Canopy Tour post #3

Can you see the baby pineapple growing here???  Pineapple are a product of Costa Rica - even growing on a canopy tour!  And boy have we eaten some pineapple!!!  YUM!

Huberts on the Canopy Tour!!!

  

PURA VIDA!  The kids and Sandy with Giovanni

This video is of Dave flying along the longest of the lines --- just over 300 meters (which is about 3000 feet for us gringos).  When he gets to the red sign, he's supposed to brake - but it's tricky!  You'll see at the end they have a contraption where they throw this block out and it is on a pully system to help stop you.

Post #2 of Canopy Tour

BLOG POST #2 of CANOPY TOUR

We crossed two suspension bridges ---

You can hear Jack saying "bounce bounce bounce"

 Here's Jack going all by himself... can you see us all watching him???  His Mama was more nervous than he was!!!  Doesn't he look so tiny hanging out there???

Dave

Meg

Missi

Sandy

David flying in - yes! Upside down!!!

 I attempted going upside down -- -I hung there for a bit... giggling... and just couldn't do it -

 So I came in all classy-like ... with a smile!;)

Jack flies in with Giovanni ---

Congo Trail Canopy Tour

So this is post one of many... I was going to do the never-ending blog post but guess I'll have to do it in stages...

Yes... even Jack is going to go on the zip line tour --- they ensured me that it was safe... "professionals..." this guy said with a smile...

Now we are ready!!!

Giovanni and Donal were our guides.  Very nice young guys --- so helpful and careful with the kids and willing to help Jack and the girls...

When we first started out, Jack went with one of the guides and Ella also went with one of the guides.

Here's Meggie --- no fear!

 Granma Sandy and Granpa Wayne also joined in the fun ---

 And of course, me... I had so much fun!

After the first couple of lines, the guides started mixing it up - either letting Jack and Ella ride together ...or...  

... did you hear what Giovanni said there toward the end of that video???  "On this next cable, we will do Jack alone..."

The funny part of this is that Dave and I both thought that he said he would send Jack with Dave... until Jack is floating down the line ALONE!!!!  He looked so tiny as he faded away into the trees...

On a different note in that video, Jack is saying "WHISKEY!"  That's what they saw here instead of "cheese" -- it has helped a little bit with the 'problem' of the cheesey grin...

Oh - and if you look closely, you can see howler monkeys in the trees right there.

Are You My Mother?

Jack was only able to bring about 5 or 6 books along.  This one is his favorite...

Goin on a frog hunt...

So listen to this video --- it was too dark for a picture but I really wanted you to hear what it sounds like --- this is at Arenal Lodge at night...

and it was like this all night and our windows were open... and none of us slept real well...

At about 3 am, Jack woke up and started talking about what he was hearing...

"Frog says 'ribbit' Mom!!!"

"Frogs are saying 'yup yup' --- hear it?"

"Do you hear the happy frog, Mom?  Him's happy!  Him jump in the water... d'oing!"

It was sure cute... but at 3 am - it was a bit much. 

We're goin' on a frog hunt... we're gonna catch a big one - what a beautiful evening!

 So at first, we were not successful.  We ran into a family from Texas that had found this beautiful little guy and shared him with us.

 Then we found this little black frog in the lights by the pool

 Then Meg spotted this cool guy on one of the big leaves by the restaurant -- she caught him straight-away without any trouble. 

 She was proud of herself and I was proud of her too!!!

 Isn't he soooo cool!!!?!!

 And while we admired the red-eyed tree frog, Dave found this big guy in the pond!

We decided to let the tree frog go before he got dried out... he was so cooperative

 We sat and watched him on this big leaf until he headed for the safety of the inner part of the plant. 

 This little fella is not quite as cute but interesting none the less --- and needless to say, none of us picked him up!!!

 This moth was on the wall outside of our room -- I should have put something else in the picture for perspective -- he is about the size of a dollar bill... big, eh?

Dinner in La Fortuna

We drove down into La Fortuna for dinner... it is just east of Arenal Lodge and because it was raining, and I forgot my raincoat in Ocotal (I hate this!  I pack everything that everyone else needs and forget what I need!  UGH!!!)  we drove into the little town and thankfully found a poncho - you know the kind... a garbage sack with a 'hood' - in a little store right next to where we ate.

We stopped at a "Soda" which is a little restaurant - there are TONS of them in CR - and I ordered La Casado con pescado - the daily dish with fish and this is what I got!

Fish, rice and black beans, fried plantain, some kind of ground beef mixture in the middle - had like green beans and carrots in it... Yum!, yucca - it's the stuff with the chips stuck in it... tasted like au gratin potatoes to me!, some lettuce salad, and that purple stuff... it had hard boiled eggs and beets... not my favorite.

Dave had the buffet - it was basically everything that I had but no fish... he is more adventuresome in eating than I am...

The kids got una hamburguesa con papas fritas (hamburger and fries) and weren't thrilled.  They put mayo and ketchup and a slice of ham on their hamburgers... and "the bun tastes weird" is what Meg said... WHATEVER!!!  Their favorite part of the meal was the rice pudding that the waitress brought at the very end.

One of the most exciting parts of dinner was when we first sat down and I opened my menu to a tiny little gecko --- Meg and I couldn't decide if he was inside the menu or jumped down from the thatched roof!  It was funny and it ran into the flowers  you see behind Meg (above)... she tried to catch it but it was quick!

Then we just cruised around La Fortuna for a little while.  Neat little town square with beautiful flowers and a fountain.