After La Fortuna, we spent three days at a resort in the middle of the rainforest. It continued to rain on and off (imagine that?). But it was warm and sunny often enough for Lillia to play in the pool a few times. If that girl could grow gills and fins, she would. We also went horseback riding, another first for Lillia. It was a pretty place, with charmingly minimalist cabins, but I was a little disappointed with how little wildlife we saw. Maybe it was the weather.
Anyway, from there we took the jeep-boat-jeep trip to Monteverde. It was drizzling most of the day (are you seeing a theme here?), but it was still a stunningly beautiful trip. We didn’t get to see Arenal reflected in the lake, but the deep green hills covered with meadows and forest on the Monteverde side were so lovely.
When we arrived in Santa Elena, it was briefly sunny, and we happily settled into the Arco Iris Lodge, just uphill from the town. Arco iris means rainbow in Spanish, and we did indeed see several while we were there.
Now, the Santa Elena- Monteverde area is the place to see wildlife. On Christmas Eve, we did a combination hanging bridges, hummingbird, and butterfly tour at Selvatura. First, the hanging bridges in the cloud forest, in the rain, during which Lillia went all pouty on us. It cleared up while we were having lunch, and just as we were finishing, the restaurant garden was suddenly invaded by a couple dozen adorable coatimundi.
Next we went to the hummingbird garden, where the feisty little birds fight over the many feeders. You wouldn’t think they’d need to; I guess they’re just innately aggressive.
For me the highlight of the day was the butterfly house. They collect all the cocoons and hang them in special cabinets. So, if you want to see butterflies that have just hatched, there they are. Many butterflies were still hanging from their chrysalises, and others were sitting on the bottom, letting their wings fully dry. We were allowed to let these ones climb onto our hands.
The following day, we were in a nice café in Santa Elena, when the barrista pointed out the back window and said “capuchin monkey”. Sure enough, there were two capuchin monkeys in the tree next to the back porch. We returned to this café the morning before we left for some prime birdwatching.
I will upload more photos after I get a larger hard drive. Soon, I hope.
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