The Parental Visit – part 2 – Puntarenas, Arenal, beaches
On Tuesday morning, September 12, I left from Limón and made the 2-bus trip out to the west coast to hang out with the ‘rents. Their time share had set them up with a suite-type room at this huge all-inclusive resort. It was beachside, plus had several pools, tennis courts, scheduled activities all day long, all you can eat buffet meals, and evening entertainment. Quite the spectacle. And I have never been one to turn down a buffet. :)
Wednesday morning we took off in the rental car and headed inland to Volcano Arenal. My brother had visited the volcano, and this amazing resort at the base of the mountain where they feature natural hot springs, when he had traveled a bit in Costa Rica while living in Honduras as part of his Army service. I had talked to him just a few days before our parents had arrived and he told me about this resort and said that I MUST take our parents there. So much so that he even decided to make it an early anniversary present for them book us a room. (Lucky me to cash in on that!) So there we were, making this gorgeous drive through the scenic countryside to the volcano. The resort/hotel was AMAZING. (You can check it out and see pics of the views and hot springs, etc at www.tabacon.com) Upon checking in at the front desk we were served with a fruity drink in a fancy cocktail glass with a festive straw as a “welcome” beverage. When have I ever gotten a “welcome” beverage at the Best Western?? We were a little early and the room was not ready, so we grabbed our suits and headed to the hot springs. They had locker rooms, towel service, and all sorts of staff people around to help with whatever. I am so not used to the whole 5-star resort treatment…how enjoyable! The hot springs were incredible. It’s all natural and basically you stroll on these little cement paths through the tropical flowers, trees, and vegetation and then you enter the stream/river/pools etc. and find yourself sitting in hot tub-like temperatures. Some of the “pools” have mini waterfalls, so you can sit on the rocks and have the hot water come crashing down on your back – just like a therapeutic massage! The various pools in the stream vary in temperature from about 80 to 100+ degrees, some are calm, others have more of a current and/or a waterfall. What’s your pleasure?! So after sampling just about every pool and stream at least once, we took our warm and massaged bodies to our room. The hotel room turned out to be fabulous as well, and had a stunning view of the volcano straight out the back sliding glass window. My mom was experiencing a little taste of heaven as she pulled up a chair and just sat there and watched the mountain. There was actually something to watch, as well. After a short little rain shower, the fog and clouds that usually block most of the view, were on the move, revealing not only the volcano itself in its entirety, but also crowning it was not 1 but 2 rainbows. What a sight. I had been up to this volcano back in July at the end of the trip with the mission team from CCC and in just under 24 hours of time we hadn’t seen anything but clouds and fog in place of the mountain. During the night we had been able to see a few stones of lava rolling down the side of the mountain – our only confirmation that the volcano even existed. This time, however, my parents and I were able to see it in its entirety, even if only for a few moments as the clouds rolled through. That night we had dinner at one of the hotel restaurants and had front row seats for what turned out to be a most spectacular display of lava flow. It came pouring, tumbling, and crashing down the side of the mountain for nearly the entire 3 hour dinner. Even the waiters and staff at the restaurant were gathering to watch, rarely seeing anything like that. Our dinner was just like the rest of our experience – all-star material. Excellent food, a great waiter, the previously mentioned natural wonder, and of course, great company. The next morning we took a guided walking tour through the national park at the base of the mountain and got a different view, plus a whole lot more information about the history and formation of the volcano. Check out time was at noon, but in true 5-star fashion, guests are allowed to use the hot springs and facilities all day, even after checking out. So we got one more round at all of the hot springs and pools before having to say goodbye to our little slice of heaven on earth.
On Friday afternoon we took off from the resort in Puntarenas and drove south along the water to Jaco Beach. We were in search of a horseback riding adventure, but nothing turned out to be what we were looking for, so we just made a drive through of the beach town, grabbed some ice cream and decided to keep going south. We drove down all the way to Manuel Antonio, which is a national park and one of the more famous and popular tourist beaches in Costa Rica. Our visit only included putting our feet in the water, taking a few pictures, and making a walk up and down the little “strip,” but at least the parents could say they had been there. Upon arriving back at the hotel that night we discovered the only major bummer of the vacation thus far – somehow in the 45 minutes we were in Manuel Antonio, my backpack had been stolen from the rental car. We are still confused and unsure how it all went down, as we all remember my dad locking the doors, but somehow when we returned to the car both doors on the driver’s side were unlocked. It startled and surprised us at the time and my dad immediately checked his fanny pack, which he had left in the front seat. Thank the Lord that none of the money, credit cards, nor were my parents’ passports taken. I didn’t even notice then that my back pack was gone. That night when we were unloading back at the hotel though, I realized that it was gone. Once again, however, thank the Lord that nothing of value had been in it. Only clothes, a pair of shoes, and my swim suit. Even though it was not fun to be without those things, I was just so glad that I had taken my digital camera out right when we had arrived in Manuel Antonio. If not, that would have been gone as well. So it was a bit of a downer that it happened, but overall we were just thankful that it was not worse.
