in the jungle..the mighty jungle...

Indeed. The Jungle. I realise I have been a bit neglectful of late (since I met up with my family in fact) so since New York is long gone and we are in a completely different country, I am just going to move right on to that.

So Costa Rica! Where everyone is friendly and the weather likes to 'monsoon' for at least an hour everyday. Right at this very moment I am sitting in my hotel room doorway (the only place the WIFI works) listening to the sounds of the volcano jungle which is quite a harmony once the sun falls, though we have yet to see a toucan or a monkey or even a tarantula- not that I am complaining about that one.
We are staying at the Arenal volcano, literally right at it...here is the view from our hotel room...

This is an active volcano; apparently back in the day there were tours which allowed people to walk right around the crater, but there were too many deaths at the hand of volcanic ash and eruptions so this is no longer offered. Damn. We have seen smoke but no fire, but a couple of other brand new experiences I have had here more than make up for it.

Yesterday I went swinging through the jungle canopy on cables, ranging from about 50-100 metres high and 130-900 metres in length. Swinging through a forest canopy for nearly a kilometre while trying to keep your hand from flying off the cable is not as easy as it looks, and I ended up having to be rescued on this one. But I can proudly say I conquered (almost) all the other lines with my sheer charm and good looks. And the explicit instructions from the guides.

After this quite full on adventure we spent today pool hopping in the natural hot springs at the base of the volcano. Very relaxing....

Which we followed with a lovely buffet style dinner, a la Australian country pub...Oh Costa Rica, we love you.