Day 2 – February 18th

Today started out with a 6:30 call time. Believe it or not, half of the students reported to breakfast with their bags PRIOR to 6:30! #winning By 7:45am, we were all on our respective buses and on the road. We left San José and ventured around Central Valley to Alajuela to the Doka Estate to learn all about coffee. This coffee plantation is home to the oldest wet mill in the country! Student explored the estate, learned all about how to harvest coffee, and even got to rake real coffee beans. Students raced to opened sacks of coffee beans, find three purple beans, and return the other beans to their respective sacks. It was complete, yet controlled, chaos. With a stop at the gift shop before getting back on the bus, it would be safe to say that our student travelers all had enough caffeine to last them for the rest of the trip. 

Upon leaving Doka Estate, we descended some VERY windy roads to get to Pozo Azul where students enjoyed some traditional Costa Rican food. There was a toucan spotting and beautiful views of the water. From Pozo Azul, we headed to the Arenal Volcano where students took a small "hike" to a lake by the volcano. We happened to pass La Paz Waterfall on the way there. Pretty cool, no? Did you know that there are nine active volcanoes in Costa Rica? Of the nine, there are six with visible activity. The remaining three are active but the activity cannot be seen from the outside.

Tomorrow we willing kayaking around and swimming in Lake Arenal, hiking down to and swimming in a waterfall, as well as hitting the Baldi Hot Springs. The water at the hot springs is heated by the volcano! Overall, everyone is having a great time! 

Did you know that Costa Rica abolished its army in 1948? Did you know that Costa Rica has a 96% literacy rate? (Cuba is the only country with a 100% literacy rate!)