Calm Before The Storm
This weekend my fellow intern and I took a break from preparing the center for students to arrive and took a whirlwind trip to Monte Verde for the weekend. Let me explain that: we were in the office around Friday morning talking about all the cool places to go on our free time, when the program assistant called us into her office to ask for help with something. We told her we were thinking about doing some zip lining so she told us hey just go you are free this weekend and began looking up bus schedules. It turns out we needed to grab a bus to San Jose and then there were only two to the cloud forest town: 6:30 AM and 2:30 PM. With hearts racing we darted to the kitchen, whipped up some half-hearted PB&Js, then ran to our intern hall to quickly toss some gear into our weekend bags and partition a taxi to the town center. As we walked outside, a very good friend of my family was just pulling up to the gate to leave and grab some things from town. We commissioned a ride and arrived at the bus stop to San Jose just moments before the bus left. We climbed on board, stuffed our bags in the seats, and with that we were on our way.
Eight hours, two buses, and thousands of meters higher, we arrived in the misty mountain town of Monte Verde. We climbed out of the bus, breathing in the crisp fresh air and grinned. So Atenas has the "best climate in the world" huh? Doubt it!
10:00 PM - After settling into our dorms at the hostel we ventured out for dinner which I won't bore you with. The hostel was full of rowdy high school exchange students from all over the world probably experiencing their first alcoholic beverage(s) which is why I thank God for the legally mandated Quiet Hours in this country #graciasaDios.
7:15 AM - After a (mostly) peaceful night of sleep and waking up without a layer of sweat for once, we geared up with day bags and a breakfast of eggs, fresh fruits, and coffee then headed out the door. Let me pause here to say that the breakfast was included in the $11/night stay in a clean bed with towels for the shower and some interesting German and Aussie roommates. This is the love of travelling- you win some and you lose some.
8:00 AM - We hop on the (free) shuttle and head to the park Selvatura for some zip lining. The whole experience was incredible. We got to go on 10 zip line cables across 12 platforms and I felt super Divergent flying through the canopy in my harness with the misty air and amazing view above the treetops. My fellow intern Peter got some great shots/video on his GoPro so I'll try to include those.
Overall I decided that I love Monte Verde and all they are missing is a PSL because the cool weather is slightly misleading. I cannot wait to return with the students to do a hike and likely will come AGAIN to bring my boyfriend zip-lining.
We head back to town, barely catching the free shuttle and wander around the city until the bus. I lose my bank card in the ATM. A kind stranger tells me they saw it get sucked it since I forgot to grab it. I call the bank and find out I have to wait until Monday, go to the bank back in the town I work, and ask them to retrieve it and send it to them so I can pick it up. The kind, Spanish speaking stranger confirms this is the only way and that it is okay for me to do. Yay traveling.
We arrive back to San Jose and my boyfriend Diego picks us up. We clean up and have dinner then head toy new fav place near his house called El Gaff. Diego and I love the classy chic possibly hipster atmosphere and Peter is ecstatic to try some local craft beer. It was a great way to wind down from such an adrenaline filled weekend.
In the morning we drop Peter off at the bus station and head to church. It was so freeing to be able to sing to the Lord and let go. To see all my friends there and know that this is home. My soul began to feel at peace. Diego and I had lunch and watched SYTYCD before heading back to the bus stop for me to go back to the center. I love that he will watch my favorite things with me. This weekend was such a peaceful and relaxing getaway that I didn't realize I needed. The cool air in the mountain and the city in the valley was such a relief from the heat at the center. El Niño has been causing some unusual weather patterns that keeps it from raining as often during the rainy season and it's just hot and humid. Here is to hoping it rains more and that we will be prepared for the students come Monday afternoon.
Eight hours, two buses, and thousands of meters higher, we arrived in the misty mountain town of Monte Verde. We climbed out of the bus, breathing in the crisp fresh air and grinned. So Atenas has the "best climate in the world" huh? Doubt it!
10:00 PM - After settling into our dorms at the hostel we ventured out for dinner which I won't bore you with. The hostel was full of rowdy high school exchange students from all over the world probably experiencing their first alcoholic beverage(s) which is why I thank God for the legally mandated Quiet Hours in this country #graciasaDios.
7:15 AM - After a (mostly) peaceful night of sleep and waking up without a layer of sweat for once, we geared up with day bags and a breakfast of eggs, fresh fruits, and coffee then headed out the door. Let me pause here to say that the breakfast was included in the $11/night stay in a clean bed with towels for the shower and some interesting German and Aussie roommates. This is the love of travelling- you win some and you lose some.
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| Tree Bridge in the Selvatura Forest |
8:00 AM - We hop on the (free) shuttle and head to the park Selvatura for some zip lining. The whole experience was incredible. We got to go on 10 zip line cables across 12 platforms and I felt super Divergent flying through the canopy in my harness with the misty air and amazing view above the treetops. My fellow intern Peter got some great shots/video on his GoPro so I'll try to include those.
Overall I decided that I love Monte Verde and all they are missing is a PSL because the cool weather is slightly misleading. I cannot wait to return with the students to do a hike and likely will come AGAIN to bring my boyfriend zip-lining.
We head back to town, barely catching the free shuttle and wander around the city until the bus. I lose my bank card in the ATM. A kind stranger tells me they saw it get sucked it since I forgot to grab it. I call the bank and find out I have to wait until Monday, go to the bank back in the town I work, and ask them to retrieve it and send it to them so I can pick it up. The kind, Spanish speaking stranger confirms this is the only way and that it is okay for me to do. Yay traveling.
We arrive back to San Jose and my boyfriend Diego picks us up. We clean up and have dinner then head toy new fav place near his house called El Gaff. Diego and I love the classy chic possibly hipster atmosphere and Peter is ecstatic to try some local craft beer. It was a great way to wind down from such an adrenaline filled weekend.
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| Pending Identification, but found these on a leave near one of the zip-lining platforms |
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| Café Americano at La Orchedia coffee shop in Monteverde |
Only time will tell.
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