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 Once we had finished at Zarcero, the ride was down to the west coast and back up to Monteverde. We drove down the Pan-American highway and passed through a tropical dry rain forest, which was one of those " unclear on the concept" moments. However, as usual, Alex was able to explain it in detail and give us a greater appreciation for the variety that exists within Costa Rica.
We wound our way up the looming mountainside and slowly were enveloped in the mist of the cloud forest. Monteverde is a small community founded by Quakers with a mind towards preservation. We were treated to several hikes experiencing a wide range of wildlife and fauna. The walk through the cloud forest canopy was spectacular as you dangled over deep canyons on a suspended walkway, eye to eye with the top of this world. A tour through this Photo Gallery recaps some of our favorite moments. Our next hop is down to Tamarindo, for some sun and relaxation before heading home. The trek continues.
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 It was time to bid our new found friends goodbye as they dropped us off at the Hotel Pueblo Dorado in Tamarindo. After the wonderful accommodations we had experienced, this hotel was a bit of a step backwards. It looked like a Motel 6, and after we spent a few hours getting our reservation straight, we were ushered into a stark whitewashed room with a huge post-industrial cement cast of a pre-columbian artifact glaring at us from the wall. To top it off, the air conditioner rattled and hummed the night away, which would have not been too bad if the mattress was greater than 3 inches thick. It was definitely time for a new hotel.
The only glitch was that on New Years Eve, it is a difficult proposition to find another available hotel room in one of the country's most popular vacation destinations. It became my mission in life to find the Holy Grail. As luck would have it, the best hotel in Tamarindo had a room available after I trekked the entire beach looking for any accommodation that would take us out of the rattle trap we were caged in. Just as its name suggested we were on to a higher plane, El Jardin del Eden. It is run by 2 very accommodating Frenchmen, who made us feel at home and put us back on track for a relaxing close to our fabulous vacation.
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We spent our time lazing on the beach, driving around the area to see the local life and relaxing in the tropical sun. One night we quietly hiked along the beach to catch the endangered Leatherback Turtle laying her eggs under the moonlight, guided by a group of scientists studying these marvelous creatures. Hopefully their discoveries will help preserve this species and many others as we race to overdevelop our world. This last set of pictures ends our magical voyage to Costa Rica and we encourage all to visit this special land.
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