Costa Rican road trip

In January (wow, I'm quite behind on my pictures), my two good friends Aaron and Laura (who I worked with in Prague) came to visit.  They are now living in Denver, so it was such a treat to have them come visit for a week.  We got to spend a few days traveling together throughout Costa Rica.  They rented a car which allowed us to see things at our own pace.  We had quite an adventure!  It was so great getting to spend time with good friends!

Just another three lane highway with no lane makers...

Costa Rica truly is beautiful

Beautiful landscapes

Well, as we had a car we had a bit of an adventure finding our way around - but our mis-navigation led us to this amazing sight.  Who would want to miss this?  Proof that its the journey not the destination that matters...

I learned later that this is one of the national symbols for the country 

Approaching Arenal Volcano - pretty cool!

Arenal Volcano

Arenal Volcano

Lake Arenal

Near Arenal Volcano

Sun shining on the lush green trees

Lake Arenal

We saw a lot of interesting animal crossings signs...

On a hike in Monte Verde Cloud Forest Preserve - we did see some cool animals, as you can see by Aaron and Laura's faces!

Beautiful flowers too

The cloud forest is very damp and thus a lot of moss grows - I find it fascinating!

I was also really interested in the random red leaves that had fallen and the color bursts they provided - so as you'll see, I took a few pictures of different ones I happend upon.

My first armadillo sighting in Costa Rica of all places!

Aaron and Laura hanging out on the suspension bridge

Hummingbird park - fascinating to watch these birds

A rainbow from our hotel in Santa Elena

A lovely bunch of crocodiles

Shadows of Aaron, Laura, and me

We made it in time for sunset in Quepos

Our awesome hostel in Quepos

Manuel Antonio preserve

Manuel Antonio preserve

Howler monkey

Howler monkey - and yes, they are loud!

Sloth (to the right hanging from a branch)

We caught this sloth coming down from his perch - pretty interesting to watch!

sloth

sloth

The beach in Manuel Antonio Preserve

Another incredible sunset