Monday, January 18

Our last day in Costa Rica!!!  Our excursion today was to the village of campesinos.  Julio had told us that it was going to be a strenuous day of walking and hiking.  He also said it was very beautiful.  I don’t think I took him seriously when he said how strenuous it would be!  We walked for three hours.  But, this was not hiking on flat terrain, it was very steep, with lots of curves, ups and downs.  It was the most difficult hike I’ve ever been on!  We were all sweating through our clothes because the heat and the exercise.  Half way through we stopped for a natural fresco made from naranja ácida (sour orange).  It is a different type of orange altogether that is green on the outside and orange on the inside and is more sour than a regular orange.  The drink tasted a lot like lemonade and it was cold!!  We also had Yipi bars, which are a Costa Rican snack made from thick vanilla wafers covered in chocolate.  They are good!  And yes, I will be bringing home a package to share with family!  

On the second half of our hike we crossed a very narrow and shaky hanging bridge.  We didn’t know if Abby and Marissa would chose to cross the bridge.  There was an alternate route that Julio said he would take them on if they preferred.  But, the were both very brave and decided to go for it!  And they did great!  The bridge was very high and I preferred to keep my eyes forward and my steps steady.  I can definitely see how it would be very scary for someone who dislikes heights!

Then we arrived at the campesinos village with houses spread out every so often on the mountainside.  The campesinos village has been through some unfortunate events and failed projects.  But, hey continue persevere.  They have created a nice atmosphere for tourists who want to relax.  They have cabins, a restaurant, horseback riding, rappelling, and zip lining.   

We then arrived at a small waterfall area.  We were able to change to our swimsuits and take a dip into the cool water.  It felt great after all the sweating we did on the hike!

Then, we continued onto the restaurant where the cooks had made us some delicious, warm banana arepas for a snack.  They looked like small pancakes and tasted like warm banana bread!  

Next, we went onto another waterfall area with 2 main waterfalls and several other cascades.  It was absolutely gorgeous!  Everyone had fun in the water, climbing some of the rocks and taking pictures!  After about 40 minutes, we went back to the restaurant for lunch.  We had a buffet of rice, beans, chicken, potatoes, coyote and cabbage salad.  Also, we had the nice naranja ácida juice again.

Then, we were to start on the hike to our bus, which we were told would take 20 minutes.  Henry was meeting us at a nearer location.  The farmer from the village led the way.  He was very trim and the hike did not seem to wind him much at all or make him sweat.  I’m certain that he could make that hike in 20 minutes.  But, it took us an hour and a half!  

Henry had watermelon waiting for us at the bus.  Henry and Julio take good care of us!  It was 4:00.  Then we started the hour long bus trip back to Manuel Antonio.  Julio asked what we wanted to do next.  Some people really wanted to go back to the beach and others wanted to relax in the hotel.  Señora Bolluyt went back to the hotel and I went to the beach with the other group.  We only had an hour before dark. But it was just enough to enjoy the waves and the beautiful sunset.

We took a quick dip in the pool after the beach to get the salt water off.  Then, it was time to get ready for our 8:00 reservation at a restaurant names “Ronny’s Place”.  Julio had recommended this restaurant.  When we arrived it was totally dark except for a few candles.  It turns out Manuel Antonio had lost electricity.  But the restaurant was still open and cooking by gas.  So, we ordered.  Then, after a while, the lights came back on.  We enjoyed our last night together.  Last night, we had all pitched in tip money for Henry and Julio.  Then, we all signed the envelope with a message of thanks.  Ally presented the one to Henry while Ryan presented the other to Julio.  Both said a few words of gratitude in Spanish, of course, and did a wonderful job!  Julio followed with a few kind words, also. 

 It was a great night and a terrific last day in Costa Rica.  As we reflected on our trip as a group, there were a lot of mixed emotions.  We feel so happy that we had this experience, but also sad to leave Costa Rica.  Yet, we know that it’s time to go and we miss our families.  It will be a long day of traveling and we are exhausted from today’s activities.  So, I think I’d better head to bed!

