After a long day of lectures yesterday nothing was better than being able to see more of Costa Rica today! Last night we ventured out to a bar in San Jose! The locals were really nice and we even got to play some of our music on their make shift DJ stand. It was a computer playing youtube videos! Hahaha, it definitely was an interesting night. We started off our morning early because we were trying to reach the Irazu Volcano National Park before all of the clouds rolled in. We traveled up steep and winding roads for quite a while. That little bus was practically the little engine that could. Once we reached the park, the weather had changed drastically. It was chilly, but the wind made it feel so much colder! We went inside of the little store that is located in the park and five minutes later we saw a cloud rolling in over the mountains. We tried to hurry to see the Diego de la Haya crater, but we got there a little too late. The clouds had rolled in and it was even colder than when we initially got off the bus! After touring the volcano, we passed through Cartago. This city was the first capital city of Costa Rica. We were able to view and walk on the new train tracks that were built to connect Cartago and San Jose. There were workers who were finalizing and finishing up the new tracks because they open tomorrow! We then walked around a market. The first smell that hit my nose was fish. I felt like I was back home in Louisiana. Not only were there vendors selling fish and meats, but they also had vendors selling fresh fruit. We were able to try papaya! I wasn't crazy about it, but it did taste ok. After visiting the market, we set off to go to Orosi Valley where we would have lunch. It took us quite a little while to make it here because the first road that we took had a landslide on it so we couldn't pass it. The alternate route had a bridge that was too short for our bus to fit under, so we had to find another way to get there. After about an hour, we finally arrived at Orosi Valley! It was so pretty! This coffee farm had so many plants and beautiful flowers! We also learned a little bit about coffee. Most of the workers who pick the coffee beans come from other countries, such as Nicaragua. After Orosi Valley, we went to visit the Cartago Basilica. This Catholic Church is home to the patron saint of Costa Rica, Saint Los Angeles. This church was built in 1912, which was two years after a major earthquake hit Costa Rica in 1910. Every August second, thousands of people walk to this church to give thanks and ask for favors. People come from all over the world to celebrate this day and some even walk for three or four days! This church was absolutely beautiful! I was even able to light up a candle in the church to give thanks and ask for special favors! After lighting up my candle, there was a ceremony going on in the church that happens everyday at three o'clock. They asked for people who have May birthdays to come up. Fernando, Austin, and I all have May birthdays so we were able to go up and be recognized! We also received a bag of Costa Rican candy! After visiting the church, we headed back to San Jose. Tomorrow we get to visit downtown San Jose and visit the Capitol. We also get to do some souvenirs shopping and I'm kind of excited! :)
Learning the lingo.. La bolsa means bag! I learned this after I spent five minutes trying to explain to the lady that I needed a bag. After she figured out that's what I needed, she kindly gave me the bag and said, "la bolsa". Haha, I guess we learn something new everyday!
This was the cloudy crater that we weren't able to see by the volcano.
The new train tracks that will connect Cartago and San Jose!
Fresh fruit at the market in Cartago!
Beautiful flowers in the Orosi Valley!
This is the Cathedral de Los Angeles in Cartago!
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