Fifth Stop-Arenal

Arenal:May 31-June 1-Off to Arenal. We took a Jeep-Boat-Jeep tour to get there. It was cheap, fast, and super cool. (Pic:The Arenal volcano behind us...and the water is the boat part of the tour. It's not rocket science, I know.) We ended up staying at a five star hostel there. No joke. 5 stars....and it was seriously so nice. Granted we had to share a room with 4 other random people...boys and girls- but shoot, for $10 bucks a night? Forget about it! It had a restaurant, a pool, a field of hammocks that you could lay in with a great view of the volcano, free internet, new rooms, new beds, etc. They weren't messin' around when they said 5 stars. We loved this place. So the big thing in Arenal is the volcano...obviously. But surrounding the volcano are natural hot springs and this awesome waterfall. We were limited on time, so we opted for the waterfall. It was beautiful. The water was a brilliant aqua blue color. We hiked in, swam, hung out for a while, and headed back to the hostel. It was time to pack up our stuff and head back to San Jose. Pictures: #1 Waterfall from a distance...beginning of the hike. #2 The pathway down to the waterfall. Not the best pic of my, but how bout we just focus on the surroundings.;) #3 Ally and Les on the path ahead of me. The whole country was like this....just lush and green. So pretty. #4 I just thought this tree was so cool. The trunk was huge and kind of folded inside itself, so that you could stand in between big slats in the trunk. No clue how to describe it. I'll just tell you it was a cool tree.#5 So here's the waterfall. #6 And some fish in some really clear water. There were a ton of fish in this little area a little ways down from the waterfall pool. #7 Just more of a close up of the waterfall. I loved this place. The water was pretty cold, but refreshing. It just happened to be a fairly warm day. #8 Leslie and me at the waterfall. #9 Arenal Volcano: Close up