Hola from an adventurous week! This past week has included lots of sightseeing, working, and trying new restaurants. Here is the (second to last!) weekly recap:
Last weekend was a long weekend due to the national holiday, Annexation of Guanacaste on July 24, so we took advantage of it and went to La Fortuna. On Saturday, we went on an all-day, guided tour which included views of the Arenal Volcano, a waterfall, a visit to an indigenous tribe, butterfly gardens, and finally a thermal springs resort. Our tour guide was the nicest guy and was super knowledgeable about all of the wildlife in the area. Sunday was a more chill day, where we went to Lake Arenal and enjoyed some paddle boarding in the sun. We also tried out a restaurant in town, which had super good food, and picked up some dessert and snacks before heading back to our Airbnb. To end the night, we ate said snacks and watched a movie. Monday morning, Hannah, Pablo and I walked down the street to El Salto, a swimming hole that has a Tarzan rope. I’d been there before during a Meditek trip, but previously didn’t try the Tarzan rope because I didn’t have a swimsuit with me — this time I was more prepared and got to try it! The cold water was super refreshing, and there’s just something about swimming in a river that beats a manmade pool. Overall, this was definitely my favorite weekend of the trip.
GMI album cover pic
Paddleboarding at Lake Arenal!
El Salto Swimming Hole
Tuesday was back to the work grind, so Santiago and I went to the office in the morning. To celebrate the holiday, Meditek hired people to come and make homemade tortillas with cheese on the grill. They were similar to the ones we had at Pablo’s house at the beginning of the trip, and were suuuuper delicious. After the mini-celebration, we headed to Hospital Mexico in San Jose. This week was part of a 3-week project to inspect and do maintenance on various medical devices at that particular hospital. Therefore, I went there everyday and worked on monitors, anesthesia machines, and even an autoclave! I’d never gotten to work with an autoclave in a hospital before, so it was exciting to see something new. Because we worked on so many machines this week, there were a ton of reports to write for the company, and I finally got to put my Spanish skills to the test and write some myself!
Tortillas for Annexation of Guanacaste Day
Aside from work, I took advantage of being back in San Jose this week to cook, go to the gym, and hang out with everyone. One day after work, there was a cooking class going on in the hostel kitchen where we made homemade empanadas and got to try them afterwards — 10/10.
Empanada making at the hostel!
Yesterday, since it was Sid and Ravi’s last night here, we went to “the spot”, La Esquinta de la Abuela, for one last dinner with them. Them leaving today really signified that the end of our time here is nearing, and I’m equally excited and sad to leave Costa Rica. It has been an incredible summer here, but I do have to say that I’m looking forward to seeing my family and friends back home and sleeping in my own bed.
Stay tuned for the last Costa Rica blog. Until then, adios!