I loved Alajuela. While we were there we stayed in a country home. It was a darling little place, with beautiful country views, serene nights and interesting insects.
[A little background info:
Alajuela is the second largest city in Costa Rica and is nicknamed, ciudad de los mangos (City of the Mangos). Poas Volcano sits behind Alajuela City Center.]
I ran a few miles while I was in Alajuela, I ran more here than in any other city we visited. There aren't any sidewalks where we were, so I ran along the street. I passed by horses, cows, ran alongside huge grasshoppers. I got bit all over my legs, and we are not talking small NYC insect bites, these were huge and swollen and so itchy that I could have died from over scratching! It was nice to take in the scenery alone, and just to think and appreciate where I was.
One activity that I absolutely LOVED, and hands down felt like the luckiest person in the world to be experiencing was the Baldis Hot Springs. Its a natural spring, but made into a luxury spa/ bar/ water amusement park. All of the water was naturally heated by the volcano. Each pool and waterfall we were in came from the volcano, therefore it had natural minerals that nourished the skin at different temperatures. The sensation was overwhelming. I was so relaxed while there, and didn't mind at all that some of the pools were burning!
I was IN MY GLORY! ESTABA EN MI GLORIA!
A few other activities we did while we were there was Kayaking in the largest dam in the South of the Americas, The Pirris Dam (heres an article about its opening last year: http://www.ticotimes.net/Current-Edition/News-Briefs/Costa-Rica-inaugurates-Pirris-dam-amid-protests_Tuesday-September-13-2011)
We also planted trees to help a local high school with their science project... that was nice. We felt like we were making a difference.
The three days we spent in Alajuela were amazing, unforgettable, so different from my daily NYC grind. It was amazing.
More Costa Rica blogs to come.
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