Sunday, January 17

On a scale of 1-10, today was a 12!  We had breakfast at the hotel.  Then drove to Manuel Antonio National Park just a few minutes away.  The national park is the main attraction here because of its beautiful beach and the rainforest surrounding it with hiking trails and many opportunities to see animals!

We started early in the morning in hopes to beat the crowd.  As it turns out, many others had the same idea.  We had to have ticket to get in and or backpacks were searched to ensure that no food was being brought into the park.  It is prohibited to bring food because many people in the past fed the animals which caused them to become sick and even die.

We hiked about a mile walking slowing to see the wildlife.  We saw a sloth, bats, spiders, birds and howler monkeys.  Julio has a vast knowledge of all things "outdoors" and can tell us many things!

When we got to the fabulous white sand beach, we were all anxious to get into the water.  These beach is in a protected bay so that the waves are not very big.  It was a hot day and the water was very warm and comfortable.  It was fun to just lay and float or be on your stomach and let the waves move you forward.  Everyone reapplied sunscreen.  :)
 















After a while, a few students decided to find some hermit crabs.  They drew a circle in the sand and put the crabs together in the middle.  The first crab to get outside of the circle wins.  I think Alison's hermit crab won!

Also, we were waiting to see monkeys.  Finally, they appeared VERY close to the beach.  At one point I was standing about 2 feet from the capuchin (white-faced) monkey.  They were very entertaining!

 



At 1:00 we were hungry and ready for lunch.  We went to a restaurante overlooking the ocean.  We got to sit on the top patio.  We really enjoyed each other's company.  Adter lunch, we walked around to see what deals we could find in the local artisan shops.  We were able to find some items that we really wanted and it was fun!

Then, we continued on to the Public beach.  Marissa and Delaney took surfing lessons!  They did a great job and got on the board several times.  The rest of of tried Ryan's free rental of a boogie board.  II you hop onto it as a wave is coming, it will push you until you're about onto the score!  It was fun!  Then we threw around Julio's frisbee for quite some time.  Finally, we watched the sun set again on the water.

Finally, we went back to the hotel and showered up to go to supper.  We decided that tonight would be the night that we dress up for supper.  So, everyone looked very "guapo" or "bonita" tonight.  We decided to go to an Italian restaurant that Julio recommended.  We all had pizza and gelato and it was supper fun!  Everyone was is a good mood.  Unfortunately, we forgot to take a picture of us all dressed up!

But, by the time we got back to the hotel, everyone was exhausted and ready for bed!  The sun and water took it out of us and now it's time to sleep!  ¡Buenas noches!

Saturday, Jan. 16

Sat, Jan. 16

Today was a big traveling day.  We had breakfast at our Arenal hotel restaurant.  While eating, we noticed that the clouds were finally parting and giving us an awesome and clear view of the volcano for the first time!  Of course, we had to get some pictures.

 

Then, we loaded up to travel to Manuel Antonio- a 6 hour drive.  We made some stops along the way.

Our first stop was to see a traditional market.  It was a market with many fruits and vegetables for sale.  Julio explained many of the tropical fruits to us and we got to taste several- granadilla, mango, true banana, and others.  A true banana is smaller, the inside is more yellow and sweet.  The bigger ones are for exportation- the ones we eat in the states.  We also saw a meat market and and many other shops.  We decided to go into a variety shop with costumes and all kinds of items imported from China.  The owner had lots of colors of wigs as well.  Our bus driver, Henry, has no hair.  Previously, they had made jokes about getting Henry a bright red wig for the party with our host families.  (The ticos are always joking around!)  So, we thought it would be funny to actually get him a wig!  So, we bought him a bright pink wig.  Abby got to present it to him in a box and she said “This is a special present for you because you are special.” (in Spanish).  Then we all chanted for him to open it and put it on.  The look on his face was priceless!

