To the Center of Costa Rica, Centro America

With beautiful coastlines, dense rainforests and cloud forests, a wide variety of flora and fauna, several volcanoes, scenic rivers and waterfalls, Costa Rica is a nature lover's wonderland. No wonder it was used as the setting for the story of famous Jurassic Park movie! Add to this, the wide range of adventure activities and excursions offered by various tour companies. Now, you can see how it gets tough, to pin down the places to visit and things to do, especially, if you only have a few days in this tropical paradise.

To the Land of Volcanoes

Costa Rica, Centro America

Our dilemma was partly solved by friends who have previously visited. Compared to other Central American countries, Costa Rica is safer and tourist friendly which made us decide to rent a car and travel at our pace. Though a small country, where the points of interest seem fairly close, it takes time to get to places due to narrower and fewer roads. With this in mind, and also for a change from our usual beach vacations, we decided to stick to the center of Costa Rica, limiting our itinerary to couple of volcanoes and surrounding areas. It did feel strange to think of a trip to the "rich coast" (Costa Rica in Spanish) without touching the coast. The richness of the land and the wealth of activities made up for that.

Warning: To read this lengthy post to the end, it may be best to start after a hearty meal, preferably rice and beans, with a side of plantains. A piece of chocolate (ideally with 70% cacao) is recommended as dessert.  For coffee lovers, have a cup (if possible, have Costa Rican coffee with hot milk). You may find yourself slowing down to enjoy the pura vida -  pure life in Costa Rican terms.

Day 1: Chocolate Tour and La Fortuna Waterfall

Arriving at San Jose International Airport late into the night, we stayed at a nearby hotel. Next morning, we headed north to Volcano Arenal, driving up the Pan American Highway, which is a network of roads connecting the tip of Americas. Passing numerous small towns through windy roads, crossing beautiful rivers and creeks via single lane bridges and taking short breaks to stretch our legs, it took us almost 3 hours to cover 90 miles and reach our first destination in the town of La Fortuna.

Driving through Costa Rica: 1) Pan American Highway 2) Costa Rica to Nicaragua bus 3) Town of San Ramon 4) Windy road after passing San Ramon 5) Road signs were in Spanish 6) One of the longer single lane bridges

Our first stop, Rainforest Chocolate Tour, started with a walk among cacao trees which thrive in moist shady areas, making rainforests an ideal habitat for them. The enthusiastic tour guide showed us how the cacao fruits are harvested, how the beans are dried, powdered and ground to get fine, pure chocolate. Other than the few snacks we had eaten along the way, the chocolate we feasted on throughout the process was our lunch for the day. Definitely a sweet start to our rainforest experiences!

Traditional Chocolate Making: 1) harvesting 2) the pods containing beans 3) fermented sun-dried beans 4) cocoa nib after removing husk 5) Pounding to crack the beans makes husk removal easier 6) blowing away the husk 7) powdered cocoa nibs 8) grinding with warm stone after adding sugar 9) tasting the chocolate drink from the cocoa-sugar powder 10) trading cocoa beans (ancient Costa Rican currency) to get chocolate nuggets

Continuing down the same road, we headed to La Fortuna waterfall, a beautiful cascade of water amidst a lush green rainforest. We went down the steep steps to the base of the waterfall where a lot of people were swimming in the lovely emerald pool. The kids played in the shallower sections as we enjoyed the cool mist.

La Fortuna Waterfall: Up far & Down close

By the time we climbed back, we were ready to call it a day and headed to Arenal Springs Resort. It was a welcome change to taste their welcome drink: delicious starfruit juice. Tired and hungry, we ate dinner at the on-site restaurant and relaxed in the natural hot springs.

One of the hot springs in Arenal Springs Resort

Being close to the volcano, most resorts in this area had numerous hot springs with mineral rich water at varying temperatures. After the long day, these hot springs were positively refreshing.

Day 2: Zip Lining, Rainforest Hike and ATV Ride

Zip lining over the rainforest canopy

Views of Arenal volcano and lake from Sky Trek zip line

For rainforest activities, we headed to Sky Adventures, located past the entrance to Arenal Volcano National Park. Happy that the kids could also zip line accompanied by a guide, all of us geared up. A slow ride on the Sky Tram took us over the canopy. Zipping over and through the dense canopy, breathing in the fresh crisp air, taking in views of the volcano and the lake - it was truly an exhilarating experience, made all the more fun by the cheerful guides.

