10 12.039 N, 84 29.068 W, Villa Blanc
Sunday evening, Phoebe, Rich and I went on a nocturnal forest hike with our guide, Hernando, and a guest from Florida. We had flashlights to help spot critters and the path. Lightening bugs twinkled like stars between the forest floor and the tree canopy. I was glad the guide was in front especially after he mentioned snakes and spiders including tarantulas. My flashlight was scanning the trail and I was hoping not to see any of these things. We did see many crickets, moths and I spotted one tiny, brown tree frog, the size of a quarter. There was a Jesus plant that has red splotches on the leaves that look like blood. As we concluded our walk and went by the recycling center, there were hundreds of moths of many varieties darting in the lights.
Monday morning after breakfast we stood on the balcony off the dining room and scanned for more birds. Phoebe spotted a pair of green birds with the yellowish green bill like the toucan we had seen on Sunday morning. It was a smaller variety of the same species. It is called a toucanet. Learn something new every day.
In the late morning, Phoebe and I had a massage. There was only one masseuse on duty so we could not do it at the same time. It was an Arenal Volcanic Lava Rock Therapy. Arenal is the volcano that we visited when we flew to Costa Rica in 2007 with our friends, Dan and Madeline. Now Arenal is in a dormant phase. Anyway, the therapy is specially heated volcanic stones are carefully placed on key muscle areas, providing deep therapeutic bliss. This lava rock treatment is supposed to melt away sore muscles, providing pure relaxation that reaches deep into your muscles. The massage along with the hot rocks was great. Both Phoebe and I enjoyed it. It was a fun pampering.
Villa Blanc also has a wedding chapel on site. The property was originally owned by a president of Costa Rica and he built the chapel to celebrate the renewal of his vows with his wife of 60 years. The ceiling is covered with ceramic tiles celebrating the various Virgin Mary's. the site is beautiful and over looks the forest. There was a wedding there on Sunday so we did not get a chance to see it before.
Dinner last night was a more intimate affair, near the fireplace with a fire. There were only 6 guests here at the hotel last night, including the 4 of us.
This morning after breakfast we were able to get a few more photos of the toucanet which I will post later. We are packed and getting ready to continue our road trip which will take us through Sarchi, Grecia and on to the Poas Lodge by the entrance to the Poas Volcanic National Park.
Stay tuned
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