 

We continued driving.  Next, we stopped to the crocodiles at the crocodile bridge.  There were about 10 of them.  They were around 17 feet long.  And they laid very still in the water because of the heat.  One had a part of his mouth (snout) missing.  It was probably due to a fight between him and another male- trying to establish dominance!  We also stopped at a fishing village and saw some scarlet macaws!  They used to be almost extinct- they had been hunted for their feathers.  Hunting scarlet macaws is now illegal and they are trying to grow the population.  These birds like to eat cashews.  So we saw them perched in a cashew tree and flying.  They were very beautiful!  The village was a small fishing community.  We went to the ocean and saw a few fishing boats.  It was exciting to see the ocean since we were driving all day and some of the students hadn’t seen an ocean before.  

   

 

We also stopped for lunch at a cafeteria where we could choose what we wanted and they dish it up for us.  After lunch, right next door was a big souvenir shop with a lot of beautiful wooden artifacts, ceramics, t-shirts and many other items.  Many of us bought gifts for family at home.

When we finally arrived at Manuel Antonio it was around 4:00 pm.  We checked into the hotel as quickly as possible and changed to our swim suits.  We met at the lobby and headed for the public beach!  We had to hurry because the sun sets at about 5:30 here (all year round, since they are so close to the equator).  And we needed to leave by sunset.  When, we got to the beach, everyone was so excited.  The beach was big and full of people swimming, lounging and doing water sports.  The water was very warm and the waves weren’t too big.  We watched the sun set behind a rocky island.  

Then we went back to the hotel to shower and change for supper at a restaurant called “El Avión”- which means “the plane”.  Inside there is a real plane cockpit.  It was a very popular place and there were lots of people there.  So, it was pretty loud.  But, we still enjoyed it.

 Afterward, I felt so tired that I couldn’t finish my blog.  That is why I’m posting this a day late.  ¡Buenas noches!

Friday, Jan. 15

Today was an awesome day!  We had a nice breakfast at the hotel restaurant.  Then we loaded up to go to the Sky Trek zip line tour.  The zip line platforms go through the rainforest, from mountain to mountain- very high up!  A few of our students were nervous about going, but eventually decided to do it.  There were seven zip lines.  We had harnesses and protective gear and were assured that it was 100% safe.  It was quite a rush!  And we had great views of Lake Arenal as we were zipping through. The staff was very fun and joked around with us.  It was a great way to spend the morning!

We went to a local "soda", a restaurant for local people with a little bit of everything on their menu. They have traditional Costa Rican food, but they are also known for their pizza and huge hamburgers.  We all decided to take a little break from Costa Rican cuisine.  We had pizza, burgers and milkshakes!  And they were goooood!

Afterwards we stopped at a local supermarket to get some snacks to have for the rest of the trip.  We showed the students our favorite Costa Rican cookies "chicky" and the famous "yipi" bars.  I may be bringing some home for Caden and Clara to try.  ;)

Then we were off to "La vida campesina" to learn about a family organic farm.  There, they have many different crops yuca (a root vegetable), guanabana, corriander, ginger, mint, green beans, cacao, sugar cane and many others (120 different crops!).  They showed us the crops and we learned what they are good for- some for eating, some for medicinal purposes and many have a lot of health benefits!  I saw the plant that produces orange seeds that color the rice in arroz con pollo.  When I was a college student in Costa Rica my tica mom taught me how to make arroz con pollo with an orange paste to color the rice.  That paste is made with the seeds of the plant I saw today.




The students had never seen "yuca" trees before.  They are a small trees with little skinny trunks.  We learned that they must grow for 9 months and then they can be pulled out of the ground.  The farmer showed us how.  He chopped the tree down with one stroke of his machete.  Then he let Ryan (who we all agreed was the strongest) pull the stump and out came some thick roots.  That is the what is eaten.  It is a vegetable that tastes similar to a potato and can be prepared many ways- fried, diced and in a nice mixture with other vegetables, etc.  We have eaten it many times while being here.  So, it was interesting to see the tree and how it's harvested.  Then the farmer showed us how to plant new yuca trees.  He cut the thin trunk of the tree into about 6 inch pieces, dug a shallow hole and had the students place one length horizontally in the hole and cover it with loose dirt.



