I can’t sleep.  Maybe it’s because of the iced coffee I had this afternoon; we went into La Fortuna and I had a second helping of this delicious cafe frio:  an amazing, cold, very creamy concoction made from the fabledly-good Costa Rican coffee.  Think Tim Horton’s iced capp, but much, much better!

In any case, it could be I’m caffeined up… or that it’s the night before our next hop – we go to Monteverde in the morning.

Our few days in Arenal was worthwhile.  In 1998, Nadine and I had come here on a day trip to the Tabacon Hot Springs (heated from the geothermal activity near the volcano), and had dinner as we watched the orange glow of the lava flowing out from the top of the Arenal.  I still remember wondering back then, how safe was it really to be that close to an active volcano?  In any case, Arenal’s seismicity and lava flows have all but stopped since 2010 – technically in the dormant state, as opposed to extinct.

Fun fact:  Costa Rica has 6 active and another 61 which are either dormant or extinct.  Over the past fifty years, Arenal was the most active volcano, as well as the most popular – with its lava flows and its picturesque conical shape set in the backdrop of lush rainforest.

We stayed in Hotel Silencio del Campo – a series of standalone cabins set within beautiful gardens, with its own small set of cascading hot springs pools.  While not really a hotel, it is glamping at its finest!

There, we briefly chatted with a nice retired couple from Philadelphia;  we wish we could have chatted with them more, and if you are still following our blog, hello Tom and Terri.

We also met Pablo and Jen from San Francisco, and we really hope they keep in touch.  Pablo:  thank you for being patient and engaged in conversation with our girls;  If you are ever in Calgary, I still owe you that cerveza!  Jan:  Nadine and the girls appreciated your water-colouring lesson very much;  you must have been a great teacher… the girls hope they were good students.

I’m also very glad we had a chance to visit the small town of La Fortuna – which changed its name from El Bario in 1968.  A sudden eruption destroyed much of the neighboring town of Tabacon, with several casualties.  However, through good “luck”, El Bario was untouched, and changed its name to… La Fortuna.

The town caters to the multitude of Arenal visitors like us, but it also has La Catarata

as well as several activities.  In between periods of rain, we were able to sneak in a Sky Trek ziplining tour.

My reminiscing is invaded by the chirping of an unseen gecko.  Hello, Mr. Gecko.

I am also reminded of another reason why I can’t sleep – I itch.  If there is one mosquito in a crowd of a hundred people, it will find me.  And if there are only ten mosquitos in the whole rainforest?  Yup.

Go get those skeeters, Mr. Gecko…

… or we might have to send in his big brother…