A hanging bridge over the canopy

After the thrilling activity, we headed to Sky Walk, a trail that let us stroll on the rainforest floor to observe it from below, and walk on hanging bridges to view the canopy from above. Barely able to see the sun, we walked among the giant trees looking at beautiful butterflies. A loud growl scared us, after which we walked quietly. The quietness brought out exotic birds like toucans and quetzals. After passing a waterfall, we walked alongside a small river and reached back the starting point in about two hours.

On the rainforest floor

ATV ride near cloud covered volcano Arenal

The next thing on our itinerary was a stop at the national park to view the volcano up close but with cloud cover, the visibility was low. Instead, we decided to do an ATV ride right across the park entrance. We went for a short ride on relatively smooth trails, first through farmland and then through tree cover. The rain clouds did not cause more than a light drizzle and we could end our mini expedition without being drenched.



Back in the resort, after all the adventures and a good dinner, the hot springs felt more relaxing than the day before.

Day 3: Volcano Arenal - Hiking the Lava Trails

Starfruits, limes, orchids and more at Arenal Springs Resort

Our plan for the third day was to head to Doka coffee estates for a tour of coffee production, one of the main industries in Costa Rica. Since we could not view Arenal volcano up close, we dropped that plan and decided to spend the day hiking a trail near the volcano. Waiting for the clouds to clear up, we enjoyed the breakfast buffet and strolled through the beautiful resort grounds filled with tropical fruit trees and flowers which make it an ideal spot for birds and iguanas.




Until 2010, Arenal volcano was considered one of the most active volcanoes in the country and used to have minor explosions and lava flows almost everyday. Though there was no spectacular display these days, we were still excited to get a full view of the conical-shaped mountain and look at the rocks left by earlier lava flows.

View of Volcano Arenal from the resort

A crater created by volcanic explosion

Bromeliads

We took the trail through 1968 lava flows which went through a second generation forest. Many varieties of beautiful ferns and other fascinating plants lined the trail. At numerous points, we slowed down to watch leaf cutter ants carry bits of leaves into their holes. It seems these ants use the leaves to cultivate a type of fungus to feed their larvae. The larvae need the fungi and the fungi need the leaves, making this a great example of symbiosis. Another interesting relationship we observed was an epiphytic one where one plant uses another for support without depriving the host of any nutrients. We saw many trees with epiphytic bromeliads growing from their high branches. This usually happens in rainforests where being on higher branches lets these plants get some sun compared to being on the dark forest floor. The spirally arranged leaves of bromeliads collect rain water and form a mini pool that can host a variety of small insects and frogs. These plants and animals that showcased different ecosystems kept us entertained.

Leaf-cutter ants, ferns and more on the trail

Once we reached the open spaces, the kids got super excited seeing the blackish igneous rocks. Our son who usually does not pose for snaps wanted his snap taken with different lava rocks. Both the kids were already planning on creating a presentation about their volcano hike to share at school. With their minds busy, the walk did not tire them and we felt two hours flowed away faster than viscous lava could.

Lava Rocks

For a quick lunch, we stopped at the same restaurant, Que Rico, where we had dinner the previous day. It was time to bid goodbye to the town of La Fortuna which means "the fortunate" in Spanish. It seems this town was the fortunate one as it was not destroyed by Volcano Arenal when it had violently erupted. The road to the next volcano on our itinerary, Poas, was lined with vast orchards of pineapples, papayas, bananas, sugarcanes and other fruits. The final leg of the drive was mountainous with dense fog. The days and nights being almost equal in Costa Rica, it starts getting dark after 5:30 pm and we ended up driving in darkness, which is something we had tried to avoid.

Room with a loft

It was only about 6:30 pm but pitch dark when we reached Altura Hotel, located 10 minutes away from Poas Volcano National Park. The approach road was unpaved and made us wish we were on ATVs instead of our small rental car. The hotel and its location made the rough drive worth it. Outside, the hotel had a rustic feel with the reception area doubling up as a barn. Inside, the room was decorated in a contemporary style and had a loft. Being at higher elevation, it was quite cold and windy but gave excellent views of the central valley. Hearing the howling wind, our daughter wondered whether scientists could have been wrong and if we were actually hearing the sounds of volcano Poas getting ready to explode. Her thoughts were diverted by the loft in the room which kept the kids entertained.

Day 4: Volcano Poas and La Paz Waterfall Gardens

As Poas crater would remain cloud covered in the afternoons, we wanted to head out and reach the park as soon it opened at 8:00 am. We quickly ate the hearty breakfast which among other things included rice and beans, a staple at all meals.