Then he showed up how they use sugarcane.  We took a long piece of sugar cane and sent it through an machine to squeeze out the juice.  One student had to turn a handle one way while another turned a handle on the other side the opposite way.  The sugarcane was fed through the machine while they turned and another student pulled the cane out as was fed through.  Meanwhile, the squeezing caused the sugary juice inside to come out a spout and into a pitcher.  We fed it through the machine three times to get a full pitcher of sugar juice.  Then, they put the juice in glasses for us to try.  We tried a few traditional toasts.  One goes like this "Para arriba, para abajo, para el centro, para adentro".  That means "Up (and you put your cup up), Down (and you put your cup down), in the middle (and you put your cup in the middle of the circle of people), inside (and you drink it).  It sounds better in Spanish, though, because it rhymes.  :)




After touring the farm, it was time to go the the thermal hot springs.  These are natural hot springs heated by volcano Arenal.  The water is filled with many minerals and nutrients that are good for your skin and body.  It is a very relaxing atmosphere.  There are several different pools of different temperatures.  One pool has an man made waterfall that's very pretty.  After soaking for 20 minutes, it is recommended that you go to the cold pool so you don't get overheated.  We followed that recommendation.  The hot springs were one of the things I was really looking forward to.  I remember from the trip two years ago how soft it made my skin and I could definitely tell a difference between the skin I submerged and the skin on my shoulders that I didn't.  So, this time I wanted to fully submerse myself for maximum benefit.

 

When we got back to the hotel some of the students went to the pool to swim.  They also found the mud to give yourself a mudbath!  They covered themselves with mud and came to supper with super soft skin!!  I've decided to give it a try after I'm done writing this blog!

We finished off our day with a wonderful supper at the hotel restaurant.  The students are getting along great and enjoying each other.  They have great attitudes and are up for anything!  Can't get over these great students and world travelers!

Tomorrow we check out first thing in the morning and make a six hour trip to Manuel Antonio on the Pacific Coast.  It will be a long day of traveling with a few stops to take in some views and do a little shopping.  Can't wait!  ¡Hasta mañana!

Thursday, Jan. 14

Today started with a farewell.  We woke up early to have a nice breakfast, empanadas with beans and cheese inside, pound cake and fruit.  Then we packed up to wait for our bus to come get us at 7:30.  I thanked Marzarella for having us and for all the conversations and food she shared with us.  We got the feeling after our time with the families in the home stay that they sincerely were happy to have us there, to share their culture, their life with us and make connections.  It's truly a beautiful thing! Before we left Marzarella gave us each a bracelet that she had made and a package of Costa Rican coffee.

We boarded the bus headed toward our next destination- the Arenal volcano area.  We had several stops to make and things to learn on the way. First we stopped to visit the Maleku tribe.  They are indigenous people who are trying to maintain their culture and traditions.  There are only about 600 of them left in Costa Rica.  They have a reservation.  But they dress as we do and live in modern homes now.  Today, they were dressed in traditional Maleku clothing.  The Maleku fished and ate a lot of fish.  They used bow and arrow for hunting and fishing.  They let us practice with the bows and arrows.  The target was a tree trunk.  On my last try, I hit the tree!  They also acted out a drama for us showing how the Maleku ask for a woman's hand in marriage and perform a wedding ceremony.  If a young man wants to marry a certain young woman, he tells his mother.  His mother will ask the girl's mother for her daughter's hand.  But, first the man must prove that he is a good provider by bringing an animal that he has hunted for them to eat.  This is presented to the mother of the girl.  The whole family visits when the mother asks for her hand in marriage.  If the girl says "no" it is a huge insult and means that she doesn't think the man can provide.  The family that was turned down will leave the other family as enemies and will curse them.  If the girl agrees to marry him, they have a ceremony that includes just the two families.  The students asked the tribe members many questions (in Spanish).  They participate well and are genuinely interested in the activities!



