Pura Vida 2012 - 2

It's a beautiful land full of adventure. Today we hiked to an unadvertised waterfall. I thought about the unknown creatures we were sharing our day with - and the beautiful country.We forged a few streams to get there and back in this 4 km hike.If you look really closely you can see the ants were marching 'one by one' right along with us.And then we did some jumping. The rainy season has subsided so the falls were minimal but the pools were deep. Here I go...And LoganRyan of course with a wonderful canon ball.Tori from the highest point.WillAnd the Angry Birds. Need I say more. The Grand Finale of course done perfectly by Ryan.

And the crew with the backstage pass to the show.

Remember I said we attended a Spanish Rodeo. Well it was in the evening. And on New Year's Eve. The town was a happenin' place to be. Very festive and we ran into a couple friends to visit with (Elmer and Dennis). Pictures weren't taken because it was super dark BUT the stands had to be photograped the next day. They are built board by board ... and I refused to sit in them due to the fact that I was not going to be one of the ones participating in their collapse. I'm certain these were not built to code. Wait! What code!?

Here's the coral.
We've made a trip to a neighboring beach town (1 hour drive away) with lots of fun little shopping spots. Playa Coco (if you're interested in knowing).

And we saw a real LIVE pirate ship. Who knew they existed.

Chaser Racer. The best traveling baby around. In this heat he's often found in only a diaper.

We saw a Costa Rican Calf. He was funny looking as they often are.

We traveled 4 hours to La Fortuna, a little town located beside the Arenal Volcano. It's an active volcano and SUPER cool as you see the side of the mountain popping with lava.
Here's a view of some of the trusted traveling companions.And the Sandia stands every 3 minutes scattered along the side of the highway. Watermelons for $1. It must be in season. And when we arrived in La Fortuna, the mountains was covered in cloud. Our plan to stay overnight was cautiously cancelled. We were sad to leave right away but the forcast didn't change for the entire week and we couldn't waste a day waiting for Mother Nature. So, we drove all the way back. 10 hour day. 8 hours in the car. 6 children. But still fun.

We met some friends along the way. Costa Rica calls them Coate. And sunset was viewed this way this evening.



We saved the lives of 150 Turtles which was the truly BEST day so far. The Leatherback Turtle is endangered and some local Costa Ricans are doing their part to preserve them. We were offered a truly unique and memorable opportunity.
There is so much more I want to say but I'll let the pictures tell you the best of it.