The Shy Volcano
November 7th – Arenal
This was due to be one of the highlights of the trip and one I had been looking forward to ever since Vesuvius when I was about 15. Let me explain, we went on a coach trip round Europe with my Mum & Dad and one of the stops was Pompeii. We walked all the way to the top of the extinct volcano and for some stupid reason I expected to look over the rim and see swirling red lava – it was a huge dust bowl. I was so disappointed that ever since I have longed to see red hot magma for real. Arenal, a still very active volcano is said ti have stunning views of the lava – especially at night. We had booked the closest you can get – The Arenal Observatory Lodge. The most expensive night so far on our trip.
The taxi took half an hour to get there and I was so excited by the time we got there. Yes it was still pouring down with rain and yes it looked a bit cloudy still but I was optimistic. Silly me. The route to our room across a hanging bridge and up loads of steps was quite exciting, tiring, but exciting. Our room was pretty basic – the clouds were so low we did not get to see the volcano at all. We all got excited when we heard a low rumbling, which got louder and louder………….and then someone passed by the door, pulling a suitcase on wheels. At least we still laughed.
It got dark – very very dark but still no lava – not even a spark. The highlight was a power cut where I actually got to wear my head torch. The rain pounded the roof all night and was still going strong in the morning. We did see a sloth in the tree by our room and there were loads of amazing colourful birds but no lava. We shared a taxi back to La Fortuna with 2 other groups who were also disappointed but I guess it’s just Mother Nature having a lugh at the tourist’s expense.
Tags: Central America, Travel
roupiesontour
Leave a Reply