Then, we continued to La vida campesina for lunch.  They are farmers that grow their food on their ground and prepare it and serve it in the restaurant.  We will go back tomorrow to learn about sugar cane and their farm.  First they taught us how to make tortillas and we all made one that they cooked. Then we all went through the buffet for a very delicious lunch with rice, beans, beef in sauce, chicken in sauce, yuca, mashed potatoes, yuca chips, salad and star fruit juice fresco.  We also had coffee and a fried dessert.  Traditional Costa Rican coffee is made with a little cotton bag that hangs above a coffee pot.  The coffee grounds go in the bag and then hot water is poured through it and into the coffee pot.

After lunch, we went to visit an elementary school in the town of La Fortuna.  December and January is the summer break for the school.  So, class was not in session.  But a group of 15 kids were there to show us some traditional folkloric dances.  They escorted us by the hand to the area where they were to dance.  They wore traditional dresses with either black or white full skirts for twirling.  They did a beautiful job.  We all got to participate in a dance called "El pavo"  (the turkey).  El pavo stands in the middle of the circle dancing with a broom.  When the music stops everyone finds a new partner. The person that doesn't have a partner is the new "pavo" and has to dance with the broom because he doesn't have anyone else to dance with.  Afterward we had a little question and answer session.  Our students asked the kids questions about them and their school and vice versa.  Our students really enjoyed the young kids and appreciated that they came on their summer break.



Next, it was time to drive into the La Fortuna Waterfall where we spent the rest of the afternoon.  We hiked down many, many steps to get to the bottom of the waterfall.  We had great views of the powerful waterfall surrounded by beautiful rainforest!  We were able to swim downstream of the waterfall and carefully climb on the rocks.  The water was so cool and clear.  We all enjoyed the waterfall.  It was amazing!

Finally, we headed to our hotel in La Fortuna called "Montaña de Fuego" (Mountain of Fire).   Everyone was excited to see cute individual cabins with great views of the volcano!  We decided on an 8:00 pm supper, giving us 2 hours to shower and relax.  Some of the students went to the pool which also has warm thermal pools!  We ate supper at our hotel restaurant and we all really enjoyed being together and sharing some laughs!  Tonight a few students had mishaps with forgetting their keys in their room and losing a key.  They used their Spanish at the reception desk and were able to communicate what they needed successfully.  After supper, we had a recap of our home stay and plans for the rest of the trip.  Tomorrow is another full day!  Can't wait to zip line and go the hot springs!

Jan. 13, 2016

Today started early as the bus came to pick us up at 7:30.  We had gallo pinto (rice and beans mixed), egg and fruit (watermelon, papaya and banana) for breakfast today with our Tica Mom.  When the bus picked us up we went to Tirimbina Reserve again.  That is where we went for the bat tour last night.  They do a lot of other things there.  First we had the chocolate tour, we learned how chocolate comes from South America.  Indigenous people used cacao beans as money.  The also sucked the pulp from the beans and spit them out as they traveled, which planted more trees and brought them north to Costa Rica.  The indigenous would break the hard fruit open by smashing it on their heads! Ouch!  After sucking off the pulp, they would dry the beans for 7 days and make a drink out of it. We got to taste the pulp (which is white and tastes nothing like chocolate).  We also got to taste the ground beans which were a very strong, bitter dark chocolate taste.  Then we got to taste the hot chocolate.  Finally they made the thick sauce by heating the ground beans.  Then, the sauce is put into molds and chilled to make chocolate candies.  We got to taste it at every point.  We also learned if the chocolate doesn't melt in your hand right away, it's because the cocoa butter has been removed and replaced with a cheaper, less healthy ingredient.

