San Jose & La Fortuna

The journey from Panama City to San Jose was around an hour and a half. It was super easy and this time we had proof of onward travel. The only thing was the airport, it was awful. No food anywhere. Which meant us counting our pennies for a packet of Pringles and crackers for Ollie’s peanut butter.

We only had a short stay in San Jose and this meant arriving at 9pm to the hostel and leaving at 7am to La Fortuna. We stayed in the Stray Cat Hostel which is known notoriously for being nothing more than a place to lay over. Our dorm was nice because no one spoke. Sounds gloomy but I really couldn’t be bothered for chit chat. Ollie showered first and came out yelling about the exposed wire showers. Supposedly this is something you need to look out for when backpacking. One of the most common deaths and so you must wear flip flops.

The next morning we were up at 7am to get the bus at 8:45. When we woke up the dorm was completely empty. We had our free breakfast, the typical, then went on our way. From what I saw of San Jose it was nice but I was surprised by the number of homeless. Way more than any other city we’d been to so far.

The bus journey was easy and cheaper than expected. All in all it was going to take a few hours with one stop for food. When he had our pitstop the driver said the bus needed to go fuel up but many missed this. It was hilarious watching people freak out when the bus went missing… sounds mean but it was. We got some empanadas. Every country does empanadas differently and so far Colombia has the worst. We got a steak to share and it had big pieces of meat rather than mince meat as well as cheese. We also got some plantain crisps but with lemon. The woman recommended them.

Writing this I am aware I talk about food a lot… my mum even pointed it out. I can’t help it, I love food!

We arrived at La Fortuna, a small town know for the Arenal Volcano and a home to tons of wildlife. We were staying in a Selina Hostel, a more premium chain of hostels. When we checked in they told us they had to move us into a private room instead of a dorm, what a win. Beforehand we were doing our best to waste time before check in but we actually used it wisely by booking tomorrows tour. This sales woman got us good coming off the bus and her charisma got me. We ended up booking a full day with her doing many activities. We start at the volcano, followed by lunch, then a small botanical garden, a hike to a waterfall, and finally some hot springs.

After checking in and having a beer in a overpriced tourist trap we knew it was time to go to the supermarket as the cost of eating out here is extortionate. Although, we still ended up paying $40 in the shop. For lunch, I was reunited with my best friend Serrano ham. For dinner, we had a make shift chicken fajitas. They were delicious.

It was this shop Ollie rediscovered his love for peanut butter and ended up buying a massive jar. Honestly, it has been a great way for him to shut up about being hungry all day. However, he does pair it with chipotle crackers which is questionable.

Looks better than it was as the bread here is so sweet

The next day we were up ready for our tour bus to collect us at 8 and they were right on time. The bus had about 20 people in it in total. It is funny because you really eye everyone up when you get on, well at least I do. It was mixture of ages, from late 60s to early 20s. The people who caught my eye was this Californian couple in their 40s. The woman was wearing the same shorts as me but in hot pink. Then her husband ploughing down on some American golden fish crisps and a monster energy drink. Next to them, we had a young Australian couple who we actually ended up seeing a lot more than we thought. The accent is just so piercing.

Stop one was the volcano hike but we were pretty worried as the weather was not promising. Sadly the clouds didn’t clear so we didn’t get a good view at the top. Nonetheless, the hike up was through the jungle and our guide taught us so many amazing things. The rain sort of made it fun.

Next we went to the green lake which was full of amazing birds.

The group was divided in half and we were with both the couples I pointed out earlier. I know stereotypes are bad but they are just so fitting. Of course the Australians thoughts crocs and Birkenstocks would be suitable shoes to hike in. I think they got a telling off by the guide at the top. At least the Americans had white trainers on. However, the guy wouldn’t stop trying to guess which type of cows we were seeing and failing each time sorely.

Once we had reunited with the other half of the group it was back into the shuttle. We then stopped after 5 minutes to join another 20 people who had spotted a sloth in the tree. Honestly, I couldn’t see it and when I got a chance to use the telescope it had turned away. I hoped I’d get the chance to see more.

We then arrived to our lunch spot which was a canteen. Ollie’s face lifted when he saw the size of peoples plates but it dropped when he heard it was only fish left. He tried mine after and regretted not getting it. Which I knew he would. Little did he know he gobbled down some tuna pasta. They piled so much food onto our plates that even I couldn’t finish it.

Energised we went into the botanical garden. This was when we saw the toucan. It was so close it was incredible. We also saw monkeys and sloths. So my wish came true. We were overwhelmed with choice.

Once we were all done taking our millionth picture it was time to get to the waterfall. We got there via a truck like train which was a bumpy ride.

I don’t know why we always forget to bring flip flops but this would have made our lives so much easier. Instead we had to crawl over pointy rocks with our bare feet to get to the waterfall. It was worth it and was the best we had seen yet. We both swam in it but you had to be so careful to not get swept up.

We were then taken to Maleku village where we met some of the indigenous tribe. They gave us a peak into their daily lives. Speaking about and about medicinal plants and Maleku customs. We then had the chance to purchase some Maleku art but it did feel a little like the gift shop.

We were all starting to feel tired as it was a long day. Luckily, next on the itinerary was going to some hot pools. Sadly I didn’t take many pictures but they were not what I expected. We were given some vodka orange soda and put into these man made pools that weren’t even that hot and felt like I was in a tacky Hawaiian all inclusive. Tiki lights and fake rocks. It was hilarious and ended the trip on a high.

Day 2 was Valentine’s Day. We didn’t make much of a big deal of it though as we are already having a holiday of a lifetime! We decided to save on money and head to the public river, called El Salto. It was a beautiful natural pool with a rope swing but I was too scared to do it. We had a couple of beers and this time chose the pilsner over the imperial which was just too yeasty. I sat observing and Ollie went on an adventure through the rapids. On our way back we passed a cute little family run restaurant on the side of the road and ordered to pineapple juices. They even treated us to a free coconut. It was here we got the best view of the volcano as the clouds opened up.