Volconos and wagon wheels - May 18

Today, Anne and I went on a tour of the Paos Volcano.  My first volcano!  I'm so giddy.  After a delicious breakfast, we met the tour guide, Eric in the lobby and were soon on our way to the Paos National Park.  It was about 90 minute drive through the city and into the country side.  It was fascinating to see all the houses surrounded by fences with bars on the windows.  Eric never mentioned if crime is a problem in Costa Rica, but judging from the security of the houses, it's definitely a concern.  As we headed into the hills, the surrounding area was covered in crops, primarily coffee.  We also saw hillsides covered in acres of black netting that shielded ferns that will soon be showing up in grocery stores and Walmarts in North America. I had never given any thought to where ferns are produced but seeing them being grown was a real treat.

We arrived at the National Park and walked a moderate distance to the crater.  I always assumed that all volcanoes are conical shape.  Not so!  This was definitely a crater and not a cone. See the documented evident above.  This was a deep crater with steam spewing from the side and smelled rather gross.  Kind of like the geysers at Yellow Stone National Park.  We spent some time admiring the view and trekked to another location where a former volcano had become a lake and then headed back to the bus for a quick jaunt to the restaurant for lunch.  It was really good - beans, rice, chicken, and a delicious squash dish with cilantro.

After lunch, we motored to another town about 1/2 hour away to see where they make colorful ox wagon wheels.  Apparently, this is distinct to Costa Rica because the United Nations declared them a "cultural artifact" in 2005 so they are justifiably proud of them.  We visited a workshop where craftsmen were building them by hand.  I was fascinated by their workshop and wished that my father had been there with me.  He would have loved to have seen the tools and the workmanship.  All of the machines were powered by a water wheel too.  I took lots of photos to share since he couldn't be there with me.  Dad, here's just one photo but I'll subject you to more when I see you July.

We were back in the hotel by 3:00 and Anne and quickly packed up our computers and headed out to the pool for libations and e-mails.  We were surrounded by every single child who will be on the voyage and they were having a blast in the pool, quickly making friends with each other.

We have a S@S social event this evening and then it's back to our room to pack our belongings for the transfer to the ship tomorrow.  We have a quick orientation session in the morning and then we are off to the ship.  Can't wait!