Thankfully, breakfast was included at our first hotel. Kioro had a mix of local and international options from French toast to rice and beans. I went right for the omelet bar. My order was simple: everything except ham. My order would be the same for the next two days. The bacon was more of a back bacon, like Canadian bacon, so it was really flat and not very greasy.
Our first stop was Mistico Hanging Bridges park. This is a new attraction, with 21 elevated bridges that are set through nature and the rainforest. Most are small green bridges made of solid steel. But they have four or five long suspension bridges. The views of the lake, hillside and rainforest were magnificent. Unfortunately, the rain started just as we began the trail. It rained so hard that we had to take cover for fifteen minutes. And I never expected rain; I had read that Costa Rica was a very dry climate. Not the northern plains, apparently. We walked maybe two hours and were in desperate need of drying off.
Anxious to escape the rain, we went back to the hotel and had lunch at the poolside. We had beef nachos and breaded chicken wings. The nachos were fine with the shredded beef, but they needed heat and some guacamole. With the rain only getting more and more intense, there was nothing to do except go back to the room. Mom said she was taking a 15 minute nap. As it turned out, we both slept about three hours. We both needed the recovery.
Around 6, I went to the bar for happy hour. I met Joel from Chicago, and Joel and Sean, who are neighbors from Milwaukee. I drank the kioro cocktail with pineapple, orange, and cranberry juice with rum. Chef Joel and I talked for about a half hour all about Chicago restaurants. He's a soux chef at an Italian restaurant on the west side called Formento's. I think I may have to check it out.
Mom and I then drove about twenty minutes west to the town of La Fortuna. It's a small but growing town that's in a great spot since it's near so many hotels. What was interesting was a lot of the restaurants we passed were empty, as this is the slow season for travel. I picked a place called Rancho la Cascada. It was under a large palabra umbrella and specialized in grilled meats and seafood. I ordered a sirloin steak with a vodka mushroom sauce with baby potatoes and a green salad. No, it wasn't a steak that one could get at Morton's. But it was still very flavorful and well-made, it was just a little tough. It only cost thirteen dollars, which was an absolute steal.
We got back to the hotel and I definitely was not ready to call it a night. However since this hotel is more of a getaway place, there really are not many activities to do like games, watch TV, listen to live music, or dance. So I just walked around and found myself in the game room. I played a little pool for a while, but it is not the most fun game when playing alone. I stumbled upon the six hot springs pools and immediately one I wanted in. I rushed back to the room and changed into my bathing suit and headed back to the pools. Actually it was more like the lukewarm springs. There weren't any jets, but I found it really relaxing to just sit in there.
I was heading back to the room and saw some of the same people I have met during happy hour. So I walked over to the bar and ordered a beer. Joel, Joel, Sean, a girl named Stacey, and I spent the next 3 or 4 hours talking about every subject under the sun. Primarily, we discussed the issues between men and women. It was a lot of discussions about sex and they were definitely graphic. But hey, it's not as if I'm going to see these people any time soon, so I guess I wasn't really that bothered by it. I just tended to keep really quiet, especially while Stacey was saying a lot of very blunt things about what women enjoy and what she enjoys. We stayed up till 2 am before I called it a night.
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