Volcan Arenal

So apparently it's looking like I'm going to be blogging only about once a week. I didn't think I would be as busy as I have been. Last week I had a few papers and like four presentations to do, and tomorrow I have a grammar exam on practically everything I've ever learned in Spanish except subjunctive. I haven't studied grammar since high school, so it's been an intense review. Luckily, all I have to do is pass for credits to transfer :)

The amazing view from my hotel room

We also visited another clinic last week, called Clinica Biblica. It's private, so it seemed just like a hospital in the States. Some students got to watch surgeries, but I was placed in admissions and vaccinations (fairly boring, but oh well).

A pretty cool spider

After class, we left for Volcan Arenal. It was gorgeous, but we were slightly disappointed that we didn't get to see any lava or really get close to the volcano at all. We did learn a lot about different plants and animals here. For my fellow bio nerds: one fern, called a mimosa, closes its leaves when you touch it. It was pretty cool. We also saw toucans, spiders, and lizards. AND get ready for this: ate termites! Later, a couple of us hiked to a really pretty waterfall, but we were NOT prepared for how rigorous the hike would be. We definitely looked foolish in our flip flops, but nonetheless, it was worth the adventure. That night, we went to some hot springs. It was really a waterpark but with warm water. Definitely not what I was expecting, but it was very relaxing and had a great view of the volcano.

The next morning, we went ziplining in the canopy of the rainforest. BEST EXPERIENCE SO FAR. It was so beautiful and fun. I'm getting pictures from another student soon, so those will be coming. There was a minor mishap. I didn't want to take my camera up with me, so one of the guides put it in his locker so it'd be safe. Problem: he didn't come down with us, so when we got back, no one had a key for us to get to our cameras and the bus was leaving. We had to leave and two students that stayed had to get them for us. A little nerve-wracking, but it worked out just fine, thankfully.

Ziplining!!

As close as we could get
to the volcano :(

Other than these big things, I've just been hanging out with my host mom or other students' families. My mom and I went to San Jose one day to explore the market and for her to get her hair done, so I got to practice Spanish quite a bit with all of her friends there. We also played cards with another girl's sister, so we learned some games she plays and taught her some of ours. It was fun. Then last night, we played Bingo with another girl's family. This weekend I'll be gone again to Manuel Antonio for more beach time!