After the cacao tour, our very knowledgable guide, Julio took us on a walking tour of the rain forest in Tirimbina.  Julio's passion is nature.  He has dedicated his life to research and has studied the plants and animals in the rainforest.  He has slept many nights on only plastic on the floor of the rainforest and climbed high trees and placed fruits or other foods to attract certain animals they wanted to study.  He taught us the three things that make a rainforest healthy.  A certain vine called "monkey's ladder" that only grows a millimeter each year.  If there are those vines it means it is a healthy and strong forest because it could grow and thrive there.  Secondly, a healthy rainforest has butterflies because of the work they do pollinating.  And thirdly, it must have frogs.  Frogs are very in tune to the temperature and humidity of the forest's environment.  If it's too wet, it will die and if it's too dry it also can't survive.

We learned about bullet ants whose bite hurts as bad as a bullet wound.  We learned about the order of leaf-cutter ants- the workers who carry the leaves to the colony, soldiers who protect the home, the queen who is constantly pregnant and lays 1,000 eggs a day.  All of these are females!  The males don't do anything put fertilize the eggs.

We walked over several hanging bridges in the forest which made Abby very nervous!  But, she really wanted to see the wildlife, so she walked close to Julio and crossed them even though it was scary for her.  One of the bridges is the longest in Costa Rica!  Walking over them offered beautiful lush views of the rainforest.

Julio also took us the the very bottom of the rainforest in hopes of spying a some animals.  Here we saw huge trees with great big trunks and a tiny poisonous dart frog.  Julio was looking for them, but it was actually Ryan who spotted the tiny (size of an insect) amphibian.  It is red to keep it's predators away.  The color warns them that it is poisonous and if you eat it, you will die.  Julio also spotted three bats sleeping under a tent-shaped leaf.  They looked cute that way.  We got in close and quietly took pictures.  After the two hour hike, we had lunch at the restaurant in Tirimbina which was very good.

Then we went back to our host families to prepare for tonight's going away party.  We all showered and put on nicer clothes.  All of the host family moms brought food to our host mom's house because she has the biggest table.  Before we ate, a few people said a few words.  A few of the Tica moms said that they really appreciated having us here and really enjoyed hosting us.  It was an honor, they said.  Then, we thanked them for hosting us and opening up their homes to us.  Then we all ate rice, chicken with lentils and garbanzo beans, cabbage salad, choyote.  There was also dessert- cake and arroz con leche (like rice pudding).

After supper it was time for the dance.  They turned on the music and we danced in the patio.  Costa Ricans are good dancers and they wondered why some of us were hesitant to dance.  I told them that we do dance in the US but not as much as they do and many times boys are not into dancing.  In Costa Rica men and boys like dancing as well.  Everyone was a good sport and danced.  The little kids enjoyed dancing with us and many of them got close to our students during the stay.  Ryan's host brother, Marco taught him and few others some dances.  It was very fun to see!  When it was all over our students went home with their families in the bus.  There were many pictures tonight as this is our last night together with the families.

Afterward, Dillon, Marzarella's grandson was here and wanted to play card games with us.  We played Spot it and Uno again.  It's kind of funny because we play Uno all the time at home!  I also shared a bag of Starburst that I brought from home with him and the other little kids at the party.  It turns out Dillon does not like that kind of candy.  But the other kids did and so did Marzarella dn her son, Douglas who came home today.

Before bed, we sat talking to Marzarella and her family.  She talked about how she is Facebook friends with other people who have stayed with her from the US and Austrailia.  So, we decided to become Facebook friends with her and keep in touch!

I really enjoyed the experience here but I'm also looking forward to our new adventure tomorrow.  It will be packed full!  I'm signing off to go to bed and get some rest.  I will have to add pictures to this post tomorrow!

