The Easter Froggy...

We will miss the Easter Bunny this year....

Who cares?  We'll be in Costa Rica!!!  Stay tuned.....

Pura Vida!

pura vida (adj)- expression used in Costa Rica meaning life is good!

Words cannot possibly describe this place.....so I'll use a number to explain it.  98.  That's ninety-eight damn degrees!  And, we're not complaining one bit!  We actually forgot what weather like this feels like after the long winter back home this year.  Let me tell you.....it feels great!  No snow in the forecast here in Costa Rica!  

 

We're staying at the all-inclusive Guanacaste Riu Hotel & Resort.  5 big stars, baby!  We can't remember the last time we've been pampered at an all-inclusive resort.....maybe our honeymoon 11 years ago?  My how time flies!  And, the price is still the same for all food and drinks - FREE99!!!  Gotta love the all-inclusive resorts!

Speaking of all-inclusive....check out the picture below.  If this isn't room service of the highest quality.....I don't know what is.  We literally have a cabinet of Vodka taps at our disposal 24/7 with a refrigerator stocked to the gills with sodas, juices, beer, and water.  How fast can all of you guys get here?  Party in room 2004!!!

 

Oh!  FYI - you won't find us in our room until after 6pm.  That's when the pool closes and Jenesa is kicked off her stool at the swim-up pool bar!  She already knows all the bartenders by name and she's making friends with the other drunks.  We made a group of new friends on day 1.....a couple from Philly and a doctor from Detroit.  Dr. Max said he's willing to write us a note if we wanted to stay a few extra days and play hookie from school next week.

The Canopy Zipline

The purpose of this vacation is to relax and have some fun!  We usually do not get the chance to do both of those things while on our longer summer trips.  So we planned this trip with an emphasis on fun activities everyday.....with plenty of R&R in between.  Costa Rica was at the top of our list for "fun" destinations!  So let the FUN begin!!!

Excursion #1 - Canopy Zipline Tour

We will NEVER forget the zipline from our South Africa trip....even though we try to forget about it every day!  It was definitely one of the scariest activities we have ever done while on vacation.  Jenesa and I are always looking for some fun and adventure - but it seems the older we get....the more we start reassessing what is fun and what is plain stupid!

The history of the zipline originates with biologists who set out to study the diversity of animal life in the upper canopy level of the lush rain forests.  These canopy tours of Costa Rica allow them to explore this inaccessible ecosystem.  The system of cables and platforms takes you across and above the treetops, while wearing secure gear, to provide a different perspective of the forest than what you'd usually see from the ground.  In other words, these biologists were smart enough to realize tourists would pay big bucks to do dumb shit like this!

 

Enter the Leonard's!!!

Jenesa and I felt much more safe in the Costa Rican treetops than staring down into the Zimbabwe River.  So for a little over an hour we zipped from tree to tree over the forest - roughly a dozen ziplines stretching out across the canopy.  My daredevil wife even felt the need to volunteer to zip upside down at one point (woohoo!).  

Surprise! We're Adopting!

Lately, it seems everyone is having babies except US!  But that's ok.... because we're in Costa Rica and they're NOT! (haha)  Well, it didn't take us long on this vacation to realize that we were missing out!  So we have decided to adopt.  Why adopt?  I doubt Jenesa and I could possibly have a kid that looks anything half as cute as this little bugger!  Meet Tate!

Hangin' With The Leonard's

Today we have a full-day excursion planned to experience some hanging bridges in the Central American rain forest.  After ziplining through the forest yesterday, how scary could this adventure be?  So we put on our hiking shoes and set off for the town of Bijagua.

Excursion #2 - Hanging Bridges Tour 

We were escorted on a 3-hour drive across the Pan-American Highway to get to the private rainforest reserve (this same highway begins in Alaska and extends all the way south to the tip of South America).  Lots of highway construction is now underway to expand the roads due to increased traffic and tourism in Costa Rica....adding at least an hour to our drive!

Nonetheless, shortly before arriving at our destination in the rain forest.....a sloth was spotted!  A what?  A sloth, of course!  These things are like major attractions around this area, but we've never seen one or even heard of them!  Picture a giant furball that can climb trees.  According to our tour guide they spend their lives in trees and only come down once every week to poop (no lie!).  This somehow prevents them from being found by predators before they return to their post high in the trees.  I don't know what predator would want to eat something that's as ugly as a sloth!  Bon appetite...nyeh!

This property counts four hanging bridges that extend between 35-45 meters in length, giving us yet again a new perspective of the rain forest.  Unfortunately, nobody told Jenesa that we would be hiking 4km through the rain forest to get to all of these bridges.  But once she was saddled up with a snazzy walking stick from our tour guide - giddy up!

After hiking for only five minutes - and stopping to look at 8 different birds - Leonard was ready to scream bloody murder and beat the tour guide with his hiking stick!  These people are fascinated with birds!  Red birds.  Blue birds.  Red birds with blue spots.  Blue birds with red stripes.  Same bird, different color!  Good grief!  According to our tour guide there are over 390 different species of birds located in the Costa Rican rain forests - and apparently - she knew the names of every single one of them!  It's a bird!  Whoopie!  I paid to see the hanging bridges!  Let's keep moving!

 

Alas, we finally made it to the bridges.  Honestly, our first impression was a bit disappointing.  After walking so far through the rain forest we wanted to be wowed over these bridges.  None of them were quite long enough to cause us to say oooooooh! or aaaaaaaah!   And, none of them were hanging over anything that would scare you silly.....unless you hate heights.  Although, someone (with the initials JML) thought they would be funny while their husband was standing in the middle of one of the bridges.  She began jumping up and down on the bridge, which caused the whole thing to ripple like a wave.  That kinda causes your butthole to tighten up in a hurry as you scramble to find something to hang onto!  Not very funny, honey!