man, a nun and a box of live chickens have in common?
A: They were all on our bus from San Jose!
As bored as we were in San Jose, we have LOVED our time in El Castillo! We took a local bus ($4!) from the city up to the Arenal volcano area. We heard the trip would take anything from 2 1/2 hours to 4 hours. It took a little over 5! This was due to a stopover in a little town after one of the bus tires blew out. I think it was the most excitement the town had seen in a long time.
Since our bus was late, we missed our shuttle to the hotel. It was a $25 - 30 min drive from La Fortuna to Essence Arenal in El Castillo. Our taxi driver, Jesus, was awesome! He made us practice our Spanish and he practiced his English. We were glad to spend some time with him! And our hotel is SO AMAZING! We have the most gorgeous view of the volcano and the lake (see photos above). After a little hike on the property, we soaked our feet in the pool and took in the view. It is a little slice o' heaven! The hotel is pretty far away from things, but they have a shuttle (an old white van whose sliding door takes at least 3 tries to close) and they are really accommodating. Isaac and Kelly kind of keep the shuttle and the kitchen running. They do a community dinner where we all help cook (if we want) and then we all eat together. Food really should be an event! Don't ya think? We have gotten to know everyone else that is staying here and we love it! Last night we had sushi. This morning brought banana french toast and tonight was Indian. I am still hanging out near the kitchen listening to the lingering dinner conversations.
Today is Kate's birthday!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATE!!!!!! After our delicious french toast, we headed to the Arenal Observatory to spend the morning hiking to waterfalls and check out the volcano in an up close and personal way. Every time it erupted, we could see the rocks falling down the side of the mountain. We found a really cool waterfall and I spent some time in the pool at the base of the waterfall, basking in the power and the beauty. We also saw lots of hummingbirds and butterflies and even some monkeys!
After hiking, we headed to Tabacon. Kate's favorite place from her last visit here. It is a super posh and fancy resort that is built around the hot springs. It was the birthday splurge! We bought s day pass and then found out it was 2 days for one, so I think we are going to spend an extra day in this area, so we can go back to the hot springs tomorrow. We enjoyed delicious sea bass for lunch and then soaked for almost three hours in different pools. IT WAS DIVINE! I am very excited to go back tomorrow :)
We have met some really great people! I really do love traveling! I feel so close to the person I crave to be when I travel. I am not sure if I can pinpoint what it is that I love so much, but I read a great description from the book I am reading. This is from Elizabeth Gilbert's "eat pray love" --
"...to travel is worth any cost or sacrifice. I am loyal and constant in my love for travel, as I have not always been loyal and constant in my other loves. I feel about travel the way a happy new mother feels about her impossible, colicky, restless newborn baby - I just don't care what it puts me through. Because I adore it. Because it's mine. Because it looks exactly like me. It can barf all over me if it wants to - I just don't care."
As bored as we were in San Jose, we have LOVED our time in El Castillo! We took a local bus ($4!) from the city up to the Arenal volcano area. We heard the trip would take anything from 2 1/2 hours to 4 hours. It took a little over 5! This was due to a stopover in a little town after one of the bus tires blew out. I think it was the most excitement the town had seen in a long time.
Since our bus was late, we missed our shuttle to the hotel. It was a $25 - 30 min drive from La Fortuna to Essence Arenal in El Castillo. Our taxi driver, Jesus, was awesome! He made us practice our Spanish and he practiced his English. We were glad to spend some time with him! And our hotel is SO AMAZING! We have the most gorgeous view of the volcano and the lake (see photos above). After a little hike on the property, we soaked our feet in the pool and took in the view. It is a little slice o' heaven! The hotel is pretty far away from things, but they have a shuttle (an old white van whose sliding door takes at least 3 tries to close) and they are really accommodating. Isaac and Kelly kind of keep the shuttle and the kitchen running. They do a community dinner where we all help cook (if we want) and then we all eat together. Food really should be an event! Don't ya think? We have gotten to know everyone else that is staying here and we love it! Last night we had sushi. This morning brought banana french toast and tonight was Indian. I am still hanging out near the kitchen listening to the lingering dinner conversations.
Today is Kate's birthday!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATE!!!!!! After our delicious french toast, we headed to the Arenal Observatory to spend the morning hiking to waterfalls and check out the volcano in an up close and personal way. Every time it erupted, we could see the rocks falling down the side of the mountain. We found a really cool waterfall and I spent some time in the pool at the base of the waterfall, basking in the power and the beauty. We also saw lots of hummingbirds and butterflies and even some monkeys!
After hiking, we headed to Tabacon. Kate's favorite place from her last visit here. It is a super posh and fancy resort that is built around the hot springs. It was the birthday splurge! We bought s day pass and then found out it was 2 days for one, so I think we are going to spend an extra day in this area, so we can go back to the hot springs tomorrow. We enjoyed delicious sea bass for lunch and then soaked for almost three hours in different pools. IT WAS DIVINE! I am very excited to go back tomorrow :)
We have met some really great people! I really do love traveling! I feel so close to the person I crave to be when I travel. I am not sure if I can pinpoint what it is that I love so much, but I read a great description from the book I am reading. This is from Elizabeth Gilbert's "eat pray love" --
"...to travel is worth any cost or sacrifice. I am loyal and constant in my love for travel, as I have not always been loyal and constant in my other loves. I feel about travel the way a happy new mother feels about her impossible, colicky, restless newborn baby - I just don't care what it puts me through. Because I adore it. Because it's mine. Because it looks exactly like me. It can barf all over me if it wants to - I just don't care."
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