Jan. 12, 2016

We had another great day today!  Our buseta picked us up at 8:45 to go white water rafting.  We rafted on the Sarapiqui river close to the town of El Roble where we're staying.  Everyone was very excited!  The rapids were level 2-3.  So, they were at a level that worked for everyone.  We got instructions and then we split into two groups for the rafting.  Each raft had a guide that helped and gave us directions.  We learned that Sarapiqui means "clear water" in a native language.  We saw an iguana, king fisher, blue heron and other birds while we rafted.  We got very wet rafting.  Then, we had a chance to jump from a low cliff into the water.  I was too chicken to go by myself.  So, Marisa and Abby offered to jump with me holding hands and we did it!!!  I couldn't have done it without them!  The water was cool!  We also stopped for a delicious pineapple snack.  Then continued on down the rapids.  Our awesome guide, Julio, took pictures of us.

Afterward we went to lunch at a typical Costa Rican restaurant.  I ordered Arroz con pollo (rice with chicken) a typical Costa Rican dish that was very good and Fanta Uva (Grape Fanta pop). Everyone enjoyed the food there!

It was also very fun to hear everyone's stories about their experiences with their families in the home stay.  I have to say that I'm incredibly impressed on all the students' attitudes and how they are handling themselves with the families. They are up for anything!  They're trying and enjoying the new food, playing games with the kids, communicating in Spanish and learning about this new culture in a VERY real way! They have a lot of fun and funny stories to share!





After lunch we returned to our host families.  Señora Bolluyt and I took a tour of Marzella's organic pepper farm.  She has 7 hectáreas of land or about 17 acres!  She has banana and plantain trees.  She has 3 different kinds of bananas.  We saw them growing on the tree.  There is a flower below the bunch of bananas that helps it grow.  If it is cut off the bananas stop growing.  She showed us the peppers plants that she grows.  She plants trees, and then the pepper vine climbs up the tree.  She had some that were just 6 months old.  She will have to wait another her until she can harvest them.  Others were three years old and she now harvests them EVERY week!  She then sells the peppers.  These are not bell peppers, but pepper used to make the spice.  We walked to the end of her land that is next to the Sarapiqui river that we rafted on.  She has a picturesque view of the river down below her land.

The village of El Roble has a Learning Center with a library and many classes for people of all ages.  Marzarella took a class on how to make traditional handicrafts to sell.  So, she taught us how to make some.  I won't say what they are here because I made them for Caden and Clara and I want it to be a surprise.  :)

After that, we sat down to do some blog writing offline.  But, when Marzarella saw us on our laptops she asked if we needed her wifi code!  What?  We totally did not expect her to have wifi!  So, that's why I'm able to post during the homestay.

I realized that in my last post I didn't describe Marzarella's house.  It is made of cement and wood walls and cement floors.  She has four bedrooms and 2 bathrooms all on one floor.  Part of her kitchen is indoors.  The indoor part has the refrigerator, microwave, a small gas cooktop and cupboards.  Just out the door, she has counter space with a sink and a woodburning cookstove.  This area has a corrugated tin roof above it so the rain doesn't affect it.  She also has a table in the kitchen area that we eat at.  On the patio there is a very long table that could seat maybe 20 people.  She has four dogs that run all over, 3 cats, four newborn kittens, some chickens (including a rooster that crows very early in the morning) and nine dairy cows,  She works very hard!


We had a spaghetti supper tonight with homemade sauce with meat and vegetables, salad and garlic bread along with a fresh fruit fresco.  ¡Delicioso!  We ate early (6:00 instead of 7:00) because we were meeting as a group for the Tirimbina bat tour at 7:00 pm.  Tirimbina is a a place where they research bats to learn about the kinds that are present and how many.  They catch the bats using polyester nets.  Our teacher, Carolina, shared with us about all the different kids of bats.  I was surprised to learn that there are over 1,000 different kinds of bats in the world!  We also had a chance to see three different bats and touch them!

When we returned to our house, it was time to blog and get some rest.  So, that's what I'll do now. ¡Buenas noches!