Early the next morning, we packed our bags and loaded the van to continue our journey through Costa Rica.  Not too long into the ride, we stopped along Lake Arenal to take pictures of the gorgeous landscape that we would be traveling around for the majority of the day.  The girls and I rushed across the highway for better photos and it was more painful than I thought it could be.

As I stood in the grass with nothing protecting my feet but flip flops, my toes began to burn.  At first, I didn’t think anything of it.  Just a little itch.  But then, the pain intensified and when I looked down, my tootsies we covered with typical black ants.  Except in Costa Rica, the ants are on steroids and those little buggers bite hard!

Back in the van, we traveled for hours along a bumpy road so rough, I wished I had worn a sports bra.  Just around the time when we just couldn’t take it anymore, we arrived in Monteverde at the Cloud Forest Lodge and were greeted with some pleasant surprises.

With just a few short hours to eat lunch and relax, we were back in the van eager to start our next adventure.  This time, our adventure led us to the Don Juan Coffee Tour.

Let me be the first to say that I am not a huge coffee fan.  My family is addicted to the brewed bean, but I never really acquired a taste for the bitter beverage.  Nevertheless, when Papa Carlos told us about the tour, I was excited to learn all about coffee.

In addition to learning the process of coffee-making, the tour also included lessons about cocoa and sugar cane.  Even better, we got to taste as we went.

The family who toured with us had children who were eager to participate.  Luckily, they got the chance when it came time to press the juice out of the sugar cane to create a delicious cocktail with a little lime juice added.  A lot of work went into getting the juice out of the sugar cane, but it was well worth it.

The tour concluded with a hysterical ride on a cart pulled by bulls.  Why was it hysterical?  Well, one of the bulls decided to relieve himself during the ride and a panicked mother was afraid that it was going to be projectile all over her daughter.  We laughed until tears streamed down our faces.

Once the tour was wrapped up, we headed into the town of Santa Elena to grab some snacks and souvenirs before making our way back to the Cloud Forest Lodge.

With the evening free, Karen, Bliss, and I decided that a hike was just the thing to wind ourselves down.  Plus, Bliss had spotted a furry creature earlier in the day, but no one else had seen it so this was our chance to hunt the little guy down.  Fireflies illuminated the sky and the sun set behind the mountains making it the perfect ending to the day.

Too bad we never found that creature.