Costa Rican Food: 1. A side of  Patacone (Fried Green Plantain) 2. Breakfast plate at Altura had rice and beans 3. Sweet plantains in Arenal Springs Resort 4. Granadilla (similar to but sweeter than passion fruit)

At the park entrance, the staff suggested we turn around as it was a cloudy day and there was not much chance of viewing the crater. Not having another day to spare, we decided to go in and at least walk through the cloud forest. It was a short walk to the view point. The rest of us could barely get the rotten egg smell of volcanic gases but our son who did not like eggs started complaining and asking who had thrown eggs outside. The crater was filled with clouds and we could not see anything. This made him further question the purpose of our visit to this cold foggy place. Wondering about it ourselves, we headed into a trail through the cloud forest.

In the cloud forest

With poor man's umbrella

The plants and flowers seen here were quite different with one of the main shrubs being a large-leafed plant known as poor man's umbrella. The humid conditions in the cloud forest helped the growth of moss and it was seen throughout the damp forest floor. The view point at the other end of the trail was another sea of clouds but here it gave us a feeling of being in the clouds.



 

Flowers in the cloud forest

When we reached back to the main crater view point, we witnessed a magic show as the clouds moved and revealed the crater beneath. The oohs and aahs from the crowd made it more dramatic. Our little guy was finally convinced that it wasn't the eggs but the volcanic fumes that gave the foul smell. Though we did not get a full view of the crater, the magical scenes were enough to make the visit worthwhile.
 

1,2,3,4 - Now you see it, now you don't: Poas Volcano crater

We headed back to the hotel to pack up and roam around the lovely grounds which had a small playground and a tree house. The best part was the building designed using an old container. The kids called it "the boxcar" after the Boxcar children book which was our son's latest favorite.

Beautiful Altura Hotel near Poas Volcano National Park

Our next stop was La Paz waterfall gardens, a privately owned ecological area with beautifully landscaped gardens, a rescued wildlife preserve, and a tropical rainforest with paved trails to view spectacular waterfalls. Holding a toucan, letting butterflies rest on our heads, watching humming birds hover to feed, and getting a close look at bright colored frogs were some of the highlights of the day.

Butterflies, humming birds, toucans, colorful frogs at La Paz

The buffet lunch was elaborate. Among the vast array of dishes, we enjoyed the sweet plantains the most. As we are from the state of Kerala in India, plantains are a favorite and finding them on almost all menus in Costa Rica, either in salty or sweet form, was a delightful treat for us.

It started raining quite heavily as we headed into the rainforest to view the waterfalls. The ponchos were put to good use and rains made us enjoy the waterfalls without spending time to pose and click too many pictures.

One of the waterfalls in La Paz Waterfall Gardens

Well, a rainforest trip should include some amount of rain, right? We just "soaked" in the experience!

Soaking in the rainforest experience!

Driving back to our hotel near the airport, we thought it would be interesting to go to the capital city of San Jose for dinner and get a feel of the city life. As we neared the hotel and got into the town of Alajuela, we noticed all small shops were already closed though it was not even 5 pm on a Saturday evening. It came as a surprise to me as in other countries like India, most shops open even on Sundays to make sure they don't lose any business. Out there, we saw large groups of people enjoying their summer evening in the town parks. This seemed like a good example of how Ticos (Costa Ricans) show their "Pura Vida" (pure life) spirit.

The traffic, however, was quite heavy and haphazard. The turnaround lanes near the hotel were so confusing that we breathed a sigh of relief once we checked in. It did not seem like a good idea to drive into the city. We decided to stay in and just took the complimentary hotel shuttle to a nearby plaza for dinner. Next morning, we headed back home.

Pura Vida

For few days after the trip, volcanoes were the main topic of our conversations. Having seen two volcanoes and the beautiful green land surrounding them, the kids were fascinated by this natural phenomenon that could cause a lot of destruction and at the same time make the land around it very rich and fertile. We picked out books about volcanoes, read about different types and located the major volcanoes around the world. Whatever doubts we had, about the kids liking a trip centered around volcanoes, went away when our six year old asked: "Now, can we visit Washington to see Mount St. Helens?". Hold on! Let me finish writing about Costa Rica.

Costa Rica: No Artificial Ingredients

It is one of the few countries in the world without a standing army. This peace-loving country is said to have replaced the military army with an army of teachers. It has been providing free education to children for many decades and has one of the highest literacy rates in Central America. More than 25% of its land is protected as national parks, reserves and wildlife refuges. With its natural beauty preserved so well, and the warm hospitality of Ticos, the tourism slogan "Costa Rica: No Artificial Ingredients" is an apt fit and complements their philosophy of "pure life". What better way to end my lengthy write-up than using the Tico greeting to wish you "Pura Vida !!!"