On my way to the Arenal Volcano... I happened across a lovely lake nestled in an even more lovely valley about two hours south of my destination. I had the wonderful good fortune to meet one of the restaurant's owners, Ana Quiros, and her beautiful 2 year old girl. After an excellent omelet and some fine Costa Rican coffee, I discovered that Ana and her husband Norman had not only built the restaurant;, they also built the Ecco Colonia Resort which was just a "short drive" up the road. More on this later! Ana suggested an "adventure". She defined adventure as a "quick trip" up the road (9KM) to the resort for a visit... then back down to the restaurant. I asked if I should follow her in my car... she just smiled at my little rental Corolla... and said I'd better go with her in the pick-up truck. Along the way, I learned how Ana met her husband Norman, and that Ana was on the Costa Rican National Volleyball Team. A fascinating woman... she is so typical of the wonderful people you find in Costa Rica. Friendly, warm, and genuine. The Resort itself, or maybe I should say the ROAD to the resort, is located between the San Jose airport and the Volcano It is only about a mile or so from the University of Costa Rica Biological Reserve. Ana explained that students come to study the unique ecological aspects around this area. She also mentioned I could expect to see some wonderful views of the Monteverde Cloud forest but that it was too cloudy to see Arenal. Next trip, I make it to the volcano! |
Little did I know, I would never make it to the volcano!
I couldn't help but notice that the truck had seating for only TWO... so what was to happen with her daughter? I offered to sit her on my lap... "She'll ride in the back of the truck!" "Won't she fall out?" sez I... "No! One of my employees will hold her!" ... and that is the way it was. Off we went. 9KM never seemed so long... nor so gorgeous. 
The road (if you are not too picky about the definition of "road"), was deeply rutted and full of deep puddles and an occasional boulder or two... not to mention a herd of cows that found MY side of the pickup very interesting. The trip took about 45 minutes to an hour.