Wednesday morning we took off in the rental car and headed inland to Volcano Arenal. My brother had visited the volcano, and this amazing resort at the base of the mountain where they feature natural hot springs, when he had traveled a bit in Costa Rica while living in Honduras as part of his Army service. I had talked to him just a few days before our parents had arrived and he told me about this resort and said that I MUST take our parents there. So much so that he even decided to make it an early anniversary present for them book us a room. (Lucky me to cash in on that!) So there we were, making this gorgeous drive through the scenic countryside to the volcano. The resort/hotel was AMAZING. (You can check it out and see pics of the views and hot springs, etc at www.tabacon.com) Upon checking in at the front desk we were served with a fruity drink in a fancy cocktail glass with a festive straw as a “welcome” beverage. When have I ever gotten a “welcome” beverage at the Best Western?? We were a little early and the room was not ready, so we grabbed our suits and headed to the hot springs. They had locker rooms, towel service, and all sorts of staff people around to help with whatever. I am so not used to the whole 5-star resort treatment…how enjoyable! The hot springs were incredible. It’s all natural and basically you stroll on these little cement paths through the tropical flowers, trees, and vegetation and then you enter the stream/river/pools etc. and find yourself sitting in hot tub-like temperatures. Some of the “pools” have mini waterfalls, so you can sit on the rocks and have the hot water come crashing down on your back – just like a therapeutic massage! The various pools in the stream vary in temperature from about 80 to 100+ degrees, some are calm, others have more of a current and/or a waterfall. What’s your pleasure?! So after sampling just about every pool and stream at least once, we took our warm and massaged bodies to our room. The hotel room turned out to be fabulous as well, and had a stunning view of the volcano straight out the back sliding glass window. My mom was experiencing a little taste of heaven as she pulled up a chair and just sat there and watched the mountain. There was actually something to watch, as well. After a short little rain shower, the fog and clouds that usually block most of the view, were on the move, revealing not only the volcano itself in its entirety, but also crowning it was not 1 but 2 rainbows. What a sight. I had been up to this volcano back in July at the end of the trip with the mission team from CCC and in just under 24 hours of time we hadn’t seen anything but clouds and fog in place of the mountain. During the night we had been able to see a few stones of lava rolling down the side of the mountain – our only confirmation that the volcano even existed. This time, however, my parents and I were able to see it in its entirety, even if only for a few moments as the clouds rolled through. That night we had dinner at one of the hotel restaurants and had front row seats for what turned out to be a most spectacular display of lava flow. It came pouring, tumbling, and crashing down the side of the mountain for nearly the entire 3 hour dinner. Even the waiters and staff at the restaurant were gathering to watch, rarely seeing anything like that. Our dinner was just like the rest of our experience – all-star material. Excellent food, a great waiter, the previously mentioned natural wonder, and of course, great company. The next morning we took a guided walking tour through the national park at the base of the mountain and got a different view, plus a whole lot more information about the history and formation of the volcano. Check out time was at noon, but in true 5-star fashion, guests are allowed to use the hot springs and facilities all day, even after checking out. So we got one more round at all of the hot springs and pools before having to say goodbye to our little slice of heaven on earth.
On Friday afternoon we took off from the resort in Puntarenas and drove south along the water to Jaco Beach. We were in search of a horseback riding adventure, but nothing turned out to be what we were looking for, so we just made a drive through of the beach town, grabbed some ice cream and decided to keep going south. We drove down all the way to Manuel Antonio, which is a national park and one of the more famous and popular tourist beaches in Costa Rica. Our visit only included putting our feet in the water, taking a few pictures, and making a walk up and down the little “strip,” but at least the parents could say they had been there. Upon arriving back at the hotel that night we discovered the only major bummer of the vacation thus far – somehow in the 45 minutes we were in Manuel Antonio, my backpack had been stolen from the rental car. We are still confused and unsure how it all went down, as we all remember my dad locking the doors, but somehow when we returned to the car both doors on the driver’s side were unlocked. It startled and surprised us at the time and my dad immediately checked his fanny pack, which he had left in the front seat. Thank the Lord that none of the money, credit cards, nor were my parents’ passports taken. I didn’t even notice then that my back pack was gone. That night when we were unloading back at the hotel though, I realized that it was gone. Once again, however, thank the Lord that nothing of value had been in it. Only clothes, a pair of shoes, and my swim suit. Even though it was not fun to be without those things, I was just so glad that I had taken my digital camera out right when we had arrived in Manuel Antonio. If not, that would have been gone as well. So it was a bit of a downer that it happened, but overall we were just thankful that it was not worse.
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