Monteverde

As mentioned before, the sun shone the morning we left Arenal so on the jeep-boat-jeep connection to Monteverde we got a great view of the volcano and the surrounding area. The road to Monteverde was a little bumpy and hilly, but was just wonderful when we arrived, if perhaps a little American (as is the rest of Costa Rica though). We stayed in a nice little hostel, met a lovely English couple who in so many ways were carbon copies of Bernard and I. We went on night walks in the forrest and continued to see amazing wildlife – more sloths, glowing fungus, tarantulas, vipers (snakes), amazingly bright fireflies. We went on the most amazing zip line – the distances were so long that a few times Bernard and I went together (when that happened we went incredibly fast). The highlight for me was doing the Tarzan swing – scary and exhilerating.

We also went to visit a wonderful butterfly garden – on the way there we walk through a lovely misty forrest area and saw a large family of capuchin monkeys. They were so playful and curious about us! When we arrived at the butterfly garden it started raining and my heart sank – butterflies don't tend to fly when its raining. But the lady was great – she showed us around the bug collection first (and boy are some of these bugs HUGE) and by the time we made it to the butterfly enclosures the rain had stopped, it warmed up and the butterflies were floating around so magnificently. As with all things in the cloud forrest area, by the time we finished our tour, we had a few moments to admire the hummingbirds before the rain started again. Monteverde was just lovely – we ate at a local style restaurant a lot and occasionally ate western food – though our hostel cooked delicious pancake breakfasts which can make any stay feel a tad more luxurious. When it rained we watched the spectacular lightening displays coming in from the pacific. I'd recommend this place to anyone in a heartbeat.