La Fortuna

To get to La Fortuna, you have to take what’s called the “Jeep-Boat-Jeep.” It’s exactly what it sounds like, but the boat part of the ride is definitely the best. We rode across the second largest lake in Costa Rica, which is man-made, and there were beautiful views in all directions. We traveled close to nice, green islands, near to the surrounding shores, and finally came upon a dirty, man-made dam. We had to hike up a small hillside to get to the other “jeep,” which wasn’t mentioned in the brochure, and then we were driven to Centro La Fortuna.

On the second “jeep,” I met a fellow traveler who directed me to a hostel called Gringo Pete’s. The place wasn’t too shabby, and was only $3.50 a night. This was a steal compared to what I had been paying. I did find a giant spider while I was taking a piss, but that’s acceptable for $3.50 a night. There were also some cool birds around, and bats at night. It was a cool place to view wildlife and enjoy the city, but was nothing compared to the main site in La Fortuna; Vulcan Arenal!

Vulcan Arenal is, supposedly, the second most active volcano in the world. Although it doesn’t appear so by day, the activity is really brought out by the night. It wasn’t a lava flow, but bright red rocks flew down and exploded on the side of the mountain all night long. The rocks were accompanied by loud explosions, which seemed to trigger the flying rocks. I was supposed to go on a hike with a couple and their girlfriend who I met, but missed my ride and had to go with the next group. On that tour, I met a couple of guys and we hung out at the hot springs afterwards.

The hot springs were awesome. There were a couple of swim-up bars which served expensive, watered-down drinks, but at least you could get a drink in a hot spring. The place was all man-made, but had water originating from underground springs so it wasn’t all bad. One pool had a killer view of the volcano, and I had a couple of Pina Coladas and watched the rocks fly. A note to all visitors: don’t stand in the 150*F pool. It will melt your legs off, and it is a painful experience. I was drunk, and went in to my knees. It hurt even worse when I jumped out, for whatever reason, and I decided not to go in water hotter than a hot tub ever again.

We went and had a shitty filet mignon for dinner, and I woke up the owner of the hostel smoking pot with some guys out front. I then woke up everyone in my dorm room, and passed out three seconds later.

Dodging molten rocks now,

Seamus