Mi ultimo viaje por Arenal - la mejor!

When I finished school and was waiting for them across the road in the small parking lot, initially a worker from the Panadaria shipping company that ran out of there was concerned that I was lost. Not so much. My parents were quite late due to construction and I started to get a little nervous waiting and was considering taking the bus home when they drove by. Luckily they showed up and randomly decided that they wanted to go to Arenal that day, as it was super clear and you could already see el volcan for only about the third time since I'd been here.
We ate at a restaurant along the way, as they hadn't really had lunch (except for at the sketchy fast food place around the plaza that even Adam and I hadn't ventured into). The resturant that we were ate was next to a pineapple plantation and had a clear view or Arenal. Randomly while we were there, a really friendly local guide showed up and really recommended that we go see the volcano tongiht. We also talked about how much the area had changed in the last few decades. He had lived there most of his life and commented on how while the volcano had killed many people, it also saved many lives with the opportunity and prosperity that it brought to the area... interesting to think about. p.s - I also had some pretty killer lomito de chocolate and a really weird juice with lots of tiny little seeds in it.
We visited La Fortuna and then, after getting ice cream, headed up to the volcano. We drove up into a resort where we basically had to pay admittance, but got to view the volcano from a really cool porch. Driving up the mountain was an experience in itself (super steep!), but the while we were waiting for it to get dark at the resort, we saw some crazy parrots just hanging out on the side of this little path. They were small and green and chattering all over the place. My dad had already returned to the porch and my mom and I were heading back, pretending to run from an imaginary eruption when we felt it for the first time.
The ground actually rumbled, sending a tremble to our core. We looked at each other and rushed back to my dad. When Adam and I had gone hiking on the base of Arenal, we had seen nothing and half convinced ourselves that we had at least felt it. Later on, someone had told me that if we had felt it, that there was no mistaking it. Now, I was sure, I most definitely had not felt it before!
We rushed back to the porch and watched the sun go down over Lago Arena, anticipating, wtih each mosquito bit, the moment when it would be dark enough to see the lava. I had been expecting a slow, molten flow of red, but was surprised to see bouncing explosions of sparks tumbling down its slopes. The eruption sounded like hard boiled eggs spitting and bouncing around a pan and you could see the chunks splitting and exploding as they kit obsticals along there way. I did my best to record the experience, but could not do it justice on my small digital camera. However, I certainly felt grateful to have finally had the experience that many fruitlessly come to Costa Rica for.
On our way back down the slopes, we were nearly forced to stop crossing a bridge where the view opened up enough to see the sparks of the lava. We got out of our vehicle, leaving my mom inside, to cling to the bridge rails along with everyone who wanted a veiw without the entrance feel. It was still impressive. but a little nerve racking to share the bridge with whizzing vehicles. I couldn't help but think that if my parents hadn't come, that would have been my most ideal way of experiencing the flow.
Additionally, its interesting to think about how there are all of these hotels set up with grossly expensive rooms offering the possibility of a glimpse at the flow thought the clouds, when the volcano could just as easily change the angle from which it was flowing with a single explosion. They would be left worthless, and other similar resorts would spring up in that direction! Still, without ever really seeking them out, I am kind of taken aback by how many volcanoes I have seen and how much I enjoy learning about them!