Sunday is funday

We went off-script for our plans on Sunday. The program originally included a trip to an eco-park, but past comments were lukewarm to its entertainment value. So Luis took us to some truly natural hot springs, a river really that is free and open to the public. The water rushed off the volcano at a pretty good clip and was about 90 degrees. Of course, there was some trash strewn about and we had to go under the road in a concrete channel, but after we felt like we were in the jungle. It was nice and relaxing.

Next, we drove around the volcano to the Arenal Observatory and took a hike through a rain forest to a lava flow from 1992. Arenal is no longer active (since 2010). In 1982 there was a big eruption where some people were killed. It caught the locals off-guard. The hike was easy, but soon after we crossed a wire suspended bridge, it started raining. We did get to see some spider monkeys and some howler monkeys. Luis has only seen spider monkeys two other times, so I guess it was a big deal. 
By the time we got to the lava flow the rain was really coming down. There were some nice views of the volcano and we could see the path of the lava etched into the jungle. The forest is all second growth after the eruption in 1982 decimated everything. The hike back was slow as the trail was really muddy. A few of the girls slipped and fell in the mud, but they were good sports about it.

The ride back to Samara was uneventful until we got pulled over at a check point. Apparently the bus didn't have a proper sticker. Joel, our driver, got a ticket and we were on our way. We stopped for lunch at another tourist trap that is expensive (relative). We arrived in Samara around 6 pm.