Manuel Antonio

            Friday after class we headed to Manuel Antonio which is a famous National Park here in Costa Rica. We were told in class that day that although Manuel Antonio is only 82 miles from San Jose it would take us four hours to get there. As we drove towards the park, we soon discovered why it would take four hours; everything was extremely hilly. It constantly felt like you were going up a mountain and then going back down. This of course led to carsickness for some and a happy arrival at our hotel four hours later for all.

            Saturday was spent actually exploring the park. If you are a citizen of Costa Rica you can enter into the park for free; however, for foreigners it costs $10. We then went ahead and spent the extra $5 per person to get a tour guide to show us around for about an hour or so. We were able to see some really cool animals through the tour guide’s telescope. My personal favorite was the rainbow grasshopper that you can see in the picture below:

            There are four beaches within the park and we chose one and stayed there for the duration of the afternoon. The water was nice and warm and the waves weren’t as huge and dangerous as they were in Jaco. While a group of us were actually in the water, we made sure at least one person was sitting with our belongings. The raccoons found within the park are notorious for stealing your things and while we were on our tour we saw “the robbers” take a few things more than once. If you are lucky, the police in the park will see the raccoons grabbing your bags and blow their whistle and chase them away; however, more often than not if you leave your belongings then don’t expect to have 100% of your things when you get back. After a few hours we decided to pack up and head back home. We took a different trail back that led us to this water area with signs warning not to swim in it because there are crocodiles. Consequently, they have men in boats waiting to transport you to the other side of the water. However, some people didn’t want to pay the extra money and thought we should just trying swimming across. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for saving money, however, I felt like it was worth the few extra dollars to avoid being eaten by a crocodile. But, I became outnumbered and before I knew it we were all taking off our shorts and shirts and holding our bags above our heads as we waded through the water. Luckily, the crocodiles stayed away.

            This morning we woke up and the girls decided to go lay out on the beach; I decided I had already had enough Vitamin D and would just chill in the hotel room. I went for a little run but kept it short because of the humidity here. Even when you are just walking around it feels like you can never catch a breath of air. On top of the pollution and dirt that is always felt here in Costa Rica, the humidity basically guarantees a feeling of death. I couldn’t help but think of my mom the entire time I have been here in Manual Antonio. I think this place would be the death of her. Our room has become infested with ants, they have no clean towels to shower with, no ice (let alone no clean water) and if you saw the kitchens where they cook your food in here you would choose not to eat. But being here truly does make you appreciate what you have back home. The first thing I want to do when I get back to the states is walk outside and actually breath in fresh, non-polluted air!

                        Happy Father’s Day!!!!

                        Mary

Snake!

Monkey!

Crocodile!

Raccoon!

Nicki, Amanda and I!