A Little Update

Well, I still really need to post more Costa Rica photos and stories, but I thought I’d write a little update about what going on.

I’ve been in classes for a week and a half now. So far, it’s pretty good. I’m taking 14 credits—Chemistry, Calculus, and CAD. Both chemistry and calc are going to take quite a bit of work. The CAD shouldn’t be bad. I don’t expect to spend much time on it, other than the in-class time. Of course, this means I’m working less, which I have mixed feelings about. I do like to work, but I am also glad to be getting classes done.

Kendra, Kelly and me heading up the road.

Marissa with her blister-giving sandals.

Kendra hanging out.

Munching on Hibiscus flowers.

The crew.

Neat sigh, eh?

Marissa with a half a delicious squash.

It started getting misty as we hiked back down to the cave.

Tress and sky.

Getting up the nerve to get in.

Marissa with an orange.

Getting Oranges.

They made it to the other side...

Upper waterfall.

Packing up.

Hang out around the fire.

The girls.

Marissa

Kelly

Kendra

Part Three—Dinner, More Waterfalls, & Down the Mountain

Part Three—Dinner and Down the Mountain

We had a great candle-light dinner, and hung around the campfire. I had fun taking existing light photos of everyone. After a bit, we turned in.

In the morning, we hiked up to another waterfall. Werner hiked with us most of the way, and then had to leave to head back to his regular job. It was cloudy that morning, and a little chilly. I still had to take the opportunity to jump into the swimming hole. And everyone swam, after some hesitation by some of us.

On the way back down, we stopped to get some oranges from a tree on the trail. They were very juicy, but not all that sweet. When we got back to the cave, we hung out for a while and cleaned up. Then we headed down the mountain.

It was, of course, a lot easier on the way down. It was actually easiest to run down, in many places. We made it down to the road in less than half the time it took us to get up.

When we got to the road, we started our walk up the dusty road. There we no trees for shade, so it was pretty hot. Fortunately, we were able to hitchhike after awhile. We took a taxi back to San Isidro, arriving in good time.

When we got back to the hotel in San Isidro, Kelly and I were pleasantly surprised to find our missing bags had arrived! We had thought that we would probably have to bus back into San Jose, which would have been a big pain.

Werner.

Sunset.

The view. Quepos is just out of the photo to the right.

Lower waterfall.

Sunset at the lower waterfall.

Kelly crossing.

Kelly and Louis.

Looking downstream.

Waterfall.

Marissa and Kelly.

Part of the kitchen.

Kelly and me.

Kendra and Marissa in the cave.

Marissa crossing the stream.

Another waterfall shot.

The waterfall.

Marissa.

Kendra and me.

View along the side of the mountain.

Werner.

Me on the way up.

Rest break on the way up.

Part Two—Up the Mountain

Sunday morning we took an early morning bus towards the coast. About 45 minutes out, we got off the bus. At the bus stop, we met Werner. A friend of Kendra’s brother, he would guide us up the mountain. He had lived in the cave on the mountain that we would visit for eight years. He had guided people up and down the mountain, and taken care of the cave.

We walked down a dirt road for a bit, then headed up a green track towards the mountain. The mountain was basically a “wall of trees,” in Kendra’s words.

It was an intense hike for me—mostly because I was still jet-lagged, and didn’t feel too well. It got better when we reach the top. At the top, there was an organic farm, with some interesting and tasty plants. We took a rest, and then continued down the other side of the mountain, toward the cave that we would sleep in.

As we reached the cave, we saw the waterfall. It tumbled down to the left of the cave, and also came over the cave. In the cave, there were platforms for mattresses, a kitchen, and tables. Very neat!

After a snack, we went down to the lower waterfall, swam, hung out, and talked. A nap seemed appropriate, so we went up to the cave again, and slept away part of the afternoon. As it got later in the afternoon, we walked down again, to check out the beautiful sunset.

Our packed backpacks