Volcanos, Coffee, and Two Working Busses!

As hoped, our night in San José was quiet as the students were exhausted from their long flights and a few hours playing in the pool. San José lies in a valley, which tends to moderate its weather more than other areas in Costa Rica, which meant we slept well with open windows and a cool breeze. After a breakfast of cereal, beans, rice, coffee, and some assorted pastries, we hoped on the busses to start our day.

Our first stop of the day had us at a working coffee plantation. We enjoyed a tasty, cold mocha drink before touring the facility and learning about the coffee process from planting to roasting. After our tour, the guides took us to a soccer field where the students competed in a series of team competitions.

 

After the plantation, we stopped for an authentic Costa Rican lunch before making our way to Volcan Poás. The steep roads to Poás gave our drivers an opportunity to show off their bus handling skills, but eventually proved too much for bus 3 (my bus), which broke down as we entered the park. While we took the students on a hike to see the volcano, our resilient tour guides arranged for a new bus and a location to wait for its arrival.

At approximately 9000 ft of elevation, Volcan Poás was hidden in clouds and our view was mostly of the inside of these clouds. I’ve seen remarkable pictures of the vista over the active volcano, but we were forced to use our imaginations on this visit. That said, the short hike gave us a chance to see a wide variety of local fauna and our drive in to the national park offered several glimpses of Costa Rica’s landscape.

After the volcano, our students patiently awaited the arrival of the new bus by playing soccer, dancing, and sharing their favorite pictures from the day. Tonight our group is staying in two hotels in La Fortuna, which sits in the shadow of Costa Rica’s best known volcano: Arenal.


Tomorrow is what our guides call a “water day”. We’ll enjoy kayaking, a waterfall, and a swim in the volcanic hot springs. After two days of heavy travel, this will be a good chance to stretch our legs and enjoy the active side of life in Costa Rica.