29.08 20081

Day 1 of TweetFest: Costa Rica Style

30 minutes after landing at San Jose, Costa Rica, Lee and I are having lunch with Nico Pisani.  Lee leans over and says, "You know - I could live here". It sounds crazy, but I totally know how Lee felt.  There is just a certain magic about this place.  You can feel the vibrant energy EVERY WHERE! Even in the city of San Jose itself (the largest concentration of Costa Rica's population) - you can feel it. Now, you all know that Lee and I are NOT the city type of folk.  So for us to feel this at home while still in the city is something in and of itself.

But then the journey into true paradise began...

Our friend and tour guide, Nico Pisani, had his driver take us on one of the most beautiful drives of our lives.  Once we entered the mountains, we were winding in so many directions that I had NO idea which way was what. And the fact that I was constantly looking around to take in every gorgeous moment didn't help my sense of direction either. About 45 minutes into the drive, we stop at a small store to have some Costa Rican coffee.  Well the coffee was amazing and the store owners gracious and incredibly friendly. Across the road was a barn at the edge of one of the most luscious flowing scenes imaginable.  There was a Tico (Tico is the word used for Costa Rica residents) sitting on a white Palimino stallion.

She had that incredible beast practicing his "prancing and dancing".  This couple could easily have been the inspiration for the spinning characthers in every little girl's beloved music box.

Stately prancing and dancing.  Simply magical.

We again climbed into our ride and continued on our journey to the resort.  Before we knew it we were surrounded by miles and miles of tropical plant farms.  You know, all those high end plants we buy for our offices.  To see so many rows of these exotic plants was breath taking. We continued winding through the mountains and forest, gasping at each new site that appeared around every corner. And then, there it was.  The Arenal volcano. One of this planets most amazing sites.  Arenal awoke just over 40 years ago from a 420 year old nap to become one of the trulyt active volcanoes on planet earth.

The smoke spiraling from her mouth at each eruption... hovering as if it were surrounded by clouds. Talk about a surreal moment.

And as we drove closer, she became more regal.  Towering above all else, sitting majestically in her crown of ominous smoke. Arenal... My neck began to ache as I continued to stretch and twist to keep her within view.  But I couldn't help it.  I was spell bound. After another 30 minutes or so, Nico decided to pull over to allow us to take in the view and stretch our tired bodies. It was at this stop that I came face to face with one of my only fears.  A humongous bannana spider. Now, I understand that these creatures are beautiful and amazing in their own right.  That's fine.  I just don't want them on me...or coming towards me...or even looking at me.  Gives me the willies. But after taking in these beasts at close range, I began to admire them in a whole new way.  For one thing, their webs were spun of golden thread.  Gorgeous. I could envision silken garmets made from this sparking resource. Their bodies encased colors like none I had ever seen on similar critters back home in Michigan.  Even more hypnotic than the creatures of gorgeous color in South Korea.

Then it happened.  Nico was admiring one of the spiders up close and touched its web.  He told me how strong it felt and tried his best to entice me to also give it a gentle tug. So I did.

I was invigorated with a mixture of fear and awe.

Thank the gods that the spider tolorated my intrusion and decided NOT to move towards me.  Again...thank the gods! Instead this hand sized creature of fear just sat there.  Taking it all in and allowing me to enjoy her world for just a moment.  All the while, continuing to work on her masterpiece of gold. Moments later, we were back in the van and on our way.  I could write pages upon pages of the sites that we entertained along our route.  How the sunset behind the volcano took our breathe away or how her ever dominating presence grew as we approached her. I want to leave those images for you to experience first hand.  Besides, my humble words could NEVER do justice. But I will say that if our dinner of local seafood (including octupus and squid that our son so enjoyed) and the adventures that we have already encountered, were an indication of things to come...this is going to be one hell of a week. Untill the next TweetFest update from paradise...Buenos Noches

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