Continuacion

Okay so the Fer-de-lance was sooooo scary. James led us on a walk thru the rain forest, and we had 12 people but only 10 could go in at a time. So Rodolfo (one of the U of CR staff) and I stayed back and chatted while the group started the walk and then we joined them later. When we met up with the group, they were going nuts b/c one of the girls had NARROWLY missed stepping on this very dangerous snake (which we later read that those vipers' venom can kill people in 2 hours). So I quickly took a pic of it and ran like everyone else. It was stressful, as Marsha would say. haha On this hike we saw tons of monkeys right above our heads. : )

The whole weekend was incredible and just perfect. I cannot believe we saw ANOTHER leatherback too. I mean how lucky do you have to be to be at the same place (exact spot on the beach) at the same time as the heaviest reptile in the world... and watch her nest her eggs!! FOR 2 YEARS IN A ROW?? I even said to James that I had a good feeling about that night... that we would see the turtle. I felt it in my gut. Psychic maybe? It's like the weekend was made just for us. When our turtle guide Victor said "It is our lucky night", I went nuts when I heard that and then saw the tracks coming from the sea and the turtle's back glistening under the full moon's light (it was about 10 PM).

Tortuguero is such a carefree relaxed place. People walk on the dirt roads barefoot, there are no cars, no post office, no a/c. Just the canals, the sea, and having fun and blasting music and eating and dancing and smoking. No cares in the world. I wouldn't want to live there, but for visiting it's amazing. I was on the beach and in the sea every spare minute I had. I even got up at 430 AM Sun morning to watch the sun rise. It was cloudy (rainstorm over the sea), but I still got some quasi-good shots. We also went to the turtle museum/learning center and the person working there was someone I had met last year-the captain of the Tortuguero soccer team named Jimmy. It was cool to see him again!

*If any coworkers are reading this, even though I am not at orientation, I am still gettng up wicked early every day! haha

The group we have this year is a great group. They all are getting along well and no one is talking behind each other's backs (like in years past). There are no cliques, no outcasts, no making fun, no whiners, no chronic late arrivals, etc. I am really enjoying them!

Today we went to a middle/high school in a town about 40 km away and they did some performances for us. : ) Then we ate at the branch campus in Paraiso and came back to Turrialba so people could get more money and shop.

Okay well I have been on the net for a while so I better go. Even though it's cheap at the internet cafe (100 colones for 20 min which equals 20 cents for 20 min; 500 colones=$1), I am smelling these donuts at the bakery and I might want some. Until next time.... keep the comments coming and thanks for reading!