Bali Bound

Monkey! I don’t want to whine but Paul was so right when he said that the sun is different at the equator.  My legs are very unhappy with the sun right now.  Also, it’s really hot and far more humid down south.  But the heat is a nice treat compared to home! Leaping monkey We started our morning with an early hike in Manuel Antonio National Park.  What a beautiful place.  We went early to miss the majority of the other tourists (who were just arriving when we were leaving) and to beat the heat.  Good plan both ways.  We saw so many monkeys.  As we were walking along the trail Paul noticed some movement in the trees.  I kid you not, almost 20 monkeys came out of this tree.  But one at a time.  I’m sure it was for safety reasons but it was a little surreal to have one monkey come out, stare at us, climb along the power line, leap over the group to the other side of the trail and disappear into the forest.  And th...

Jose picking cashews, all the little red marks are cashews On our way out from the hacienda we passed a bunch of cashew trees.  The nut (seed) actually grows on the outside of the fruit.  And one tree will only grow about 50 nuts per tree.  That explains the price a little more.  They have to be roasted before you can eat them, otherwise you can develop stomach ulcers and other terrible things.  And the fruit has little to no use.  I'm always amazed at these sorts of foods.  Who was the one who originally tried to eat it, and then finally realized that cooking it would make it edible.  That's determination. Cashew Another rodeo story.  They have one game where you get in the arena with the bull and encourage it to break pinatas to win your prizes.  Which of course have to be collected from the ground while the bull is running around. T-Rex at store Our random break spot today was in Monteverde.  They have a ton of t...

Today was our relaxing day.  The only thing on the agenda were our meal times and happy hour.  Drinks weren't included in the trip except for a few select times where all you did was tip.  And boy were they generous for the free drinks!  And happy hour was a popular place to be. The golden blossoms tree, its fun because it's yellow I did go for a botanical tour around the property.  The hotel was part of a private hacienda.  Along with the hotel there were also private homes in the secure area.  So the hotel had a little bit of a tour around.  There wasn't really too much to show that I hadn't already seen, or was about to see in other parts of the country. They have a lot of fruit and nut trees, we picked almonds and then bashed open the shells with rocks to try little pieces.  Almonds are hard to crack!  But it was a nice way to start the day.  Even if it was ridiculously hot by the time we finished!  Off to the poo...

Lake Arenal by the hanging bridges Due to the change in our itinerary we had another early start.  I’m quite excited for a leisurely day tomorrow that includes sleeping in.  At first I thought a day at the resort would be a wasted day but a day sitting at the pool sounds delightful.  Me braving the bridge, you can't tell but I'm holding on for dear life! Today we did the belated hanging bridges.  I did really well considering the conditions.  I’m not a big fan of heights.  Especially not when I’m up high on something unstable.  I had caught up to our guide by the time we went on the first bridge and he was questioning me if I had ever been on a suspension bridge before.  Well, it’s too late now, I have 6 to go across or go back.  Going back isn’t an option.  I will conquer the bridges!  You could have also done some shorter hikes that didn’t involve as much uphill and downhill climbing.  Most people seem to have...